Author	Thread: "Worship Wars" ... How Christian are these?
Admin	"Worship Wars" ... How Christian are these? Posted : 29 Sep, 2010 09:58 AM I LOVE, LOVE, BAREFOOT LOVE to watch Charles Stanley's "In Touch" program on Christian TV on Sunday mornings and read his books of uplifting and encouraging insight and wisdom as well as his monthly ministry magazine In Touch!!! :yay: ... In the Bible study article for this month of October 2010, Charles Stanley teaches on God's viewpoint of the church phenomena of warring worship and service styles and I found what he shared to be a surprise and a SPECIAL BAREFOOT BLESSING to my heart and spirit from God's Word through Charles and the Holy Spirit!!! :yay: I had never heard the expression "worship wars" before so this was all revelatory news to me ... I, of course, knew that brothers and sisters in Christ preferred varying worship styles, but to be "warring" in their hearts and spirits and churches over them? How dare any of us!!! ... I, personally, have enjoyed sharing several worship and service styles in church with brothers and sisters in Christ, but prefer services that mix the types of songs of praise and worship, incorporating more modern Contemporary Christian compositions with the traditional hymns such as "Our God Is An Awesome God" and "Everlasting God" mixed with "Amazing Gace" and "He Touched Me" etc ... anyway, I thought you would enjoy reading what Charles Stanley's "What Is Worship?" Bible Study lesson had to say on this topic and then sharing your comments and experiences with this phenomena of "worship wars" ... so here it the Bible study for your spiritual blessing and enlightenment: WHAT IS WORSHIP? Releasing Our Preconceptions and Learning to Exalt the Lord - (c) by Charles Stanley, October 2010 In Touch magazine Read: Psalm 96 One of the most controversial issues in the church today is worship. Sadly, the phrase "worship wars" is used to describe the conflict between various music and service styles. Maybe it's time to open our minds, drop our preferences, and learn what the Lord says. In the Scriptures, the word "worship" means to bow oneself down in humble respect to a superior being. The goal is to meet and exalt the Lord in such a way that we come away transformed. Like Abraham, we humble ourselves and honor God by believing Him, obeying His commands, and withholding nothing from Him (Gen. 22: 1-18; Heb. 11: 17-19). The Old Testament gave very specific regulations for worship, but when Christ came, He changed the way we approach God (Heb. 9: 1-15; 10: 19-23). Now Jesus tells us that the only way to worship God is in spirit and truth (John 4: 23-24). Since the Holy Spirit lives within each believer, our meeting place with God is no longer an external temple but the internal spirit of man (Phil. 3:3), and the sacrifice we offer is ourselves (Rom. 12: 1-2). Because the New Testament records only general guidelines for churches to follow (Acts 2:42), each culture and era has been allowed the freedom to determine the specific elements of their meetings. However, the spirit of our gatherings shoild match that described by Paul in Colossians 3: 12-16. Although detailed practices and methods are not prescribed for the church, Psalm 96 lists timeless ways to praise and exalt the Lord. But sometimes we don't glorify the Lord when we meet with Him. In Mark 7: 6-13, Jesus warned that it is useless to honor God with our lips while our hearts are far from Him. If our attitudes are divisive, argumentative, or selfish, we have failed to worship the Lord (1 Cor. 11: 17-22). Now again I ask: "Worship Wars" ... how Christian are these? What does your heart and spirit tell you and/or what further wisdom do you have to share from God's Word and the Holy Spirit on this phenomena? Love, Your Brother in Christ, Steve Post Reply
View Profile History	"Worship Wars" ... How Christian are these? Posted : 29 Sep, 2010 12:02 PM I've never heard the term "worship wars", either; nor have I ever considered that the Body would be warring over worship music in the Church. Seems senseless. I just figured most had their own styles, and those who worship to a different beat or drum or no instrument at all found their place in which they could worship the Lord accordingly. I'm a music junky. I love to worship the Lord in song, even though I can't sing worth a darn. :laugh: And I too prefer Contemporary Christian music. But worship of the Lord means much more than worshiping through music or song. Our thoughts, words and actions, our lives, the intent of our hearts and the love of the Lord should give testimony to our worship. For Churches to war over worship style reminds me of what Paul wrote in 1Cor 12-13- "Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. Is Christ divided?" Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness. -Psalm 29:2 Post Reply
View Profile History	"Worship Wars" ... How Christian are these? Posted : 29 Sep, 2010 02:10 PM Amen, savedinchrist!!! :hearts: Steve Post Reply
SilverFire View Profile History	"Worship Wars" ... How Christian are these? Posted : 30 Sep, 2010 04:24 AM As someone who has been in a few worship bands, I can tell you why "worship wars" happen. It is precisely due, many times, to ungodly motives. First, it's common for the church worship service to reflect whatever's high on the CCM charts. The purpose of worship isn't to chase trends, but that's what happens, in the name of "relevance". I couldn't tell you how disappointing it was to hear the only reason we were learning a song was because the artist had a new album out. I've wondered where the "specialness" of church went if the worship service was just a live version of what I'd heard on the drive in. Second, there's a lot of pride and flesh involved in the lives of most musicians. It's sad; it's unfortunate; it's also true. Musicians in general tend to have big pride problems. The church doesn't help when it places musicians on pedestal right under Jesus. Third, there's a generational divide on the basis of music, too. Fourth, quite a lot of P&W songs aren't known for their lyrical depth. There's a question whether the church should simply appropriate whatever's popular at the moment and bless it for its services. Honestly, having heard and played quite a few P&W songs, I feel that about 10% are really any good. The rest are just trendy catchphrases and Biblical quotes strung together without any understanding or reflection upon their meaning. Fifth, there's a question as to whether worship is supposed to be more celebrative or more reflective. You can more easily achieve celebration with the typical rock-n-roll four piece than you can reflection, and so that tends to skew what songs are being chosen. Sixth, there's a question about whether a worship leader/band encourages or discourages participation. When the music is 98 db and you can't hear yourself sing, you might think, "What's the point?" Certain approaches can make the audience feel irrelevant. So there's a lot of reasons for differing opinions and even wars. Having been on the other side of the amplifier for a while really made me sick of all the politics and the trend-chasing that typically happens on the worship team. Post Reply
SOS4EMAILFRIEND View Profile History	"Worship Wars" ... How Christian are these? Posted : 30 Sep, 2010 07:29 AM Quite agree with the above post! Post Reply
View Profile History	"Worship Wars" ... How Christian are these? Posted : 30 Sep, 2010 01:08 PM Yup !!! Agree...Im so grateful that the Church I attend is very open to All kinds of Music and keeps it at a level of volume that is acceptable to all...Randy Travis to Israel and anyone else that stops in to share in Worship with the Lord Jesus*...xo Post Reply