I helped bring contemporary music into our church back in the 1990's and saw nothing wrong with it. Of course, back then I was highly dispensational and very into Finneyesque evangelism.
We moved out of the Bible belt and I was forced by geography to detox from CCM and my own personal favorites of southern gospel worship and country gospel worship.
Now we are back where CCM is the rage. We cannot stomach it. Once you go a few years not hearing it, just the truly old hymns, it changes your perception.
Now let me be clear--there is SOME contemporary music that is excellent, and done quite well at church. Songs like Amazing Grace-my chains are gone. Good modern hymns that fit into a hymn sandwich wonderfully, are edifying, and we heartily support that sort of new music.
But once you really experience Christ centered worship--all about Him and not aimed at engendering an emotional response--over a long period of time, you begin to smell manipulation, trances, and opening ourselves up to the control of the "manipulator" when it happens. And you refuse it.
We were at a service good Friday in a neighboring church as visitors. The hymns were wonderful. Most of the CCM was also Christ centered and wonderful. But one song--forgive me, I do not know its name--had one line about "Lord I'm amazed at your love for me" done repetitively at LEAST 30 times. Praise team eyes shut, swaying like belt buckle polishing movement. We watched the crowd fall one by one into that sort of trance, swaying, some swaying in a very sexual manner. Our young grandchild's response was "Ok, I think God gets it by now."
We talked later that we objected to the one song for two reasons. Number one was that it really wasn't worshipping Christ, but allowed the focus to be on the worshipper. Number two was that it really was using the beat, slowed, and then gradually slowing, plus the standing and arms raised and even the lighting as it dimmed to exercise scientific methods of crowd control to bring people to a preplanned emotional response.
So nowadays I challenge people with this: whatever music you prefer in church, try detoxing from it. If you find church boring, or just "don't get as much out of it", or cannot stand going to it without "your" music (no matter what), maybe music has become an idol for you. And if you get angry--really boiling angry--or nasty with people who say they don't like "your" music, then it has become a really powerful idol.
My personal opinion and taste would be that we would all enjoy the freedom to LISTEN and sing along with whatever Christian music hays our wagon. But in church, I personally would eliminate the praise team and the band as they seem to reduce congregational singing. I would put whatever instruments we used (piano, organ, guitar, whatever) out of sight in the back. Put the choir back in the choir loft out of sight, and put the song leader back there also. (All this for 6 months to a year detoxing from the performance and "star" mindset. Remember I am a musician.) Eliminate all the music except hymns for 6 months, then slowing add back the gospel songs, then the better modern hymns.
Perhaps after detoxing from Mr. Finney's capable crowd control techniques we could then have a sensible discussion of what is and what isn't good church music.
Since that isn't likely to happen, if worship is Finneyesque or Pentecostal in the local Baptist church, we opt out. Pastors come and go, so styles change. And not all are hypersensitive if you come in after the music for the preaching. If they are, we can also opt out of preaching service
That is just our opinion, not gospel. But we are free to live what we believe God would have us do.....the whole idea of being Baptist.
We moved out of the Bible belt and I was forced by geography to detox from CCM and my own personal favorites of southern gospel worship and country gospel worship.
Now we are back where CCM is the rage. We cannot stomach it. Once you go a few years not hearing it, just the truly old hymns, it changes your perception.
Now let me be clear--there is SOME contemporary music that is excellent, and done quite well at church. Songs like Amazing Grace-my chains are gone. Good modern hymns that fit into a hymn sandwich wonderfully, are edifying, and we heartily support that sort of new music.
But once you really experience Christ centered worship--all about Him and not aimed at engendering an emotional response--over a long period of time, you begin to smell manipulation, trances, and opening ourselves up to the control of the "manipulator" when it happens. And you refuse it.
We were at a service good Friday in a neighboring church as visitors. The hymns were wonderful. Most of the CCM was also Christ centered and wonderful. But one song--forgive me, I do not know its name--had one line about "Lord I'm amazed at your love for me" done repetitively at LEAST 30 times. Praise team eyes shut, swaying like belt buckle polishing movement. We watched the crowd fall one by one into that sort of trance, swaying, some swaying in a very sexual manner. Our young grandchild's response was "Ok, I think God gets it by now."
We talked later that we objected to the one song for two reasons. Number one was that it really wasn't worshipping Christ, but allowed the focus to be on the worshipper. Number two was that it really was using the beat, slowed, and then gradually slowing, plus the standing and arms raised and even the lighting as it dimmed to exercise scientific methods of crowd control to bring people to a preplanned emotional response.
So nowadays I challenge people with this: whatever music you prefer in church, try detoxing from it. If you find church boring, or just "don't get as much out of it", or cannot stand going to it without "your" music (no matter what), maybe music has become an idol for you. And if you get angry--really boiling angry--or nasty with people who say they don't like "your" music, then it has become a really powerful idol.
My personal opinion and taste would be that we would all enjoy the freedom to LISTEN and sing along with whatever Christian music hays our wagon. But in church, I personally would eliminate the praise team and the band as they seem to reduce congregational singing. I would put whatever instruments we used (piano, organ, guitar, whatever) out of sight in the back. Put the choir back in the choir loft out of sight, and put the song leader back there also. (All this for 6 months to a year detoxing from the performance and "star" mindset. Remember I am a musician.) Eliminate all the music except hymns for 6 months, then slowing add back the gospel songs, then the better modern hymns.
Perhaps after detoxing from Mr. Finney's capable crowd control techniques we could then have a sensible discussion of what is and what isn't good church music.
Since that isn't likely to happen, if worship is Finneyesque or Pentecostal in the local Baptist church, we opt out. Pastors come and go, so styles change. And not all are hypersensitive if you come in after the music for the preaching. If they are, we can also opt out of preaching service
That is just our opinion, not gospel. But we are free to live what we believe God would have us do.....the whole idea of being Baptist.
