The above question is one that should not have to be asked, but it is
necessary to address the issue because most professed Christians are in dire
spiritual condition today. What saith the scripture?
The scripture says that God can only be worshipped in spirit, truth, and the
beauty of holiness. Is Contemporary “Christian” Music holy?
1 Chronicles 16:29, “Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him: worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.”
Psalm 96:9, “O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.”
John 4:23-24, “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”
Jesus Christ said that the Father’s word is truth. In other words: the Bible, which is the word of God, is truth. The King James Bible is THE word of God in the English language. God cannot be worshipped with a modern perversion that attacks Christ’s deity, omits key verses, makes salvation difficult, and omits Lucifer’s name. How many CCM songs do you know that contain God’s word rather than vague, feel-good, religious lyrics?
John 17:17, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”
According to the scriptures, there is false worship, which is what most religious people are guilty of today: honoring God with the mouth while the heart is far from Him.
Isaiah 29:13, “Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:”
Matthew 15:7-9, “Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.”
These false worshippers are the ones who believe that honoring God with the mouth is how you worship Him, while rejecting the truth of His word. Most churches (and professed Christians) have been conditioned to think that worldly music with religious words is worshipping God, but there is no such example in scripture of that being true. In fact, God wants born again believers not to conform to the world, but to serve Him reasonably.
Romans 12:1-2, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
In other words, you cannot win the world by conforming to the world. That is
not how it works. Worldly music is still worldly music, even if it has a
religious label and/or lyrics. But the issue does not end there.
CCM artists make a lot of money selling albums, going on tours, and hosting
concerts. They get a lot of fame from award ceremonies and having their
music broadcast on the radio. Pray tell, who is getting the glory here, God
or the artists? God does NOT share His glory with another.
Isaiah 42:8, “I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.”
According to the scriptures, you CANNOT serve two masters. You CANNOT serve God and mammon (wealth). Who are these CCM artists serving when they have fame, fortune, and the adoration of the world? I have not heard of a single CCM artist hated or persecuted by the world. Something is wrong here.
Luke 16:13-15, “No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him. And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.”
John 15:18-20, “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.”
The other day I had a couple of pro-CCM family
members foolishly tell me people have been led to God by CCM, and that CCM
artists have a gift of song that leads people to God. Let us examine both
claims, shall we?
1. “People have been led to God by this music.” (CCM)
There is not one example in scripture of a person getting saved because they
heard someone singing to God (which CCM does NOT do: we have already seen
that CCM artists get the fame and glory for their music, not God). In fact,
the scriptures tell us that faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word
of God. The word of God is the Bible. How is the word of God heard? By
preaching. How many CCM songs preach the word of God? None.
Romans 10:14-17, “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”
Titus 1:2-3, “In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began; But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour;”
2. “The CCM artists have a vocal
gift that leads people to God.”
I looked into this particular claim about singing being a gift used to lead
people to God. In 1 Corinthians 12, there is a list of diverse gifts, but
the same Spirit. The gift of song is not mentioned one time. Why? Because
singing does not bring salvation to others: PREACHING THE WORD OF GOD does.
1 Corinthians 12:4-11, “Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.”
O the foolish things people will say to hold on to
the things they ought not! What astonishes and saddens me is when professed
Christians know the lyrics to ecumenical CCM garbage more than they know the
King James Bible.
The scriptures teach us that we, as born again believers, ought to live
soberly, righteously, and godly, and that we should be zealous of good
works.
Titus 2:11-14, “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”
Is CCM godly? Does it glorify God? Does it preach
the word of God? Does it preach the gospel? Does it preach separation? The
answer to all of these questions is NO. CCM does NONE of those things. I
have yet to meet a Christian who is living for God that supports this
ecumenical garbage. The only professed Christians I know that support this
garbage are carnal Christians who rarely read the Bible, if they read it at
all.
Almost all cases of singing in the scriptures are of singing unto God, not
unto men, and ESPECIALLY NOT for fame, glory, and adoration of the world.
Psalm 100:1-2, “Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.”
Ephesians 5:17-21, “Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.”
Colossians 3:16, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”
In Psalm 137, we find reference to the Lord’s song, not our song, not the world’s song, and not even Israel’s song.
Psalm 137:1-4, “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion. How shall we sing the LORD’s song in a strange land?”
In conclusion, to answer the original question of,
“Is Contemporary ‘Christian’ Music Biblical?” The answer is no. It is not
Biblical because it does not honor God, it honors man. Any professed
Christian who supports, listens to, and/or defends CCM, ought to be ashamed
of themselves and get right with God. The scriptural evidence against CCM is
abundant, and it is clear.
Here is a quote for you to ponder from a former worship leader named Dan
Lucarini, who tells us of the destructive nature of CCM:
“We took teens to concerts given by popular CCM artists. These were not the ‘radical’ heavy metal or hip-hop artists, but the middle-of-the-road performers who seemed to be good role models. But we noticed that the artists, probably under the influence of their recording companies, imitated secular artists in music, concert performing techniques, dress, hairstyle and merchandising. Everything seemed to be geared to making money by winning fans. The poor teens were manipulated in the same way as when they were listening to their secular teen idols. They were hooked in the beginning by safe, careful lyrics and moderate music but the artists always progressed to an edgier, rockier and harder music style with a lifestyle and image to match. And the teens followed along. The CCM artists became role models for different kinds of immorality: indecent dress, rebellious images, improper crushes on married men by young girls, lustful interest in sexy females by adolescent males.” -Dan Lucarini, “Confessions Of A Former Worship Leader”, page 117
