“Gone Contemporary” is the title of an article by Dave Mallinak exposing the error and danger of the contemporary music philosophy that is spreading rapidly among Independent Baptists. We commend the entire report, which has links to Independent Baptist contemporary worship services and a video dialogue between Josh Teis and Robert Bakss, author of Worship Wars. Following is an excerpt from the report that gets to the heart of the issue and rightly calls for separation from those who are committed to the contemporary philosophy: “The contemporary music push is the death rattle of a dying church. This style of worship is not becoming more popular because we are becoming more faithful. In our attempt to pander to the audience, we have forgotten that God is the audience. God now bores us. The more dependent we become on this kind of external approach to worship, the more we lose the very heart of worship. Eventually, Christians will find that they must have the contemporary kind of music or they cannot worship. Contemporary worship turns the audience into spectators and the music into a performance. It produces a low view of God, a delight in the experience of worship rather than the God we worship, a superficial sense of passion that loses the passion of true worship, a growing dependence on the experience produced by the music itself, and the false idea that worship is easy, that devotion can be whipped up in a couple of choruses. True worship is challenging--it requires focus and diligence and depth, all things that CCM discourages. Musical style indicates what a church thinks of God. Scripturally, we cannot pretend to be in good fellowship with churches who have chosen relevance over reverence. So, while we do not attempt to dictate the way another church should worship, we most certainly do have a God-given responsibility to determine the limits of our fellowship. The claim that musical style is nothing more than a preference choice demonstrates just how relativistic these men have become. They have purposely ignored the study of music theory. They believe that we should only need to study the Bible to see what kind of style is required. They remind us, somewhat condescendingly, that the Bible says nothing about syncopation or ‘beat anticipation.’ So saying, they purposely ignore the clear message musical style sends about the occasion of worship. Their determined know-nothingness aside, style still informs us about the meaning of the occasion. Movie producers understand this. Most people know what music is appropriate for weddings, funerals, classy restaurants, backyard barbecues, military parades and basketball games. These men believe we can drag any style into the worship service, slap some sacred lyrics onto it, and somehow ‘redeem it.’ Style is the meaning. The music, dress, and trendy look of the contemporary Independent Baptists tell us less about their view of style and so much more about their view of God. The same can be said for most events. The way we dress and the music we play tells more about the way we view the event than it does about the way we view style.” Dave Mallinak’s report “Gone Contemporary” can be found at the following link - villagesmithysite.wordpress.com/2018/08/31/gone-contemporary/ Friday Church News Notes, September 7, 2018, www.wayoflife.org, [email protected], 866-295-4143 Comments are closed.
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