So this message has been heavy on my heart for a good while now, like close to a year probably. I go to a conservative christian college, and in some ways it's very challenging. Don't get me wrong I think my school is the best one there is and I love it so much, but it doesn't come without a few disagreements in some rules and doctrines. In high school my family broke away from the traditional church setting and settled into a church that we love! It is a contemporary church, which isn't for everyone, but you know what? The people in that church feel so real, so genuine. The worship leaders, the small group leaders, the elders, and even our pastor are some of the most real people you will ever meet. They don't hide struggles or try to make it seem like they have their lives all together. They don't try and make it seem like they are holier than anyone else because they have been placed in a position of authority in our church. In fact they will tell you that they are simply tools that God is using to guide our church, and its not just words coming out of their mouths you can see that they mean it from the depths of their hearts. So therefore I love my church! The worship time is dark and loud allowing everyone to worship freely as they feel the Lord prompting. The messages from our pastor are ones that are challenging, but practical. He gets down deep, but also doesn't forget the basics, while keeping it in simple terms so that even middle schoolers in the audience can understand. He doesn't use words like "sanctified" and "washed in the blood of the lamb." He wants anyone who walks into our church to know what he's talking about. My church isn't for everyone, but for me personally that is the place that I have found that I have grown the most and felt the most connected to God. So as you can imagine when I came to school and was required to go to at least five very traditional chapel services a semester it was a cause for a bit of a culture shock after being out of a traditional church for so long.
The thing that shocked me most is in the first sermon I heard, after we had been seated from singing a hymn, is that I heard the pastor say that contemporary worship wasn't really worship. I immediately disagreed and started to question the validity of his whole sermon. After that I started to see articles on Facebook about how so many church goers felt similarly to that pastor. They feel that contemporary worship songs lack the depth that hymns provided to worship, and that contemporary services were more about the show than the worship. I started to see the other sides points and really think about these things. I have been pondering, praying, reading, and listening to both sides for a year now, and have finally come to a conclusion of what I think about this whole thing.
John 4:23-24 "Yet a day is coming and has now come when true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth."
It's plain and simple; Jesus told his followers to worship God in Spirit and in truth. It says that God is Spirit, therefore we are supposed to be worshiping in him. To further expand upon that, I consider worshiping in spirit to be that you are thanking and worshiping God from the depths of your heart. It is a time where you are crying out to God, or you are filled so full of joy that you can no longer stand still. The presence of God is there with you, and it is evident to you and the others around you. And to worship in truth means to be singing worship that is of truth. This can include scriptures, or songs inspired by scriptures that still speak truth about God and what He has done for us. So based on this passage I would have to say, depending on your personal preference of worship, as long as you are singing truth filled songs with a Spirit of worship both types of worship are pleasing to God!
On the other hand, I have to mention a few things. Im tired of hearing so much negativity towards contemporary worship, because that happens to be the way that I feel I am truly worshiping God. The arguments against contemporary worship I have heard the most often are, (1) it is too repetitive and doesn't have enough depth, (2) they focus too much on the show and not enough on the worship itself, (3) we have to remember our church's history, and (4) I just don't feel like I am really worshiping when singing those songs.
1. It is too repetitive and simple. I am a ballet dancer of 13 years. In classical ballet pieces there are sequences of movements that are repeated three or four times before moving on to the next sequence. Why is this? Because for an average, untrained audience it takes several times of seeing movements to actually comprehend the complexity of the movements that the dancers are performing. It is the same I feel like with contemporary worship. It can take us saying something a few times before we really comprehend what we are saying and understand the depth within something that can sound so simple at first. Also I feel like as humans we for some reason try to complicate the idea of being a follower of Christ. Yes, God is a very complex being that we will never be able to fully understand, and there should be worship songs to reflect that. But Him coming for us and us accepting that gift is not complicated. In fact, it's so simple it is hard for us to comprehend why. So sometimes we need to take a step back to simplicity to really understand what Jesus came and did for us.
2. There's too much focus on the show. In all honesty I feel that traditional worship pastors can be just as guilty of putting on a show as contemporary worship pastors can be. I'm sorry but nobody sings in the kind of voice that traditional worship pastors sing in. They don't just sing, they think that it has to have a certain loud billowy sound. They even add runs sometimes that aren't actually written in the song just to give it a little more oomph. They want it to be known that they are a churchy worship pastor. They also put so much pressure on their choir members to sound just the right way in their performances. Not that these thing are necessarily a bad thing, but you can't tell me that there isn't something of a show within that. And as many of those worship pastors there are there are also very kind, genuine, and worshipful worship pastors on both the contemporary and the traditional side. Look at the heart of the person leading worship not the lights or the slides, because in the end thats really what matters.
3. We have to remember our church's history. Yes this is valid, we should remember our church's history and hymns do a good job of that because many of them are almost direct quotes of scripture, but contemporary songs can also do the same. Hymns are also a reflection of our church 100 to 200 years ago. Awesome! But if we really wanted to remember our church's history we would still be singing hymns from 2,000 years ago in Hebrew or Greek. The muslims and the Jews still do this actually. But do you know what? Most of them, unless hebrew/greek or arabic is their first language, don't know what they are saying. They cannot be truly worshiping because they aren't doing it out of the stirrings of their heart, but out of tradition. They can't understand quite why they are worshiping, because they don't know what they are saying. I tend to feel the same way with many hymns. The language in the songs have so many thee's and thou's that I don't even really know what I am saying. I can't understand what I am asking and lifting up to God, and so in a sense is that even really worship? Now I know that you can still have a spirit of worship of course, but that's only half of the worship experience. There are certain hymns that are very near and dear to my heart, but those don't typically have Old King James lyrics.
4. I don't feel like I am really worshiping. This is where I will say that is okay! If you don't feel the stirring of the spirit in your heart with contemporary worship, but you do with hymns then that is perfectly fine. God tells us to worship by making a joyful noise, and worshiping in spirit and truth. I personally feel that both contemporary and traditional worship fulfill those standards and God find's them both pleasing in His sight.
If you have made it this far into this post congratulations and I thank you for sticking it out! There are obviously arguments to both sides, but something we must remember is we are all followers of Christ and he cares deeply for all his children. We should not be dividing the church over silly things like worship styles and carpet choices, but instead lifting up and encouraging one another to continue strongly and boldly in our faith. This world already has enough division. Go and spread salt to the earth my friends!
All my love,
Kurstie
