IT'S THE MUSIC, BROTHER!
by Gordon Sears

Many a pastor is scratching his head these days because he can't figure out what has happened to his church. In spite of the fact that he has tried his best to accommodate the people and adjust his program to a changing world, he can't understand why his church is divided against itself and the spiritual life is at an all-time low. "Why do we have so much division?" he asks. "Why is there no revival?" "Where is the power and blessing of God?"

Perhaps you, dear friend, have been inclined to ask the same questions. If you haven't, you should! On the other hand, you may find yourself among the multitudes who have become so captivated by CCM (Christian Contemporary Music) and glorified church entertainment, that you are unable to see the Satanic evil behind this gigantic deception, leading millions down the road of apostasy. The answer is in the title of this article: "IT'S THE MUSIC, BROTHER!"

A discerning mind will observe that for many, CCM is offered solely for the purpose of satisfying man's insatiable lust for pleasure and self-enjoyment, rather than the offering of worship to a holy God.

These are the last days, described in the Bible as "perilous times" (II Tim. 3). We've lived to see the day when church platforms and pulpits have been transformed into Broadway stages, while loud, up-beat drums, electric guitars and digital key-boards have replaced the worshipful sound of the organ. The sound and style of music found in worldly places of amusement is now heard in the sacred places of worship. The demand and acceptance of radical changes in Christian music has done more to hinder the work of the gospel of Christ and advance the growth of apostasy within the professing church than anything that has happened since Pentecost.

The godless, humanistic philosophy that permeates our society has produced a generation of young adults whose worship music has lost all sense of dignity, respect, holiness and the fear of God. Many say "But this is the kind of music we love!" or "This is what appeals to the young people." Isn't it odd that those with the aids virus come up with similar answers when questioned about their ungodly life style? The drug addict loves his drugs, the alcoholic loves his liquor, and the gambler loves his gambling, but each of these is the fruit of a sinful heart and can only lead to despair. The big question is . . . where and what does CCM lead to?

WHERE IS THE OUTCRY?

Imagine your reaction if you knew children who attend Sunday School at your church were given lesson material containing pornography. How would you react to something like that? How would you react if a preacher were to stand in the pulpit of your church and preach false doctrine, denying the deity or resurrection of Christ. What would you do? Would you be upset? Would you ignore his remarks and remain silent or would you take immediate action to express you abhorrence against such erroneous teaching? My guess is, you would take quick action . . . right? Of course, any genuine Christian would! Then why, pray tell, do Christians not denounce this ungodly music that has infiltrated our churches, quenching the work of the Holy Spirit, preventing revival, promoting worldliness, dividing and literally destroying churches throughout the land? Why is there not an outcry of protest against this unholy invasion of the world into our churches? Where are the voices of God-fearing men and women crying aloud "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!" have we become so worldly-minded and so tolerant of sin that we condone and indulge the flesh in the name of worship?

Where are the men of God who dare to stand against the unholy union with the world? Have the under-shepherds of the flocks become so complacent they no longer answer the call to correct, reprove and rebuke sin, but rather appease the people by pretending that the problem is not there, ignoring it, or even worse, catering to it?

AWAY WITH TOLERANCE!

Our society continues to advance the theory that we all must be tolerant, which by definition means to be liberal or broad-minded. Tolerance may have its place in ethnic diversity, but tolerance of sinful behavior is not a Christian virtue. Keep in mind that Bible truth is absolute (perfect) and God's way is called a "narrow way" (Mt. 7:14), not a broad way. Separation from the world is all-inclusive and is taught in the scriptures as vital to the Christian life (Rom. 12:1-2). When it comes to the question of something that is in disagreement with Bible truth, Christians must not be tolerant. Proverbs 8:13 says: "The fear of the Lord is to hate evil" . . . not tolerate it!

The truth of the whole matter is that the mind of today's Christian has become so amalgamated into thinking just like the world, he can no longer differentiate between music that is holy and set apart unto God, from music that is profane and of the flesh. Tolerance sets in when families gravitate to watching the immorality, vulgarity, obscenity, and violence, which at the same time promotes ungodly music into the home by way of television. They soon become so accustomed to it, it no longer offends them. If Christians tolerate the sinful ways of the wicked, they will soon tolerate the music of the wicked, because the two go hand-in-hand. Evidence of this spiritual condition is everywhere today.

The path of tolerance leads to the highway of acceptance. Once a person finds CCM acceptable, he will easily embrace it in worship.

WHAT SHOULD A PASTOR DO?

Pastors often find themselves in an uncomfortable position regarding the subject of music. He's in trouble if he does and he's in trouble if he doesn't. It truly is a dividing issue and because of that most pastors prefer to stay silent on the subject and just hope and pray it will go away. But it will not go away! So what should a pastor do?

I was taken by surprise when I received an order for my book titled "Apostasy and Deception In Christian Music" from a Lutheran pastor. I thought to myself, "this is going to be interesting". I thought sure he would be in disagreement with most everything I said. About two weeks later, I got a letter from that Lutheran pastor, requesting 12 of the books. He said he was having problems with some church members who wanted to bring CCM into the services of worship. His plan was to give each of his elders the book and anyone else that he thought might have leanings toward CCM. What he was doing was letting the book do the work of setting his people straight on the subject. That Lutheran pastor came up with a great idea. Pastors . . . . perhaps you should take heed.


Gordon Sears is an author and musician.
His books include "Apostasy and Deception In Christian Music", Is Today's Music Sacred? and others.
You can order his books and music on-line at:
SONGFEST
P.O. Box 182
Coldwater, MI 49036


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