Style or Substance?
August 24th, 2007
(By John MacArthur)
What’s the Biggest Problem with Contemporary Church Music?
It should be clear to anyone who examines the subject carefully that modern church music, as a rule, is vastly inferior to the classic hymns that were being written 200 years ago.
And incidentally, my own assessment is that the style in which music is written today isn’t really the biggest problem with contemporary music. Styles change. Bad church music isn’t bad just because it is “contemporary.” But the content of the lyrics is what reveals most graphically how low our standards have slipped.
This is not a problem that arose with the current generation. It dates back to an era whose musical style would seem quite old-fashioned by anyone’s standards today.
Before the middle part of the 19th century or so, hymns were wonderful didactic tools, filled with Scripture and sound doctrine, a medium for teaching and admonishing one another, as we are commanded in Colossians 3:16. Most hymns were written not by teenagers with guitars, but by pastors and theologians: Charles Wesley, Augustus Toplady, Isaac Watts.
Consider the profound content of this hymn about God’s attributes, written by Walter C. Smith in the 1800s:
Immortal, invisible
Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
Most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
Almighty, victorious, Thy great Name we praise.Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
Nor wanting, nor wasting, Thou rulest in might;
Thy justice, like mountains, high soaring above
Thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.To all, life Thou givest, to both great and small;
In all life Thou livest, the true life of all;
We blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree,
And wither and perish—but naught changeth Thee.Great Father of glory, pure Father of light,
Thine angels adore Thee, all veiling their sight;
But of all Thy rich graces this grace, Lord, impart
Take the veil from our faces, the vile from our heart.All laud we would render; O help us to see
‘Tis only the splendor of light hideth Thee,
And so let Thy glory, Almighty, impart,
Through Christ in His story, Thy Christ to the heart.
Around the start of the twentieth century, however, church music took a different direction. Musicians and singers without formal pastoral or theological training (such as Ira Sankey and Philip Bliss) became the dominant songwriters in the church. Choruses with lighter, simpler subject matter proliferated. Popular Christian music became more subjective. Songs focused on personal experience and the feelings of the worshiper. The newer compositions were often called “gospel songs” to distinguish them from “hymns.”
Consider this familiar chorus, written in 1912 by C. Austin Miles:
In the Garden
I come to the garden alone
While the dew is still on the roses
And the voice I hear falling on my ear
The Son of God discloses.And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other has ever known.He speaks, and the sound of His voice,
Is so sweet the birds hush their singing,
And the melody that He gave to me
Within my heart is ringing.I’d stay in the garden with Him
Though the night around me be falling,
But He bids me go; through the voice of woe
His voice to me is calling.
Aside from an oblique reference to “the Son of God” in the last line of the first stanza, there’s no distinctly Christian content to that song at all.
“In the Garden” is by no means the only wretched favorite from the gospel-song era, either. “Love Lifted Me” (1912) and “Count Your Blessings” (1897) are two more “gospel songs” without much actual gospel content. If you want to see what thin gruel some of the “oldies” offer by way of actual biblical or doctrinal substance, review almost any random list of favorite old “gospel songs.”
Modern musicians have pushed this trend even further and often see music as little more than a device for stimulating intense emotion. The biblically-mandated didactic role of music is all but forgotten.
The effect is predictable. What we have sown for several generations we are now reaping in frightening abundance. The modern church, fed on choruses with insipid lyrics, has no appetite for her own great tradition of didactic hymnody.
We are in danger of losing a rich heritage as some of the best hymns of our faith fall into neglect and disuse, being replaced with banal lyrics set to catchy tunes. Thankfully, there are some wonderful exceptions to this trend — exceptions which we hope will soon turn the tide. In the meantime, our prayer is that both pastors and church musicians will come to realize the severity of the crisis and the vital importance of theologically-sound worship music.
An encouraging trend, of late is what I call the rise of the modern hymn movement. Keith Getty & Stuart Townend are writing excellent modern hymns, designed for use across ages and music styles. Also Sovereign Grace Ministries is producing some excellent praise music, as well as offering new arrangements to the really good hymns of old.
It does seem that the last 15 years have seen an increase in the quality of the lyrical content of contemporary Christian music. The widespread popularity of the new group Casting Crowns, for instance, attests to the desire for deep, rich, challenging Christian lyrics.
Thanks for pointing out this problem, and for showing that style isn’t it. Often those who criticize modern praise music for its repetition, turn right around and sing “bringing in the sheaves” with its repetitive chorus.
If anyone is interested I highlight some great modern praise songs here. There is a lot of good music being made, but as you imply it takes some work to find it. My church, (Pastor John Piper’s) does find a good balance between older hymns and modern praise music that is doctrinally rich and spiritually challenging.
Blessings from Jesus,
Bob Hayton
It’s about time church leaders speak out about this serious subject. – I find it very difficult to join in with many worship groups when the words are not biblical.
Thank you for addressing this issue.
May God richly bless you for your honesty.
What really irks me about this issue is how many Christian “artists” have gone from being performers to self-proclaimed “worship” leaders. There is this one hymn-sounding (in the musical sense) song that drives me crazy because it’s so cheezy and fluffy. There are several “Untitled Hymns” out there seeking acceptance but lacking lyrics worth accepting. But as MacArthur points out, people don’t care much about the lyrics… as long as it feels good.
I tip my hat in agreement with Bob about Sovereign Grace Ministeries and the like.
“We are in danger of losing a rich heritage as some of the best hymns of our faith fall into neglect and disuse, being replaced with banal lyrics set to catchy tunes.”
Partly for that very reason, and partly because we just love the old hymns rich with sound doctrine, we began a family tradition about 9 years ago that incorporates hymn singing every night as a part of our family devotion.
Even before the younger kids were old enough to read, we’d sing the same hymn each night until they all knew it, then we’d move on to a new one and learn that one together. Now that all but one of them is old enough to read, I print out the lyrics on a seperate sheet of paper for each of them, and that’s a big help to them in learning the hymn.
We discuss who wrote it, when they wrote it, what church they were a part of, what passage or verse of Scripture they were inspired by TO write it, and really get a good background on the hymn as we all learn it.
There are few things more precious than hearing a 4 year old sitting on the swing or laying in her bed singing a verse or a chorus of such hymns as Amazing Grace or Abide With Me. Or, to see the looks of excitement on their faces as we begin to sing an old hymn in church that they know all the words too. “hey, I know this song!” has been said several times by each of them.
I hope this tradition continues with their own families some day.
SDG,
Carla Rolfe
Excellent, Carla… Young people shuold hear the classics and know the richness of the lyrical content. The whole youth-centered Jesus-is-my-homeboy approach is revolting. The new so-called worship songs and contemporary Chrsitian music sound like cows being slaughtered next door to an auto wrecking yard. I test cars by profession and sometimes I get into a stranger’s car and hear what sounds like a drugged-out loser with a closepin on his nose bleating over a cacophany of noise and I think “ah, poor lost soul” and then I realize it’s “Christian” music! All Hail The Power of Jesus’ Name!
I would like to know if you, John Macarthur, endorse the music supported by the last several posts, including Sovereign Grace Ministries, and Casting Crowns. I believe, the Scriptures give us everything for life and Godliness, including instruction and principles concerning styles of music. Just as the clothes we wear speak a language to others, so the language of music also, speaks to others about our God, and His character.
To put style in an amoral category is contrary to your own teachings in all of your books that I have read.
The thoughts that have been expressed concerning the lyrics, I wholeheartedly agree with, but the style of music we listen to MUST reflect the character of our unworldly God.
A strong supporter of your ministry,
Jeff
I don’t believe I ever appreciated the great doctrines in the classic hymns until I sat under the music teaching of Grace Community Church’s Clayton Erb. We wouldn’t sing a hymn or any lyrics that contained error. The explanation of the error, in detail, and the subsequent understanding set the stage for the choir to sing to assist worship rather than sing to perform.
I have always loved gospel music. However, it saddens me whenever I hear lyrics that just fly in the face of Christian doctrinal soundness and biblical truth. I’m having to re-examine my love for this traditional form of music and may have to reject it entirely if it doesn’t improve. A recent gospel song that contains the lyrics “…they searched heaven to find a savior…” is a prime example of horrible error. How can so-called believing Christians even sing such an error-filled song? Or, better yet, how can they excuse the error and keep on choosing songs that are filled with error? Thankfully, not all gospel singers or groups accept error. We need to point out these errors in Christian love so as to awake these sleeping people.
Bob Hayton said: “It does seem that the last 15 years have seen an increase in the quality of the lyrical content of contemporary Christian music. The widespread popularity of the new group Casting Crowns, for instance, attests to the desire for deep, rich, challenging Christian lyrics.”
I love Casting Crowns and enjoy very much listening to their CDs. But as John pointed out in this post: “Around the start of the twentieth century, … musicians and singers without formal pastoral or theological training (such as Ira Sankey and Philip Bliss) became the dominant songwriters in the church.”
Casting Crowns occassionally reveals this lack of formal theological training, as is seen in the song “What If His People Prayed?” Although their misuse of 2 Chronicles 7:14 is quite common, this does not make it any more theologically sound.
Jeff,
At Grace we sing some Sovereign Grace songs at the evening service as well as hymns with more modern band sound (same melody, though). The folks who play during the evening service do a great job of obtaining a “modern” sound yet without making the common mistake of blasting the music. The lyrics are always the focal point.
As far as style being amoral, I think some would say it is because morality isn’t a paradigm we normally assign to music. Music is thought of in terms of quality–good, bad, ok, amature, professional, etc. To think of it in moral terms you would need to give a definition of morality that music can be judged by since there are no imperatives one way or the other in Scripture.
The principles you mention certainly do come into play (ie. order, harmony, tonality), but one would not say that someone who “screams” their music is immoral as we would normally use the term. We would just say they were a horrible singer. Along the same lines, I don’t think any believer or unbeliever will be judged for poor musicality.
What are your thoughts on that, or how you define music in moral terms?
I do not believe there is any intent by contemporary Christian musicians to make music which is not theologically sound. In fact, their passion for Christ is probably much more authentic then many members of a local congregation.
But I believe there are three factors which have led to the decline of quality Christian songwriting. Contemporary Christian musicians:
(1)have very little training in theology and how the words used to reference scriptures can convey deep meanings.
(2)are trying to emulate the cultural success pop artist have had in the MTV generation.
(3)live with the rest of the world in hyperdrive and everything has to happen now (immediate gratification). This is almost counter-intuitive to meditating on thoughts and words to accurately represent your faith and the truth of God in song.
Addressing the issue of using appropriate music in worship is very important because being zealous for God does not lead to salvation. The Apostle Paul understood this well which is why he wrote:
“For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.” Romans 10:2,3 NKJV
Great topic Thanks for everyone’s insight into this interesting issue.
Richard,
You’re right that Casting Crowns isn’t necessarily theologically trained. On the example you mention, it doesn’t fit the theology of dispensationalism, but for covenant theology folks, like myself, it certainly applies to the church today.
Also, theological training is helpful, but Christians are going to be making “new songs” for God’s honor, whether trained or not.
It’s easy to be extremely nit picky about music. But I find that some songs I may not particularly enjoy (they don’t hit home with me, or seem to have a deep enough message), really minister to the guy 2 pews down from me. For this reason a balanced, blended musical approach can best serve all generations and peoples in a church. The music can be a way we unify around the message of the truth.
Thanks for the interaction.
God bless you in Christ,
Bob Hayton
Regarding the morality question concerning musical styles, perhaps this article can help with the discussion: “Morality, Music, and the Bible“.
Blessings in Jesus,
Bob Hayton
It is a very valid point that most hymn writers of the past were pastors and theologians first, not musicians. The criteria for most modern ‘worship leaders’ nowadays is in musical skill first, not theological training – which explains the lack of spiritual depth and teaching in more recent church music writings.
However – there is some difficulty for those leading in congregational worship to incorperate the older hymns, because instrumentation has changed significantly, in response to a change in style. Guitars now play a lead role in many worship services, and those of you who play guitar will sympathize at how difficult it is to take the piano score from an old hymn and play it on the guitar – the rhythm and melody from the music is hard to replicate, with many attempts sounding choppy and lacking the flow that comes naturally on piano or organ.
But if we look at most of the noted hymn writers of the past, we see that not many of them were actually musicians. The lyrics that they wrote were given to musicans to set to music – and many hymns have several tunes that they can be sung to. So it is possible for a contemporary style of music be used with the lyrics written by great theologians of the past. The one source I’ve found of this ‘new music for old hymns’ is the Reformed University Fellowship Online Hymnbook: http://www.igracemusic.com/hymnbook/home.html
A quote from their home page explains what they have been doing: “We have been thrilled to see a movement gaining momentum – a movement to help the church recover the tradition of putting old hymns to new music for each generation, and to enrich our worship with a huge view of God and His indelible grace. We have found through years of ministering to college students that there is a real hunger to connect with something real and solid, something that is ancient, yet full of passion. Putting old hymns to new music allows us to hear afresh the rich theology and emotion that fill these hymns.”
Rev. Kevin Twit,RUF Campus Minister, Belmont University heads up this website, and there are several recordings and a songbook available for purchase online.
I think that this collection is a wonderful example of the way that old hymns can be married with a contemporary style, without losing any of their spiritual depth and theological meaning.
Do check this resource out and pass it on to those in music leadership at your place of worship.
In Him,
Janinne la Fleur
Thank you John for speaking out, albeit perhaps too graciously, at least from my position in a seeker-friendly church. Why is it that we cyclically default to using the ways and means of the world, ostensibly to reach the lost, and end up diluting righteousness, truth and the out-of-this-world testimony we’re called to?
I’m almost sickened by this entire thread. Isn’t it God who quickens an individual’s heart to worship? Communal worship is a mass organization of the like? What place do any of you have to define what God puts on the heart of an individual? Just because you are too old to identify with it shouldn’t mean that it can’t be used as worship. I find the old church hymns to be written in a language that I can’t identify with. Maybe my lack of intellect disqualifies me from worshiping with the likes of you.
The article is very thought provoking. I sent the article to a dear friend online and she was highly insulted. We accept so much on the basis of tradition that sometimes we really don’t give it the thought it deserves.
At any rate on the site Wikipedia it states: In 1883, Sankey and Moody visited the UK. Sankey’s hymns were promoted by the famous London Baptist preacher, Charles Spurgeon, long afterwards.
In Him,
Ava
I understand Dreu’s comment “I find the old church hymns to be written in a language that I can’t identify with”. I was schooled in England and only got to sing hymns and psalms, which I certainly did not understand as a teenager in the 1970s. Now I can appreciate the words and ideas embodied in those hymns, but that is with the benefit of 30 years.
My wife and I attend the youth service at our church every week with our teenage kids, and see how the modern songs really connect with them in a way that the hymns just don’t do.
I still enjoy a good hymn though, and usually get to sing it in the morning service which the ‘older’ folks attend.
I have been an observer of church music for many years—a variety of churches, denominations, hymnals, Christian colleges and camps, etc. I agree completely with the original post. Most of the hymns written in the 1600s, 1700s, and 1800s are simply the words and concepts of Scripture; i.e., solid doctrine and theology. However, as Dr. MacArthur described so well, in the last 100 years or so, but especially in about the last 25 years, the doctrine-dense hymns of the church have been replaced with watered-down, dumbed-down ditties. Many of these songs are just subjective, emotional, Jesus-is-my-boyfriend *fluff.* (No wonder men stay away from church in droves.)
A number of years ago I noticed an interesting correlation among teens and young adults who knew and loved the doctrine-dense hymns of old. These young people also knew their Bibles very well. Fascinated with this discovery, I watched young people whenever I had the chance–to see what their music preferences were–and without exception, I found this to be true: Those who knew and loved the old hymns also knew their Bibles very well.
Another observation about these old hymns. The poetry is excellent—evidence of much time and effort in its craftsmanship. Take the hymn “Immortal, Invisible,” named above. Here is the first verse, again:
Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
Most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
Almighty, victorious, Thy great Name we praise.
Note that *every phrase rhymes,* –not just the last words of the lines. And in the first phrase of each line, TWO syllables rhyme. The meter is perfect, as well.
The same pattern is found in the hymn “O Worship the King” (6 verses, based on Psalm 104):
O worship the King, all glorious above,
And gratefully sing, His power and His love.
Our shield and defender, the Ancient of Days,
Pavilioned in splendor, and girded with praise.
High-quality poetry is easy to memorize; that is why children memorize these hymns so easily–often just from singing them a few times, and thus “painlessly learn doctrine and theology,” as Elisabeth Elliot has so well said.
(An aside: Did you notice the phrase “Ancient of Days” used in both of these hymns? Do you know what it means and where it comes from? It’s a phrase describing the eternal character of Christ, and it comes from the book of Daniel.)
So I, too, would like to see a revival of the great hymns of our faith–hymns written by those who knew their Bibles and knew their God, and hymns which have strengthened and sustained the Church for hundreds of years.
Frankly, I don’t think the old-fashioned hymns will ever completely go away nor do I feel new hymns and music in the traditional style will cease to be created in the future. I am a little bit more optimistic in the sense that there are many newer artists who have adopted a more traditional style of music to praise and glorify God.
Just my opinion.
I earned a certificate in worship leading at my church’s Bible College. As such I was REQUIRED to take two semesters of systematic theology. The same theology the pastors-in-training are getting.
I think that is a very good idea!
I am also a songwriter-and I would like to make the point that a song does not necessarily need to be complex to be used for worship. In fact, sometimes it’s better to have something a little simpler-for instance if one is leading a small group in worship (something I do often.) A song can be simple without being simplistic or inaccurate theologically.
I also agree that we songwriters need to “step it up” when it comes to the quality of lyrics. One thing our church’s songwriting group stresses is co-writing-not everyone is equally skilled in composing AND lyric writing.
One thing we recommend is that prospective writers saturate themselves in Scripture, and particularly Psalms.
Gabriel,
Thank you for your thoughtful response. It shows me that you have a genuine relationship with Christ and love for the brethren.
I have more to say than I can possibly put on this post, but let me quote some from a book by Tim Fisher entitled “Harmony at Home”. I highly recommend buying this book if you are serious about what the Bible says about music.
The following is from Question #2 (out of 20 commonly asked questions) beginning on page 81.
“Scripture does not support the neutrality of music. In 1st Samuel 16 we find that King Saul found moral, physical, and emotional help in the music of David (vs. 23). Please note that this was purely instrumental music (“David took an harp, and played with his hand”). A fact often overlooked in this passage is that Saul’s servants earlier in the chapter advised him to seek a musician for the specific purpose of getting help! See vs. 15-17:
“And Saul’s servants said to him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God terrifies you.
Let our lord now command his servants before you to seek out a man who knows to play on a harp. And it shall be, when the evil spirit from God is on you, then he shall play with his hand, and it shall be well with you. And Saul said to his servants, Now look for me a man who can play well, and bring him to me. “
Saul’s servants knew of the moral/physical/mental benefits that good music would afford the king. There is no speculation in their suggestion – if they sought a well-trained musician, he had the power through his musical ability and performance to affect King Saul. There is no room for neutrality in this passage – or, for that matter, in any other passage of Scripture. (See also 2nd Kings 3:15 for a similar treatment of music.)
The basic principle of music in the Bible and in our lives is found in passages dealing with the believer’s “new song” (Ps. 33:3; 40:3; 96:1; 98:1; 144:9; 149:1; Isa. 42:10; Rev. 5:9). Correlating these with the New Testament emphasis on renewal (Rom. 12:1-2; 2nd Cor. 5:17; Gal. 6:15; Eph. 4:24), we see that there is no room in the renewed Christian life for music which represents the “old way” (i.e., the way of the world, or worldliness). Music which promotes sensuality and carnality cannot be “of the spirit.”
There are no allowances in the Bible for us to use just any kind of music we choose to convey a spiritual message.”
He goes on to quote people from throughout history that say that music always has morality and then he says, “In fact, no one has ever attempted to portray music as being morally neutral except Christians in the last 30 years who are trying to bring pop and rock styles into the church.” And then, “You can research the findings in science, psychology, biology, history, philosophy, musicology, and theology and not find anything referring to the moral neutrality of music. This fallacious belief found not only its beginnings, but also its sole supporters, within the Contemporary Christian Music community.”
I hope you buy this book and his other book entitled “The Battle for Christian Music”. His website is: smsrecordings.com.
Jeff
Hi,
I also have a concern about some of the “mordern” songs sung in church.
Many of them leave me stone cold. The songs are usually repeated over and over.
Charles Wesley had no time for repetitive songs
The older hymns have a sound biblical base.
There are also a number of modern ones which are also based on biblical doctrine.
As a worship pastor and songwriter, I recognize the difficulty in discipling a congregation in the matter of church music. It is a long, arduous process that is hindered by the quality and content of new music that is offered in bulk by various church music sources, as well as the periodicals and literature that market them.
We are instructed to teach and admonish each other with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Hymns are one important aspect of this. Many of the more modern worship songs fall into the category of psalms and spiritual songs. We need them too.
Remember that the problem did not start within the last few years. “In The Garden” is nearly a hundred years old, and I can list many, many worship songs written within the past 5 years that have considerably deeper theological content. It is no sin for a presentation of the Gospel to be comprehensible to its surrounding culture, as long as it is indeed a presentation of the Gospel.
God, through His Holy Spirit, will correct the church as we songwriters are faithful to follow His commands. We must trust that this is true, and work toward that end.
If one soul is truly saved through a hymn or through a modern Christian music song, God rejoices. God can use hymns of the past and choruses of today to accomplish His will, despite man’s lyrical shortcomings. So long as the heart of the songwriter is truly of God, our thoughts and comments about this subject are irrelevant.
John 3:30,
-Chris Sammond
Pastor of Worship and Music Ministries
North Fairfield Baptist Church
Hamilton, Ohio, USA
I am AA and I too miss the hymns from service. There is so much power in hymns.They point to the cross and what Christ did just for me, it becomes personal.
Chris,
I am not quite sure how a soul can be saved thruogh a song. Truly the lyrics of a song san be sung to glorify and honor God, but God’s Holy Spirit and Only God’s Holy Spirit is what brings a sinner to the point of repentance for his sins. You said “So as long as the heart of the song-writer is truly of God, our thoughts and comments about it are irrelevant.” The fact that someone is sincere about something does not make that something God-honoring. Many people have been sincerely trying to honor God and errored greatly. Consider Saul in 1 Kings 15 when he kept some of the spoils to be offered as a burnt offering. He obviously had the best intentions he could have had but did God accept his offering? We can bring our best to God but to think that the fact, that we are truly desiring to please Him, will make it God-honoring is at best, untrue and at worst, self-righteous.
Dreu,
TRUE WORSHIP OF GOD IS THE RESPONSE OF A CHRISTIAN WHEN SHOWN AN OMNIPOTENT GOD. The physical singing of the songs is not what the worship is. A person can sing all the songs he knows and not have worshiped God at all. Worship comes from the heart of someone overwhelmed with the realization of God’s power. Whether old or young you cannot worship God with the world’s music or in any other of the world’s ways. If you cannot identify with true worship of God than you need to evaluate whether or not you are in fellowship with God.
Thank you John for addressing this. It is far too often that weak lyrics rob our modern churches of the great gift the Lord has given us with through our rich musical heritage of hymns. I would challenge anyone who has commented here to spend a Sunday in a church where classic hymns are sung powerfully by a chorus and by the body of believers. You will discover the difference.
Leave the contemporary music to our car stereos and ipods.
The worship services during our corporate time on Sundays should amount to rich biblical truth as well as uplifting music.
Russ,
You are absolutely correct in stating that the worship services on Sundays should amount to rich biblical truth as well as uplifting music. But doesn’t God care about our everyday lives as well? Are you saying that God only cares about what we listen to at church and doesn’t care what we listen to when we are alone? The music that we listen to should not violate the character of God by putting Him in the same category as the world! If we listen to the world’s music, even with christian words to it, then we are guilty of lowering our standards to those of the world; and we know that this is not acceptable to God. We must seek to honor God every single minute of our lives. (even on weekdays)
This exchange is refresing! We have wandered away from biblical lyrics. A few Sundays ago i listened as a member sang the wonderful song “Thank You for Giving to the Lord.” As i listened i heard in a different way. The entire song gave praise to a person, not the Lord.
So much of our music now features what we are going to do for God; like He needs our help or something.
What we offer to God must be different that what we consume on ourselves.
Keep up the discussion! Draw us back to The Word.
Blesings
The following describes experiences I had with a church that, as Russ Moore said above, “sings hymns powerfully,” and with a church that did not.
I have long thought that contemporary worship music is feminizing to the Church. Several years ago I had the opportunity to observe the congregational singing of two large evangelical churches in the Chicago area, and the conclusions that I drew from that experience are the basis for my thoughts here.
I lived in the city of Chicago for 4 years and during that time attended a large non-denominational church: average Sunday morning attendance: 1500. The church used a hymnal, but more and more, over those 4 years, I saw the worship services change from mostly hymns, with one or two praise choruses, to mostly praise choruses, with one or two hymns. For the hymns, the accompaniment was piano (grand) and organ (pipe), with extremely competent musicians. For the praise choruses, however, the organist played a small electronic keyboard on a stand next to the organ. (I always felt sorry for him. A master organist consigned to play a little 3-octave electronic keyboard.)
In June 1998, toward the end of my time in Chicago, I attended a church music seminar, held at a large church in the western suburbs. That church was about the same size as my own, and it, too, had a grand piano and pipe organ. The seminar was excellent, and I’m so glad I was able to go. The choir of that church sang several times during the conference, and they were very good. I also met the church’s music minister, and was so impressed with his philosophy of church music, as well as with other aspects of this church’s music, that I decided to visit this church the next Sunday morning.
That Sunday, as I looked through the bulletin during the prelude, I saw that we would be singing only hymns, as the music minister had told me—hymns that would be considered “great, historic hymns of the church.” Watts and Wesley were well represented.
As we sang the first notes of the first hymn, I was astonished at what I heard. There was a *significant* difference in the quality of the singing between this congregation and my own, back in the city. This congregation had a depth and strength to its singing that my own did not. It was obvious that the *men* were really singing–and many were singing tenor or bass. The difference between the two congregations was so stark that I stopped singing and just listened in wonderment for the remainder of the hymn. The other hymns that morning were sung in the same way.
The next Sunday, back in my church in the city, the singing of the choruses and the hymns was “thin” — melody only, and few men could be heard.
Over the next few days I thought a lot about that experience, and why the singing was so different. The only answer I could come up with was that praise choruses are feminizing to men and once a church “crosses the line,” so to speak, from primarily hymn-singing to primarily chorus-singing, *all* the singing of that congregation changes, and is feminized–either
a) qualitatively–where the men become effeminate in their singing, or
b) quantitatively–where the men are so repelled by the music that they do not participate—or they don’t come to church at all.
The following factors contribute to that process.
1. Most praise songs are subjective and emotionally oriented: what *I* think; what *I* feel; what *I* want to do. Such content is more appealing to women than to men.
2. Because usually just the words (not the music) are visible on the screen or in the bulletin, 4-part harmony–with the men singing their parts– is nearly impossible.
3. Many praise choruses are made popular by commercial Christian “artists.” Most male artists today sing in a style that is breathy and effeminate, and if such popular Christian music is what churchgoers listen to. . . .
I recently listened to an on-line clip of a male singer who has for years been considered conservative and “middle of the road.” Well, sad to say, he, too, has adopted the breathy style. How I miss singers such as Frank Boggs, Bill Pierce, and Hale and Wilder! And groups such as the “16 Singing Men,” and the “Melody Four Quartet”!
4. Many men have never been encouraged to really *sing.* In most churches today, congregational singing has become less and less important, with the “performers” (aka the worship team) doing the singing, and the congregation mostly listening passively.
5. Hymns that have challenging men’s parts, where the men are really encouraged to sing, are pretty much a thing of the past. Alas! These hymns would include:
* All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name (second tune–“Diadem”)
* The Spacious Firmament
* Joy to the World
* Wonderful Grace of Jesus
Other hymns that lend themselves to vigorous singing would include “O Worship the King,” “A Mighty Fortress is Our God,” “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty,” “Crown Him with Many Crowns,” “Soldiers of Christ, Arise,” “Rejoice, the Lord is King,” and many more.
(When was the last time you sang any of these hymns, all the verses, with a song leader who inspired you to sing to the Lord with all your heart? When was the last time you sang a hymn, where the leader had just the men sing one of the verses?)
Because many churches have noticed that the men tend not to participate in contemporary worship, they have implemented elements of popular culture and entertainment in order to attract the men. A very sad situation indeed.
We blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree,
And wither and perish—but naught changeth Thee.
That’s really going to impact today’s generation. It sad that people do not know enough about church history to realize that the music of the church has and will always change to reach a new generation.
Mike
It is sad to think that churches would lower their standards to accomodate a new generation that is lowering its standards. “We blossom and flourish as leaves on a tree, and wither and perish but naught changeth thee.” What a true statement about God’s faithfulness. Even though we sinners change we can be sure that our God’s standards will NEVER EVER change for any reason.
When listening to the worship of today I count the words “I” and “Me”. Worship of today is ‘me’ centered, not God centered. I totally agree with the statement regarding the banality of the lyrics. Music has been dumbed down and quality has been sacrificed to appease the ’seat of the pants’ approach to worship. This is an extreme reaction, I believe, by the ‘young’ to arrogantly abandon anything ‘traditional’. In the meantime, we have eliminated worship of God completely, in my opinion. Who can worship God, when banal self-centered music is the only option in church? And, I am saddened that this discussion isn’t even allowed in most churches because any discussion is deemed an attack, and thus not welcome. Thank you for addressing this topic.
MacArthur – what a gifted way he has to state the needful words of the moment.
Praise God for men such as this who can say what I’m thinking in a meaningful, helpful way.
What about the fact that much of modern church music and modern music in general is just bad from an artistic sense and people don’t seem to be willing or able to discern between good music and bad music? Bach’s cantatas are great from a musical and artistic standpoint. Watts and Wesley’s hymns are great from a musical standpoint (even if others wrote the music). Isn’t part of worship bringing your best to God? If so, I would say that the best music in western culture is not represented by the vast majority of contemporary music. That said, I do think that there is some which will stand the test of time and much of the overly sentimental “hymms” from the 20th century will not stand the test of time.
To put it in a secular context, Frank Sinatra’s records are better, from an artistic sense, than modern popular music. Some current singers may be talented, but the music and lyrics are bad. To me, it is simply perpetual immaturity and twenty and thirty somethings (and their parents) want to continue to act, think, dress like and listen to music of teenagers.
Some excellent comments. An excellent book I read on that contemporary music is called “Why I Left the Contemporary Christian Movement” by Dan Lucarini (Evangelical Press – pub. 2002) and I understand he and John Blanchard have a new book called “Can We Rock the Gospel” which is probably also worth reading. That loud banging contemporary music really ‘irks’ my spirit immediately and I just cannot tolerate it. A USA Christian Station I use to listen to, in mid 1980’s played beautiful Christian music as well as aired excellent teaching but then with the new President it changed and I stopped listening because I just could not tolerate that awful music. (Now it has another new President and I wonder whether he will make changes, hasn’t yet.) That station still airs great teaching ministries, and do you think these ministries by remaining on the station are kind of endorsing this garbage music? I call it the music of Nebuchadnezzar! and am certain that when “the morning stars sang together” (Job 38:7), “they break forth into singing” (Is. 14:7), “praying and singing hymns unto God” (Acts 16:25), and “sang as it were a new song before the throne” (Rev 14:3) – they were not singing this terrible contemporary music! A USA Evangelist that recently spoke at our church called it seductive/sensual and satanic, and said that the greed of the artists to make money motivated them, and that “If you think you need this music to reach your teens/children, chances are you have already lost them.” If you want to reach the young people do it God’s way, faith cometh by hearing and hearing cometh from the Word of God. These ‘christian’ stations who insist on playing this ‘music’ I feel are ushering in the antichrist.
Frankly, the notion that someone who is not “theologically” trained is inadequately qualified to write lyrics to a hymn/song is a slap in the face to any one who studies the word of God. I know lay people who are far more scholared in the scriptures than some ministers.
Just as the song of the whale constantly changes so should the song of our heart. We are always in a different place in our walk and not every song will uplift us as we journey. Christian music is to be a form of worship. Whether that is “Blessed Assurance” or (straight from the scriptures) “Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God”. The styles may be different, but the message is still the same.
Most of contemporary music is designed to do to two things. First and foremost it is written to glorify God and secondly to reach lost people. John Bagge writes “The one purpose of my music is so kids & adults will love to worship the Lord together, and experience the eternal joy that is found only in Christ Jesus!”
In the song, “How Great is Our God” the writer calls all to sing with him how great is our God. The group Big Daddy Weave has a song entitled, “Every time I Breathe” in part the word states:
“…Every time I breathe You seem a little bit closer
I never want to leave
I want to stay in Your warm embrace
Oh basking in the glory shining from Your face
And every time I get another glimpse of Your heart
I realize it’s true
That You are so marvelous God
And I am so in love with You…”
It speaks of God’s glory and getting closer to Him. Is this a scripturally sound belief? Yes, I think so. These are people who have been given a gift from our Almighty Father to put into a pleasing composition (which is pleasing only in the eye of the beholder) music and lyrics that are used for God’s glory and not their own.
A Casting Crowns song “Jesus is Hope for Every Man” is another song whose lyrics are just as significant as the lyrics, “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness…”
The spiritual perspective comes from your devotion to Christ. The joy of the Lord is for all. How we express that joy is as individual as the number of people on the planet. If you do not enjoy the music of the Gaithers, don’t listen. If you don’t enjoy hearing Bill Graham preach, then turn him off. But if listening to contemporary Christian music lifts your heart and puts you in a constant prayerful mode, the listen. I’m quite sure that Jeremy Camp would be delirious that your 98 year old grandma is listening to him, but won’t be offended if she still prefers the songs of worship to be accompanied by the pipe organ and a robed choir instead with the understanding that a “Closer Walk with God” will help us “All Get to Heaven” whether we got there by singing with a guitar and cymbals or the using worst a cappella voice on the planet. For He is the God who presides over harmony and determines that our faith and worship in him is the melody He prefers most to hear.
To Pastor John and to all whom would like to respond,
May I know your thoughts about the songs by the Music Ministry of Hillsong Church in Australia?
Say, for example, the song “Now That You’re Near”.
Thank you so much!
God’s blessings be with you all!
I am a 1976 graduate of the “The Masters College”. I grew up in doctrinally sound Baptist churches. I have sat under superbly trained pastors (DTS, Southeastern Baptist, etc) for almost all of my life. I have undegraduate and graduate degrees in the biological sciences. I am a medical microbiologist. I have taught in civilian and military medical technology programs. I have served as an adjunct instructor of biology for a noted Christian college in texas. My theology is sound.
I write the above, not to brag, but to illustrate several points.
1. My education does not qualify me to write a song. I simply do not have the skills. But I think I can evaluate what is “good music” and what is not.
2. I have seen Christian music decline precipitously over the last 30 years or so. I am extremely tired of the “mind numbing” chanting of the modern praise choruses. These “songs” to me are very difficult to sing and I do not enjoy them. They are “fluff”.
3. I do admit to enjoying some of the choruses from about 20-30 years ago such as “Unto Thee Oh Lord”, “Great and Mighty is the Lord Our God”, and “Emmanuel”
4. I currently attend a theologically sound baptist church. At least half of the congregation has never heard the songs “Standing on the Promises”, “Heaven Came Down”, and “At Calvary”. These were standard fare in the GARBC and Baptist General Conference churchs we attended during my high school and college days.
5. We also sang “Count Your Many Blessings”. Consider the 1st verse:
When upon lifes billow you are tempest tossed.
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost
Count your many blessings angels will attend
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.
I believe I have the exact wording. I am wondering how this is not biblical? David reflected on all of the calamities from which he was delivered by God. He was very grateful. Sometimes we need to reflect. The scriptures tell us that angels watch over us.
6. I realize different generations may have different tastes. But some times change is not good. And at times, it is destructive.