DECLARE HIS
EXCELLENCIES!:
Celebrating and Evaluating Worship Music Yesterday and Today
Samuel Ling
How firm a
foundation, ye saints of the Lord,
Is laid for
your faith in his excellent Word!
What more can
he say than to you he hath said,
You who unto
Jesus for refuge have fled?
“Fear not, I
am with thee, O be not dismayed;
I, I am thy
God, and will still give thee aid;
I’ll
strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand,
Upheld by my
righteous, omnipotent hand.
“When through
the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of
woe shall not thee overflow;
For I will be
with thee thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify
to thee thy deepest distress.
“When through
fiery trials thy pathway shall lie,
My grace,
all-sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame
shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to
consume, and thy gold to refine.
“E’en down to
old age all my people shall prove
My sovereign,
eternal, unchangeable love;
And when
hoary hairs shall their temples adorn,
Like lambs
they shall still in my bosom be borne.
“The soul
that on Jesus hath leaned for repose,
I will not, I
will not desert to his foes;
That soul,
though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I’ll never,
no, never, no, never forsake.”
“K” in Rippon’s Selection, 1787.
IS WORSHIP MUSIC DIVIDING THE CHURCH?
For many Christians today, contemporary Christian music has become part of their lives – they love it, they listen to it every day, and they incorporate it into their ministry. Increasingly, worship services for youth and young adults deploy a worship team, featuring contemporary worship music. However some church leaders, raised on the traditional diet of “gospel songs,” or trained in classical and sacred music, often harbor questions of doubt concerning contemporary Christian music. Those trained in classical music or in the liturgical traditions of the church voice stronger objections. For them, contemporary Christian music, like rock music and all other post-rock forms, is meaningless noise. Parents shudder when teenagers turn on their radio. They can hardly wait until it is turned off. “It gives me a headache!” many complain. They even wonder: do the rhythms of rock music come from the Devil?
When the young-adult congregation wants to organize a worship team and bring contemporary worship music into the church, often the congregation is divided. Is contemporary worship music legitimate worship music? Is it only suitable for evangelism, but not for worship? Some lovers of classical music (and I count myself one of them) may lament that we are witnessing the death of classical music, classical sacred music, and traditional hymns? Is civilization going down the tubes?
Another serious question is: where do we draw the line between sacred music and secular music? What makes sacred music "sacred"? Should Christian musicians break into the world of secular music? What should be our attitude, when see that while 30 years ago it would be a remote dream for Christian singers to appear on the top 40 charts, today it is a reality? Is it a good trend that Christian music has entered the secular mainstream of commercial music production and concretizing?
In the English-speaking world, contemporary
worship leaders are able to find ample resources for training, as well as in
selecting new music. A very helpful website is www.worshipinfo.com: Dr. Barry Liesch
(at Bioila University) gives helpful advice on planning and playing music for
worship, and even offers a tour of 100 Los Angeles area churches, listed
according to worship style! Training
seminars in contemporary worship music have spread outside of the West. An
example of this is the visit of Don Moen in
Music is a very personal thing, therefore a very sensitive subject. Music is just about the most thrilling experience for humans. So sparks fly, debates often rise out of what kind of music to use in our church services. Can we have peace and harmony and at the same time honor God with our worship music? More importantly, can we discover biblical guidelines and abide by them in our worship?
GOD-CENTERED WORSHIP:
RESPONDING TO GOD’S SELF-DISCLOSURE, LIVING IN HIS PRESENCE
What is worship? Biblical worship is God-centered, directed toward God, not toward ourselves. Fellowship, teaching, intercession, serving those in need-these are ministries directed at each other. Evangelism and mission are directed toward the world. But worship is directed toward God. Worship is also about God: praising God for who He is, what He has done, what He has said. Thirdly, worship is for God: we worship God and praise Him solely for His pleasure, and for His glory.
In the Old
Testament, God chose to reveal His name, His glory, and His attributes to His
people. And as God came to His people to
reveal himself, not only did divine
communication take place: this encounter becomes worship. God also revealed His acts to His
people. God’s primary purpose, in
selecting and calling His people out of Egypt, is that they should glorify and
worship Him (Exodus 19:5-6, I Peter 2:9).
And when God’s people worship Him, God chose to be present among
them. In the Old Testament, God’s glory
rested upon the Tabernacle and the
Thus worship is a glorious calling from God. God calls us to Himself as the church, that we may declare the excellencies of Him called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. (For further study: Paul Engel, Discovering the Fullness of Worship, Great Commission Publications, www.gcp.org.)
Many evangelical churches have much to learn about God-centered worship. In some churches, we often make our worship services so man-centered, cluttered with announcements, celebrations, thanksgiving (not to God, but to each other), and other man-centered elements, that God's glory and majesty is often hidden. For example, should Mother’s Day be celebrated during Sunday worship? Should the entire service be devoted to the praise of mothers? If so, have we left God out of the picture?
There is both a vertical and a horizontal dimension to worship. In the New Testament, the poor and the needy are remembered during worship. However, the horizontal (the communion of the saints, serving the needy) must not crowd out the vertical (our worship of God). (Cf.: John Frame, Worship in Spirit and Truth, www.prpbooks.com, 1996.)
The style of music used, and more importantly, the words used in our hymns and songs, should be scrutinized. Are we concentrating on God, His name, His glory, His attributes and His acts? Do the words of our hymns and songs encourage the singer to direct his/her heart toward God, about God, and for God? Or are we too preoccupied about our needs? We often are very concerned about what we get out of the worship service. We ask ourselves if we feel emotionally fulfilled as a result of attending worship? Have we put ourselves at the center of worship, rather than God?
An important challenge for many evangelical churches is restoring God-centered worship, God-centered preaching, God-centered thinking, and God-centered living – perhaps in that order! We live out what we think; and what we think can be heavily influenced by preaching and worship.
In the Old Testament, the so-called “full-time workers” in the Old Testament included not only priests, but also Levites, temple servants and singers. We can see that
1. Music was an important part of worship.
2. Professional musicians took care of the ministry of music.
Worship team members for contemporary worship services need to take their calling seriously. A person needs personal preparation and maturity. Just because someone is talented in singing contemporary music, does not mean that he/she makes a good worship leader. A good worship leader directs people’s hearts toward God. This principle applies to traditional church music as well: a church musician’s spiritual maturity is more important than his/her musical qualifications.
I call upon all worship leaders, church musicians and choir members to become biblical theologians – competent students of God’s Word. This will greatly improve our attitudes and motives in our ministries, and enable us to be discerning and selective in our selection of musical pieces. A good worship probably should know the Old Testament very well – the Psalms, of course, but also the Major and Minor Prophets! This way, we can draw upon an abundant treasury of resources – God’s resources which the Holy Spirit revealed to us – to call our fellow-believers to bow down and pay homage to our Creator and Redeemer.
New Testament worship followed the form of synagogue worship, which arose during the period between the Old and the New Testament. Synagogue worship included four elements: the reading of the Torah (God’s Word), teaching, singing, and prayer. The Lord Jesus worshipped in the synagogue “as was His custom.” As our Lord and Savior, Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper and baptism; Christians have observed these ordinances/sacraments through the centuries. These are the non-negotiable elements of Christian worship. Praise and singing are very much an integral part of Old Testament worship, and New Testament worship! Other New Testament elements of worship may include vows, benedictions, and confessing the faith of the church.
WORSHIP MUSIC IN HISTORY: APPRECIATE THE GREAT MASTERS
The style of music used in worship has changed a great deal through church
history. Almost always, worship music reflected the culture and the worldview
of their contemporary generation. Sometimes (in my opinion, before the year
1710), church music may influence the secular culture. In any case, in every generation Christians
have sought to bring the best of their music and poetry to the praise of God. In the Middle Ages, the collection of ancient
songs now known as the Gregorian Chant (named after the Pope who ordered the
compilation) has lasted to our generation. Much of this material, called the “plain
song”, came from the Jewish traditions of worship. The chant became a part of music history – some
love it, some think it is old-fashioned. In any case, it has deeply influenced the
music of later master-composers. The church in the Middle Ages developed the
concept of the Church Year, which may be very helpful for evangelicals not
brought up in the liturgical tradition. We may also learn a lot by consulting
the Church of England’s Book of Common
Prayer! (I often make this recommendation in my church history
classes.) Dr. Robert Webber (former
theologian at
In the 16th century came the Protestant Reformation. Martin Luther thought that, whatever the Scriptures did not prohibit – things which were “indifferent” – may be used or retained in the church. Thus Lutherans produced Protestant Masses, and for the common folk, Luther and others also wrote hymns. Luther’s classic is “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” calling Christians to spiritual battle with Satan and assuring victory through Christ. Two parallel traditions thus developed in the German speaking world: high-culture music, and hymns which the ordinary folk can understand.
The greatest classical music composer, Johann Sebastian Bach, was deeply influenced by Martin Luther. He was a devout Christian and for many years a church musician who, for a living, wrote cantatas, oratorios, and anthems. Bach was a master of polyphony which was coming into its own during this period in the history of music. But more importantly, Bach consistently composed music to the glory of God. It has truly stood the test of time. Bach wrote a piece each week for church; he would write “SDG,” “only to the glory of God,” on top of his compositions. He was a diligent worker and a devout Christian. He thought that anyone who worked as hard as he did, could write the same kind of music-and better! Bach’s contemporary, George Handel, wrote the oratorio, The Messiah, while isolated in his room for three weeks. He wept at the glory of God's majesty; his music is so majestic that King George stood to hear it. (Thus the tradition that we stand when the “Hallelujah Chorus” from The Messiah is sung.) Bach and Handel were not only masters of music, but believers who prayerfully took a glimpse at the glory and majesty of the infinite, almighty God, and wrote music as a response. They reflected the worldview of the 17th century: God is the creator and deserves our worship; God’s world reflects the order and structure He has designed in the universe.
THE REGULATIVE
PRINCIPLE
In the 18th century, the Pietist movement
grew in
The acceptable way of worshipping the true God is instituted by himself, and so limited by his own revealed will, that he may not be worshiped according to the imaginations and devices of men, or the suggestions of Satan, under any visible representation, or any other way not prescribed in the holy Scripture.
This stands in contrast with Luther’s position on the “indifferent things.” Puritans and Presbyterians interpreted this “regulative principle” in different ways throughout history; some came to the conclusion of “exclusive psalmody,” that is to say, the church should sing only the psalms (often without accompaniment).
Puritans thought there was too much
tradition, ceremony, and hierarchy in the Church of England. They
believed that only the Lord is King and Lord of the church, and He had given
His people a book of hymns through the Psalms. Therefore, Christians should
sing it! Following the example of Calvin and his colleagues in 16th century
Today we can sing “Jesus Shall Reign Where’er the Sun” as a New Testament rendition of Psalm 72; or “Joy to the World!” as a metered version of Psalm 98, which Isaac Watts intended to describe the second coming of Christ! . There are many versions of Psalm 23 and Psalm 100 (“All People Who on Earth Do Dwell” is one rendition of Psalm 100).
HYMNS AND “NEW
TESTAMENT” PSALMS
Isaac Watts was the master of
Puritan psalmody. He asked himself, if David
were living in the New Testament period, how would he have written the psalms
differently?
Listen to the words of Watt’s “Before Jehovah’s awful throne” (Psalm 100):
Before Jehovah’s awful throne, ye nations bow with sacred joy;
Know that the Lord is God alone, He can create, and he destroy.
His sovereign power, without our aid, made us of dust, and formed us men;
And when like wandering sheep we strayed, He brought us to his fold again.
We are his people, we his care, our souls, and all our mortal frame;
What lasting honors shall we rear, Almighty Maker, to thy Name?
We’ll crowd thy gates with thankful songs, high as the heavens our voices raise;
And earth with her ten thousand-tongues shall fill thy courts with sounding praise.
Wide as the world is thy command, vast as eternity thy love;
Firm as a rock thy truth must stand, when rolling years shall cease to move.
He also wrote what we call classical “hymns,” such as “Alas! And Did My Savior Die,” and “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross,” bringing Christian devotion to focus on the cross. Others who followed this tradition included William Cowper, who wrote “God moves in a Mysterious Way His Wonders to Perform,” and John Newton, author of “Amazing Grace.” Cowper was often depressed, but was able by the grace of God to trust him for grace and sustenance. The line “Beyond a frowning providence/He hides a smiling face” comes from this classic:
God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform;
He plants his footsteps in the sea, and rides upon the storm.
Deep in unfathomable mines of never-failing skill
He treasures up his bright designs, and works his sovereign will.
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take; the clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy, and shall break in blessings on your head.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, but trust him for his grace;
Behind a frowning providence He hides a smiling face.
His purposes will ripen fast, unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste, but sweet will be the flower.
Blind unbelief is sure to err, and scan his work in vain;
God is his own interpreter, and he will make it plain.
John Newton captures the essence of prayer, as he teaches Christians in the hymn, “Come, my soul, your suit prepare” (note: “suit” means “plea”) to bring “large petitions” to our King Jesus in prayer, but more importantly, confess that Christ has his “blood-brought right” to maintain his authority as king in our hearts: thus, we pray that the Lord would “take possession of our heart”.
Come, my soul, thy suit prepare:
Jesus loves to answer prayer;
He Himself has bid you pray,
You will not be turned away.
You are coming to a King,
Large petitions with you bring;
For His grace and power are such,
None can ever ask too much.
With my burden I begin:
Lord, remove this load of sin;
Let Your blood, for sinners split,
Set my conscience free from guilt.
Lord, to me Your peace impart,
Take possession of my heart;
There your blood-b ought right
maintain,
And without a rival reign.
While I am a pilgrim here,
Let Your love my spirit cheer;
As my Guide, my Guard, my Friend,
Lead me to my journey’s end.
Show me what I have to do,
Every hour my strength renew:
Let me live a life of faith,
Let me die Your people’s death.
John Bunyan probably wrote the most famous of all Puritan books, Pilgrim’s Progress. This hymn by Bunyan stirs Christians to be courageous as they follow the
Master as pilgrims:
He who would valiant be
‘Gainst all disaster,
Let him I constancy
Follow the Master.
There’s no discouragement
Shall make him once relent
His first avowed intent
To be a pilgrim.
Who so beset him round
With dismal stories,
Do but themselves confound –
His strength the more is.
No foes shall stay his might;
Though he with giants fight,
He will make good his right
To be a pilgrim.
Since, Lord, Thou dost defend
Us with Thy Spirit,
We know we at the end
Shall life inherit.
Then, fancies flee away!
I’ll fear not what men say,
I’ll labor night and day
To be a pilgrim.
THE PURITAN SPIRIT IN
THE 18th AND 19th CENTURIES
18th-century Reformed pastor Augustus Toplady left us with probably the most famous English hymn which focused on sin: “Rock of Ages, Cleft for Me.” 19th century “Puritan” pastor Horatius Bonar penned the beautiful words of the Communion hymn, “Here, O My Lord, I See Thee Face to Face,” seeking to come into the presence of Christ, to be fed by Him, and to behold Him. He also wrote these soul-searching lines, confessing our utter helplessness to save ourselves:
Not what my
hands have done Can save my guilty
soul;
Not what my
toiling flesh has borne Can make my
spirit whole.
Not what I
feel or do Can give me peace with God;
Not all my
prayers and sighs and tears Can bear my
awful load.
Thy work
alone, O Christ, Can ease this weight of sin;
Thy blood
alone, O Lamb of God, Can give me peace within.
Thy love to
me, O God, Not mine, O Lord, to thee,
Can rid me of
this dark unrest, And set my spirit free.
Thy grace
alone, O God, To me can pardon speak;
Thy pow’r
alone, O Son of God, Can this sore bondage break.
No other
work, save thine, No other blood will do;
No strength,
save that which is divine, Can bear me safely through.
I bless the
Christ of God; I rest on love divine;
And with
unfalt’ring lip and heart, I call this Saviour mine.
His cross
dispels each doubt; I bury in his tomb
Each thought
of unbelief and fear, Each ling’ring shade of gloom.
I praise the
God of grace; I trust his truth and might;
He calls me
his, I call him mine, My God, my joy, my light.
‘Tis he who
saveth me, And freely pardon gives;
I love
because he loveth me, I live because he lives.
Evangelical churches will be enriched by returning to the singing of the Psalms, perhaps set to both traditional and contemporary melodies. We will also be nourished by the solid hymns which teach us biblical doctrine: God’s attributes, His sovereignty, and His grace. For those who are not lovers of classical music, why not write new tunes?
LOVE COMES DOWN NOW: CHARLES
WESLEY
In the 18th century, Charles Wesley, working
closely with his brother John Wesley in a period of revival in
‘Tis mystery all! Th’Immortal dies;
Who can explore His strange design?
In vain the first born seraph tries
To sound the depths of love divine.
‘Tis mercy all! Let earth adore;
Let angel minds inquire no more.
God is beyond even the comprehension of the angel (seraph)!
Who writes
words like Watts,
It is for this reason that, I propose that we do not throw away all our church hymnals, but continue to use the best of the hymnbooks of the church, even when overhead transparencies and power-point presentations are so available.
ROOTS OF EVANGELICAL CHURCH CULTURE:
19TH CENTURY RURAL
In the 19th and 20th centuries English hymnody flourished, and today Christians from all traditions have come to love many of the timeless words such as “The Church’s One Foundation,” “Silent Night” “Day Is Dying in the West.” Sacred songs such as “The Lord’s Prayer,” “Eternal Life,” and “The Holy City” have also become “immortal” in many a voice student’s heart. We should also not forget the long, great tradition of oratorios and serious choral music. However there is one particular tradition which has impacted evangelicals more than any other, and it is the “gospel song.”
What many evangelicals today calls “traditional hymns” are not really “hymns”
in the technical sense of the word. Hymns reached their peak with
Some hymns from the 19th and 20th centuries do call the church effectively to a
God-ward gaze of worship; a grand example is “How Great Thou Art”:
O Lord our God! When I in awesome wonder
Consider all the works Thy hands have made;
I see the stars; I hear the roaring thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.
Then sings my soul, my Savior, God to Thee:
How great Thou art! How great Thou art!
“How Great Thou Art” comes to us from
When American missionaries brought
gospel to Asia, Africa and
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.
Christians are enriched, encouraged, and empowered through devotional gospel songs. We do need to tell God from the bottom of our hearts, that we love Him, and we desire a more direct, intimate relationship with Him (to walk with Him and talk with Him). This being said, however, we must distinguish between this form of “loving God” (devotion) and corporate, God-centered worship and praise.
“GOSPEL SONG” AS
RECEIVED TRADITION
Why have so many churches in the
This was partly due to the historical context in which churches in Asia and
When
the missionaries arrived in
In the case
of
Once the church “received” this
tradition of gospel songs, she kept it with great reverence until today. The
American evangelical music of the 1950s and 1960s by and large confirmed and
reinforced this “tradition.” I remember
that during my first two years in the
Keep praising, keep praising, when the days are dark and drear,
Keep praising, keep praising, God will guide you never fear.
Keep praising, keep praising, thankful hearts to Him be raising,
Has the Lord not said, there is glory on ahead, so keep on praising Him!
John W. Peterson, for example, rejoices that “Heaven Came Down and Glory Filled My Soul” (the music reminds one of Broadway musical numbers). In the 1960s, young people in Hong Kong’s churches and fellowships loved the 12 volumes of Youth Hymns, later compiled into three volumes, I (the revered navy blue), II (the red) and III (the green) (Hong Kong: China Alliance Press). Many Christians who are mature adults today have these gospel songs engrained in their souls! I remember many of these tunes and lyrics: “The Stranger of Galilee,” “What should I give thee, Master?” and “Wonderful Grace of Jesus.”
Gospel songs tend to emphasize the Christian’s individual, personal relationship with Jesus Christ, rather than the whole church worshipping and praising the Triune Godhead. Other themes which gospel songs perhaps neglected were the doctrine of God’s creation, God’s providence (His care over the universe), and God’s plan for the church in history. Perhaps evangelicals who seek a more intimate relationship with Jesus Christ can also learn, through singing the psalms, to trust in God’s word which declares his faithfulness and unchanging grace. Here is Psalm 91 from the United Presbyterian Bible Songs Hymnal of 1927:
Under the care of my God, the Almighty,
Safe in the secret place of the Most
High!
He is my Refuge, the Lord is my
Fortress,
Him I am trusting when trouble is nigh.
Refrain: Under his wings, under his
wings,
Safe in the refuge hide thee;
Trusting his truth and faithfulness,
No evil can betide thee.
Be not afraid for the terror of
Nor for the arrow that hasteth to slay;
Fear not the pestilence walking in
darkness,
Nor the destroyer that wasteth by day.
Seek the Most High for thy sure
habitation,
Unto Jehovah for refuge now fly;
There shall no evil befall thee nor
harm thee,
Unto thy dwelling no plague shall come
nigh.
Love thou the Lord, surely he will
deliver;
He will exalt thee and answer thy
prayer;
He will be with thee to honor and give
thee
Life without end, his salvation to
share.
What profound, soul-stirring thoughts! Do we prefer to sing only about how Jesus loves me? What we need to learn afresh is to adore God’s character (unchanging faithfulness, inscrutable wisdom, hatred for sin, etc.), God’s Word, God’s kingdom, God’s church and God’s claim on our lives as Lord and King. And to enthrone Christ as King in our hearts and in our churches.
FROM “JESUS PEOPLE” TO CONTEMPORARY WORSHIP
In the 1970s, many young people from the counter-culture (“Hippies”) movement
in the
It is encouraging to see the emergence
of indigenous authors and composers in the the churches of Asia and
Could it be that an entire generation of young people will grow up, only knowing Jesus as their friend (“My Jesus, My Savior”), who is “beautiful beyond description,” but seldom as the Lord of the universe and Lord of the Church? Are we preserving sufficient awe and reverence in worship?
Christians need to exercise discernment when using western or Third-World contemporary worship songs. Do the words center on the Christian self? Or do they center on God? Do we select songs for our services simply because they sound good? Or do they perform a teaching and leading function, focusing our minds and hearts on our sovereign, holy, eternal and gracious God?
UNDERSTAND CULTURAL CHANGE AROUND US
From this sketchy historical survey, we see that the
It is understandable why some pastors and church leaders reject contemporary
rock music. In other words, traditional Chinese culture (including
Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, the New Culture of the May Fourth Movement, and
the middle-class, modern culture of the 1930s) was carried by Chinese
Christians and pastors, as refugees, from mainland
Unfortunately, what often happened was one
form of man-centered worship music took the place of another: the shallowness
of some of the contemporary worship songs simply replaced the shallowness of
some of the worst gospel songs.
ROCK AND ROLL: FRIEND
OR FOE?
We who are parents should understand that we are the ones who brought our children into this modern, urban world in which we live. So from the perspective of our contemporary world, the so-called post-modern, post-industrial world, how should we view contemporary music?
Rock music can be understood as a reflection of the anonymity and monotony of the modern industrial world. In the factory you can only hear the noise of machines; man’s value has been reduced to a number, a cog in the machine. Rock music reflects this dehumanizing process.
Rock music can also be understood as a rebellion against and rejection of traditional Judeo-Christian culture-this traditional culture includes the Christian view of the family. But in order to understand this rebellion, we must see that in Western society, the traditional family has been broken up for several decades now. The hearts of many young people are empty. They have not tasted the love of their father or mother. So they attempt to build an alternative culture which includes a new form of interpersonal relationships.
Therefore, rock and roll can also be understood as a vehicle for contemporary men and women to express their search for warmth, intimacy and meaningful relationships.
While it is
understandable that parents are tired of the loudness of rock music, it is far
more important to understand that beginning with the 1960s, the culture of rock
music tried to undermine and destroy the entire biblical, Judeo-Christian
foundation of Western culture. By the 1990s, they succeeded.
It has been almost 20 years since the time of the Jesus People (i.e. those Christian converts from within the Hippie culture). Some of the most welcomed Christian music today is now called contemporary praise. Some of the music of contemporary worship is often quite biblical, when compared with the worst of the gospel songs, which are unfortunately often sung in our churches. This is because many of the words of contemporary praise come directly from the Bible, especially the Old Testament. We often sing words from the Psalms and the Prophets. So when we worship, we really worship – unlike many gospel songs, which lead us to personal devotion (worship) fellowship rather than corporate, trinitarian worship. However, one must also note that many contemporary worship songs use repetition of simple words and phrases to create an emotional frenzy, or a “spiritual high” experience. Often it is “I,” “me,” “my” worship that is the most important thing.
Something of the objective character of worship is sorely missing in contemporary worship. It is important, at some point, to refer to God rather than to converse with Him. God has revealed truth about Himself; we are to rehearse and repeat this to ourselves and our children so that we may remember. So it is valid to sing about God in the third person (He is ...) as well as in the second person (You are...).
I
appreciate very much the worship teams who led the English worship service in
the church I served in
I also appreciate, along the same lines, a pastor-friend of mine, who is so well versed in the Old Testament (especially the prophets), that he can spontaneously quote from the Minor Prophets as he led worship. I suspect that this shows the influence of the late Robert Rayburn of Covenant Theological Seminary. Just marvelous.
REACHING HEARTS TODAY:
HEALING AND WORSHIP
At this point I must mention a very important consideration: contemporary praise music is very effective in healing the broken heart during worship. Here is another difference between contemporary praise and gospel songs. Gospel songs can be sung as the expression of emotion, e.g. celebrating the love of Jesus, without reaching into the depths of the human heart. Of course, I do not mean to say that Christians always sing gospel songs with a heartless attitude! In fact, the best of the gospel songs contain very solid biblical truth, e.g. “Blessed Assurance” and “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms.” But 100 years (or more) have gone by since some of the gospel songs were originally written, and the “gospel song” has become a tradition. So it is possible that some Christians (many young adults) find them “intellectual” rather than “emotional.” It’s beautiful music, nevertheless, of course!
Today we are living in the third generation of the broken home in Western societies. In many public schools in American cities, the majority of children have divorced parents and/or grandparents. They – and we with them – walk around with the wounds of two or three generations. We are doubly broken people. Unwittingly, contemporary praise plays the role of healing broken lives. This deserves our careful observation. Somehow traditional gospel songs cannot evoke the same response in the hearts of many contemporary youth and young adults. Contemporary praise uses a medium familiar to people – they hear the same kind of music in the elevator, on their way to work, on the radio, etc. Therefore they do not have to cross a cultural barrier in order to get into a state of healing-with-worship. From this perspective, so-called “traditional” gospel songs may be seen as out of date in the 1990s.
The supporters of traditional hymns (including myself) must pay attention to this fact. We must address the need of broken hearts for restoring a vital relationship with the heavenly Father. The solution does not lie in a mindless, repetitious diet of contemporary worship music to the exclusion of traditional hymns and gospel songs! (In fact, contemporary worship music is quickly becoming a “tradition,” so that Christians often sing these songs mindlessly or without a heart-felt commitment!)
All Christians, whatever their musical taste and preference, must understand the purpose of worship – to honor God-and at the same time, have some compassion for the emotional needs of men and women who walk into church on Sunday. We must not manipulate the congregation. We must not create an emotional high for the sake of the experience. We must not put emotion higher than truth. We must proclaim God, His truth, His holiness. Along with that, we must also proclaim, sing, and experience His incredible love for us, through Christ.
REACH THE MIND, TOO
Worship music that appeals to the emotions (the heart) is not sufficient in and of itself, whether it be contemporary worship, the gospel song, or classical music (such as an oratorio, which can stir the emotions!). There is a tremendous vacuum in intellectual leadership – leading the mind – in many evangelical churches today. What I am advocating is not simply a kind of worship which only appeals to and heals the heart. In addition, we must realize that we are living in a generation witnessing “the closing of the American (or global) mind.” We must double our efforts to reach and teach the human mind with the objective truths of Scripture, through preaching, teaching and Bible study. I have attended certain worship services, where the first half of the services consists of nothing but praise – without any comment from the song leaders at all. The second half is pure, unadulterated exposition of Scripture. This, in my opinion, is a very powerful model of heart-and-mind worship in creative partnership.
Let us worship with all our mind – thinking God's thoughts after Him, meditating on His glory, holiness, righteousness, and love. Let us worship God with all our will –
surrendering ourselves to Him, seeking to please Him, repenting of our sins and trusting in Christ’s blood. Let us worship God with all our heart – seeking to know God’s heart, asking the Spirit to make us holy, rejoicing in fellowshipping with the beautiful, glorious Savior. In all of this, the heart must follow the truth as the Spirit illumines the mind, and follow the will as the Spirit captures it in surrender. In all of this, may God be the focus and center.
May the church retain the rich, God-centered traditions of worship, while adding new songs to our repertoire. Keep the good in the old: especially hymns and songs which have stood the test of time. Blend the two together appropriately. Older people: do not be afraid of the new. For all of us: discern both the shallow and the good, in both the old and the new. Together, may young and old lift up our voices and “declare His excellencies of Him” who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light.
Appendix
CULTIVATING A BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE ON
MUSIC, WORSHIP MUSIC, AND WORSHIP:
A List of Evaluation Questions
Evaluating Music
1. Does this music make a point, or reflect some aspect of God or His creation? Or is it pointless?
2. Is it classical? In other words, will it last for decades? Centuries? Or is it a fad?
3. Does this music show intellectual work: structure, order, harmony, progress, contrast, theme and development?
4. What kind of emotion(s) does this music evoke? Passion and strength of will, calm and meditation, lofty aspiration, worship and praise, sadness and melancholy, New Age-like harmony/unity with the universe, etc.
5. What kind of worldview does this music reflect? Hint: look at the period in which it was composed.
6. Do we know anything about the composer/author? What kind of worldview does he/she believe in?
7. Does the music challenge or entice me to do/think something? Is that something holy, sinful, pointless, pagan/secular?
Christian and Secular Worldviews in Recent History
1. 17th Century Christian: The universe is orderly and has structure because God created it. God’s revelation is reasonable; the mind can understand and respond to it. Thinkers: Isaac Newton, Blaise Pascal, the Puritans (John Owen). Authors and composers: J. S. Bach, G. F. Handel (the Baroque period); editors of Psalters. Preachers: Richard Baxter, Richard Sibbes.
2. 17th Century Secular: The universe conforms to a “structure” of “discreet” (clear) ideas in my mind. Thinkers: Rene Descartes, Thomas Hobbes, Leibniz, Francis Bacon.
3. 18th Century Christian: God should be worshipped, and His grace and love can be experienced. Thinkers: Jonathan Edwards. Preachers: John Wesley, George Whitefield. Authors and Composers: Isaac Newton, John Newton (Amazing Grace), Cowper, Charles Wesley, Nicholas Ludwig Von Zindendorf.
4. 18th Century Secular: The universe is orderly because it is; we should explore it using our senses. Our knowledge is the sum total of sense perceptions. Thinkers: John Locke, David Hume, G. Berkeley. Musicians: Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven. Also: God’s revelation must be reasonable (Deism); God has created the universe and left it to run by itself according to natural, mechanical laws.
5. 19th Century Christian: Jesus and I in private, personal
relationship and experience.
Revival as mass-communication events seeking to reach the (urban) masses. Thinkers who stood in contrast to this
revivalism: Charles Hodge, B.B. Warfield, Abraham Kuyper (Christianity is built
on facts; world history is the conflict between idol worship and worship of the
true God). Preachers: Charles Finney, Dwight
L. Moody. Authors and composers: Fanny Crosby, Ira Sankey (gospel song),
Horatius Bonar (Puritan).
6. 19th Century Secular: God is irrelevant; man can no longer understand absolute truth through the mind. Only the outward form of things can be understood through reason and science, but basically the universe is either irrational, or can be reduced to matter, feelings, whatever the human will wants it to be. Thinkers: Friederich Schleiermacher, Georg Hegel (a reaction to Schleiermacher) and the German Idealists (Fichte, Schelling), Ludwig Feuerbach (all is matter, there is no God), Karl Marx (all is matter, man competes for material tools of production and control over it), Charles Darwin (all is evolved matter), Friedrich Nietzsche (all is absurd, God is dead), Soren Kierkegaard (no absolutes, only the here-and-now matters, and it is irrational and absurd), Wagner, Schopenhauer (the world is what the human will wills it to be-inspired Hitler later), Sigmund Freud (man has unconscious and subconscious desires for life and death, which do not want to be controlled by society and religion). Musicians: Schubert, Schumann, Chopin (all is feeling), Mendelssohn (feeling, but tries to recapture some of Beethoven's tradition of greatness), Charles Debussy (fuzzy beauty, like impressionism in art), Wagner (the passion of the will), Rachmaninoff (Russian Romanticism and the will).
7. 20th Century Christian: more of “Jesus and I in private relationship,” plus an attempt to reach out to others in relationship. Counter-current: apologetics who called church back to the Triune God and the Scriptures: Cornelius Van Til, J.I. Packer. Thinkers and preachers who reached out to culture with compassion and truth: Carl Henry, Francis Scaheffer, Ravi Zacharias, John Stott, R.C. Sproul. Authors and composers: John W. Peterson (more of Jesus-and-I, great joy), Ralph Carmichael and others (beginnings of outreach), Vineyard and Integrity (outreach to postmodern people), later British and Australian developments.
8. 20th Century Secular: More of 19th century relativism and irrationalism.
Evaluating Hymns and
Christian Music
1. Does it tell me more about God’s person and His acts/words, than about what God does for ME?
2. Does it tell me something about God’s person, and not
just about what He did? A succinct definition of God is “God is a spirit,
infinite, eternal and unchangeable in his being, wisdom, power, holiness,
justice, goodness and truth.” (Goodness includes love, grace, patience,
kindness, patience.) (
3. Does it tell me something about God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit? Do the words move through worship of the three persons?
4. Does it center on God’s person (three persons) and His acts? Is the orientation toward God?
5. Does it narrate God’s acts as recorded in the Bible? Does it center on Jesus Christ?
6. For those hymns/songs which center on God’s love and provision for me: Do I get the sense that I am the center of the picture? Or is the orientation/direction toward worship, praising, thanking God, glorifying and fearing God?
7. For those hymns/songs which motivate us to serve God: is the motivation based on God’s character, His acts and His words? Or is it more based on some feeling?
8. How is the mind, the heart and the will balanced? Is there truth which instructs, excites and lifts up the mind to high and lofty things of God?
9. Does the will get challenged to submit under God?
10. Is the heart (emotions) carried along by Scripture-instructed mind, and a will which is subdued under the Spirit? Or is the heart taking the lead, and the mind/will follows?
11. What kind of emotions does the hymn/song evoke? Does it encourage us to worship, praise, thank, fear, serve, bow down, love and adore this God?
Evaluating / Planning
Worship Programs
1. Am I (the worshipper) invited, drawn, instructed, called to worship, praise, bow down and fear a holy God?
2. Am I led to the presence of God, for both worship/praise and confession/repentance?
3. Is there a balance of songs, between worship, adoration, praise on the one hand, and personal adoration, confession of sin, and assurance of God’s pardon on the other?
4. Have I tried to include Psalms and hymns as well as contemporary songs in the same worship service? Have I consciously chosen from the best wisdom and music of the past centuries as well as the present generation of authors and composers?
5. Does the music and the program flow? Are we first drawn to the fact that God is here, we should worship Him – then to our sin – then to the Cross/Word of Christ?
6. Is there depth of words?
7. Is there depth in the music?
8. Are the same popular songs chosen over and over again (over months)? This applies to both traditional hymns and contemporary songs. Am I challenged to sing songs which are not familiar to me, but truly lift up the character, acts and words of God?
8. Is there both a sense of reverence/awe and joy/celebration in the worship service?
9. Am I challenged to face myself? Does the worship service intend to convict people of sin, and to direct them to the Cross?
10. (If yes for #9) Is pardon for sin from the cross of Christ offered through music, words, sermon, and/or prayers?
11. Do I walk away with a vague feeling (whether good or bad)? Or (if I am listening and singing attentively) does the program instruct me to be/live/think differently in some way, in the coming week? Did I catch the challenge?
12. Does the worship promote some kind of communion and fellowship among God’s people? Is it purely individualistic?
FOR FURTHER STUDY
Jarram Barrs, “Christian Worship.” Extension course (a set of cassette tapes)
from Covenant Theological Seminary,
The Book of Common Prayer.
Edmund P. Clowney, The Church (IVP).
Paul Engel, Discovering the Fullness of Worship. Great Commission Publications. www.gcp.org
John Frame, Contemporary Worship Music: A Biblical Defense (P&R).
The Prayer Book.
Correspondence course,
John Frame, Worship in Spirit and Truth (P&R, 1996). www.prpbooks.com.
John Frame, The Doctrine of the Knowledge of God (P&R).
Donald Hustad, Jubilate II! Hope Publishing Company.
Barry Liesch, The New Worship.
Barry Liesch, People in the Presence of the Lord.
Dr. Barry Liesch’s website: www.worshipinfo.com.
J.I. Packer, A Quest For Godliness: The Puritan Vision of the Christian Life (Crossway).
J.I. Packer, “English Puritan Theology.” Extension course (cassettes or CD’s) available from Regent College Bookstore, 5800 University Blvd., Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Francis Schaeffer, How
Should We Then Live? Revell. (Critiques secular worldview since the
Ernst Stoeffler, The Rise of Evangelical Pietism (Brill).
Robert Webber, Worship Old and New.
Robert Webber, Worship is a Verb.
Robert Webber, Evangelicals on the Canterbury Trail.
Robert Webber, ed., The Library of Christian Worship.
The Trinity Hymnal (Great Commission Publications). www.gcp.org.
The Psalter Hymnal
(Christian Reformed Publications,
This article is an expanded version of “Worship Music: Traditional or Contemporary?”, Challenger, August-September 2000, and October-November 2000.
Samuel Ling (M.Div.,
Th.M.,