LANCASTER BAPTIST SHOUTING TO THE LORD
Friday Church News Notes,
February 18, 2011, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143
For a while now we have observed with increasing concern the adaptation
of Contemporary Worship Music at Lancaster Baptist Church, home of West Coast
Baptist College. It would be very easy for me to keep my mouth shut about this
because of the close relationship I have with some of the people there and
because of the widespread support the school has from very conservative
Independent Baptists, not to speak of the many commendable things the school
stands for; but I can no longer remain silent in good conscience before God. It
is not a one-time problem; it is a pattern. For decades I have been warning
about the spiritual danger of Contemporary Christian Music and how that it
brings a lot of worldly baggage in its wake. It is not just music; it is a
philosophy of Christianity that breaks down the God-ordained barriers between
the church and the world. Any church today that is not aggressively resisting
CCM will eventually succumb to it, and probably sooner rather than later. The
evidence is all around us. The pressure toward compromise is too great; the
satisfaction that this music offers to the flesh is too intense. The
contemporary philosophy in this apostate hour is like a powerful flowing river,
and our churches are like small boats. Those that are not paddling fiercely
against the current will certainly be carried along by it. I don’t care what
else you are doing right; if you allow CCM a foot in the door you are on the
slippery slope of compromise. Like many others, Lancaster Baptist and West Coast
are saying the right things about being opposed to CCM, but increasingly their
actions don’t match the rhetoric. I strongly suspect that there are people in
the music department that love CCM and listen to it regularly. This is why they
frequently come up with toned-down CCM specials. They remove the heavy back beat
(though the dance syncopation can still be present in the piano style); there is
no drum kit, no bass guitar; but it is still CCM. The most recent example that
came to my attention was radical charismatic-ecumenist Darlene Zschech’s “Shout
to the Lord” performed as a special by the orchestra and two pianists and
available on YouTube. I urge Pastor Chappell and the leaders at Lancaster
Baptist Church and West Coast Baptist College to put a stop to the music people
who are digging in the garbage bin of CCM in search for something acceptable.
And don’t say, “It can’t happen here.” When I graduated from Tennessee Temple in
1976 it was in most ways every much as conservative as West Coast is today. In
music, it was more conservative. But they didn’t heed warnings and thought they
were too big to be criticized and shot the messengers instead of heeding the
reproof, and today Tennessee Temple is a Southern Baptist rock & roll
institution. I would challenge the leaders of Lancaster to bring in an expert
like Graham West of Australia to inform the people more properly about music.
The wisest standard for Christian music today is the standard that rejects CCM
lock, stock, and barrel. Lines must be drawn, and the safest line is the best
line. It is far better to err on the side of being too strict about music, as it
is one of the most powerful influences in modern society. There is an endless
supply of truly sacred music, both old and new, that doesn’t push the
boundaries.
Although I wouldn't usually put music like this on my blog, I'm doing it to emphasize a point, I don't encourage this music at all. (thus the post) Also, I don't want it to be said that I'm "picking" on WCBC, or Lancaster Baptist Church. I'm very disappointed in this, having almost gone to WCBC for my music major. And it's the only good college that has been brought to my attention that is bringing in CCM.
Congratulations to the Class of 2011!!
Here is a copy of the announcements I sent out. Colleen and I had a lot of fun designing them :)
The Super Bowl is upon us; and once again we'll see just how much we love
this sport. But is it possible we love it a little too much- just as we so
with
so many other things in life? Consider a commercial last year on TV
that
described the love affair a former professional player, Lawrence
Taylor, has
with football. It could very well describe the undying love
millions of
Americans have for the sport.
The commercial is for the
video game "Blitz The League II." As players
deliver body-breaking blows to
each other, Taylor pitches this extremely violent
video game with the line:
"Every Sunday, when America goes to church, we go to
war. While they pray
for salvation, we play for survival."
As scenes of a football stadium are
shown, Taylor says, "This is our
cathedral." An image of a football is
shown: "This game is our religion." Taylor
then delivers the commercial's
final line: "And every religion has its judgement
day."
Although the
theme is football, it's not really about football at all. It's
about
replacement. Anything can become " our cathedral." The constant fight for
the Christian is to make sure that he is dead to self and that God is on the
throne of his heart. It takes daily introspection and honesty to root out
anything that is trying to take the place of God in our hearts. The key is
to
root it out before it becomes "a god", not after it's already there!
How do we do this? The answer is simple yet profound in truth. We simply
continually draw close to God an keep our hearts tender to Him.
Do you
have entertainment in your life or does it have you?
1And God spake all these words, saying, 2I am the LORD thy
God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of
bondage. 3Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 4Thou shalt not make unto
thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or
that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5Thou
shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a
jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the
third and fourth generation of them that hate me; 6And shewing mercy unto
thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
Exodus 20:1-6Tony Brown
Assistant Pastor
Lifeway Baptist Church
Ellettsville, IN
A while ago, there was something that I was SOOO excited
about! I had talked to my mom, and we both were praying about it. I'd think
about it a lot, but everytime I would, God would remind me of something that
was, not necessarily wrong, but wasn't right about this thing. I'd just shove
those thoughts out of my mind, and think that those things would all work
out.No more than a couple of weeks after I had started praying, I
found out that this wasn't a possibility in my life. At least at this point. I
was really disappointed, but through talking to my mom, and praying more about
it, even more "not right" things. I also realized that this event had been
distracting me in my walk with God, and finding and following His will. At first
I had a lot of trouble accepting this but God brought me two perfect
verses:
"Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when
the desire cometh, it is a tree of life."Proverbs 13:12
"But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I
may declare all thy works."Psalms 73:28
Those verses have helped me to just
grow closer to God during those past months, and I've realized that even though
God said "not right now." Some day my desires, if I continue to draw close to
God and follow His will, will be granted!
