Notes From My Pastor On Ccm

[2bLikeJesus]

The following is an excerpt from my notes on a sermon preached by my pastor.

 

I am always mystified by people who, rather than dealing with the substantive issues involved in music, want to make acceptance or rejection of CCM a generational prOBlem of new vs. old or young people vs. old people.  If you have ever read the purveyors of neo-evangelicalism, that is exactly how they frame the issue. They call the older saints blue hairs and encourage churches wishing to adopt the new rock styling to minimize them and prepare to lose them in favor of future growth that they would restrain were they to stay in the congregation.  It is highly disrespectful to senior saints.

 

The philosophy that I have heard about CCM is that it is, "the most effective way for today's congregation to praise God.  People do not connect with "high church" or classical style any more.  Contemporary music is the only style that edifies them and makes them feel completely involved in their worship."

 

How many times God addresses the subject of "worship" in church?  You will find it mentioned about the church only one time in I Corinthians 14:23-25 where the worship is done in church by unbelievers in response to prophesying (preaching).  The thing that today's churches, some of ours included, fixate on as a a main part of their services, does not occur in the Biblical NT church.  Paul, in his epistles to the churches, does not address it. Paul, in his instructions to Pastor Timothy about the churches they have begun does not address it.

 

Now, I am not saying that NT saints are not to worship God. Of course we are. All flesh is to worship God. What I am saying is that worship is NOT biblically a big part of church services or what happens when he "whole church" comes together. In the NT, church services were primarily about the preaching of the word. People are to worship God in their personal walk with Him all the time. Notice that when music is discussed in the NT, God says, Ephesians 5:19 (KJV) ¹⁹  Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; 

 

The modern movement to make the church service an hour and a half of rock music worship with a 15 minute devotional did not originate in the Bible any more than some of the church services of the 1700s that were an hour and a half of classical concert. This modern movement comes straight out of churches with whom we do not share common doctrine or practice accept, in some cases, on the most basic and fundamental level.  People forget, CCM was birthed and raised in the charismatic movement by people drastically off on truth. These are the churches with women preachers, unknown tongue talking, people slain in the spirit, people claiming to be apostles, faith healers, prophets adding to scripture as they prophesy, and rhema word apostasy. These churches are the birthplace of CCM. It did NOT come from a study of scripture. They are famous for worldly living, no standards, carnal entertainment, and religious charlatanism. 

 

The part of CCM that didn't originate there came from the hippy counterculture movement of the late 50's and 60's and 70's with "Jesus People" like Keith Green, Larry Norman ("Why should the devil have all the good music"), Mylon Lefevre, and André Crouch.  Some of these people were ardent in their evangelism but took the music of the drug revolution and married it with Christian words trying to reach free-sex, drug addicted hippies with their own music.  The world saw it for what it was and laughed. I have a Time Magazine article in my files entitled "New lyrics for the devil's music".  Many of the musicians were drug addicts themselves as well as living immorally and even homosexually. 

 

Our jOB is NOT to connect people to worship with music they relate to. You will never hear language like that a single time in the NT.  Our jOB is to preach God's word, the truth, in a manner pleasing to and consistent with a holy God. You don't lower the standard to the people. You call the people up to the standard.

 

The most repetitious, mind-numbing, trance-inducing music on the planet (outside of some chants) is modern praise and worship music (what I call 7/11 music, as in 7 words repeated 11 times). They have to emotionally create "the presence of God" atmosphere for you to enter into. That's what they say.

 

Dan Lucarini was a well known praise and worship leader for many years who became convicted and came out. He made this powerful statement in his book, Why I Left Christian Contemporary Music:

  

  "CCM is stuck with the stigma of immorality, because the music styles carry within the baggage of the worlds immorality. It does not matter if you change the lyrics. It does not matter if you change the musicians. It does not matter if you change the record labels. It does not matter if you ask God to sanctify it. Rock music and all its children, and by association CCM, can and will corrupt the morals of everyone who practices it."

 

The number one reason churches change to this music is NOT to help people worship God. It is because pastors learned years ago that churches grow faster when you give lost people a carnal, entertainment atmosphere in which to "experience" God.  God never called people to this kind of Christianity. He calls them to repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. The tatoo'd, ear-ring wearing, tight leather pants, crooner of rock ballads in worship fits better around the golden calf than in church.

 

We fundamentalists are still trying to whitewash it and clean it up enough for the OBvious fallacy not to show.  Ask yourself this question: If I take a CCM song and "clean it up for our church", what do I have to take out of it and why? What was dirty that need cleaning?

 

Some say, "all styles of music are basically "from the world."  How would you deny this?

 

Easily and with scripture. 

 

1. There was music before the earth was created. Singing occurred while the foundations of this earth were laid (JOB 38:6). There is music in heaven, as you also know from Revelation.  Music was not created here. Even Lucifer was created with musical instruments built into his body (Ezek. 18:13). When we talk about the "devil's music", that is not a figure of speech. If music predates this world, it cannot all be of this world.

 

2. It would make no sense for God to insist we sing "spiritual" songs (Eph. 5:19) if all songs were spiritual. He specifically names three kinds of music for us. 

 

This argument is a funny one to lost musicians who enjoy our stupidity on this point. Recently, Gene Simmons, bassist and vocalist for KISS, an 80's heavy metal rock band, was serving in the judges panel on a star search type of program. When a youth pastor with a great voice  came up and sang a CCM song about Jesus, Simmons shot him down immediately and lectured him in front of the group. He said that all rock music was about sex and he should know as he had spent his lifetime in it and that there was no place for God in rock music…it was a "contradiction". 

 

I thought that was interesting. The worldly, depraved, lost man knows what some Christians can't or don't want to see.

 

3. When the bible defines the world: as in love not the world neither the things in the world (I John 2:15) or this present evil world (Gal. 1:4), God is not talking about the big, blue marble called earth. He is talking about the combined behavior of lost people on a planet under Satanic rule (Eph. 2:2)…a people he calls the children of disOBedience. God likens them to darkness and saved people to light (I Thess 5). When God tells us to come out from among them and be ye separate, He is not saying we should leave the planet but that we should not bring their debaucheries into our lives. This is precisely what has happened with CCM. We have gone to the world, gotten their sensualized music, and brought it not only into our lives but into our worship of God.

 

Bro. Garry

In His will.  By His power.  For His glory

 

 

 

 

[Ukulelemike]

Very good. Sounds very much like what I have preached many times.

[Pastor Matt]

Seems like you have a good pastor. Thanks for sharing.

[DaveW]

Great note brother. I can't take notes that comprehensively.
Is there a recording of this somewhere? Wouldn't mind listening to the preaching.

[2bLikeJesus]

Great note brother. I can't take notes that comprehensively.
Is there a recording of this somewhere? Wouldn't mind listening to the preaching.

 

Actually, I run the sound booth at my church so I have the luxury of listening to a digital copy of the message as often as I wish to "flesh out" my notes.  I have Mp3 copies of every sermon my Pastor or guests have preached for the last 12 years, but I will need permission from my Pastor before I make any of those available to the public.  I caused a LOT of issues for the church once when I posted a sermon against sodomites and it got put on youtube.  The LGBT picketted our church for months afterwards and did their best to run us out of town.  Now I need his specific and direct permission of what I can share and with whom.

[DaveW]

Understood - if possible I would be happy to get it direct and with promise not to distribute it further.
Just sounds like a well presented argument worth listening to.

[EKSmith]

Thanks for the post brother Garry , I was in a church that was destroyed by CCM and its movement. more of our pastors need to be preaching this very same thing as your pastor, and I'm sure your pastor wouldn't mind them using his sermon to do so. because if not it's gonna creep in there doors and take over with its signs, smells ,Icons and wonders.

 

God Bless Brother

[2bLikeJesus]

I got permission from my pastor to share anything on music that he has preached.  I am just now combing through 12 years of messages and searching for the best one.  There is one entire 3 service series of messages on the subject, but I am not sure you are looking for over 4 hours of in-depth study on the topic. 

[Jordan Kurecki]

Amen to this! 

[weary warrior]

In our house, we call 'em "Jesus is my boyfriend" songs. CCM, just like the Bible versions and service styles, seek to take away the power and glory of God

[2bLikeJesus]

In our house, we call 'em "Jesus is my boyfriend" songs. CCM, just like the Bible versions and service styles, seek to take away the power and glory of God

I like it!  I will add it to my term "7/11 music" as in 7 words repeated 11 times. 

[John81]

It might have been the 90s when CCM was really bad about having so many songs which sounded like generic love songs, often not even mentioning God or Jesus.

 

While there has been a swing in this century toward more substantive lyrics among many, the music itself has changed little, other than being of better quality due to higher sales of CCM records and more money coming in through concerts.