Sorry that it has taken so long to post a response to this! Hopefully the previous article from Sam Storms won’t be too far out of the minds of Doxologue readers. Chuck Colson’s original article can be found here, and the response by Sam Storms can be found here.

First, it seems apparent to me that Colson’s demeanor both in his writing and in his own description of how he responded to a worship leader is not Christ-like. The very first sentence in his article is a sweeping generalization that he can’t stand any contemporary worship music or worship leaders. He also declares that “Draw Me Close” has zero theologically content – a statement that can’t be true and is inflammatory. Colson’s defiant shout against the worship leader because he didn’t like the kind of singing that was going on does not display the humility and love of Christ. If the song or leader was leading people into unbiblical ideas about God or leading them into sinful behavior I could see justifying this kind of public retaliation.

Colson says “I’m convinced that much of the music being written for the church today reflects an unfortunate trend—slipping across the line from worship to entertainment.” I believe that He is drawing a misleading connection between a song and a spirit of entertainment. It’s not the song in and of itself that is “worshipful” (an adjective that I think is very unhelpful but use here to continue Colson’s contrast between worship and entertainment) or “entertainment-ful.” He goes on to describe certain musical instruments and the volume (which I completely agree with) of how contemporary worship music is played. This demonstrates that what makes a song entertainment is how it is presented and used. How the worship leader and team approach their craft is of utmost importance whatever the style or instrumentation of music is. I could just as easily level the charge against more classically oriented worship formats that the leading style tends to give the impression of still, cold formality.

On to Sam Storms’ response to Chuck. I agree with both of them with their concern for the increasing trend towards anti-intellectualism and lack of in-depth teaching both in songs and in sermons happening in the church today. I disagree with Sam’s suspicion that

Many who express their disdain for contemporary Christian worship do so less out of theological conviction or from an objection to its alleged aesthetical shortcomings and more from a discomfort with the way in which such songs call for and facilitate personal engagement with God. I love traditional hymns. But many of them, for lack of a better way of putting it, enable the soul to “keep God at arm’s length.” One can sing “about” God with theological precision and yet never engage the heart (see Mt. 15:8-9). There is a particular style of Christian music that never requires a person to honestly open their heart to God’s presence and encounter him in a truly vulnerable and honest way

This statement is fraught with problems, in my opinion. First, from my experience, theological conviction and objection to alleged aesthetical shortcomings are the most common reasons people give for opposition to contemporary worship music. And there is some validity in those arguments. Contemporary worship music is often theologically vague (which can be as hurtful as theologically wrong) and the melodies and musicianship of songs are often very poor. When Storms says that many hymns enable to soul to “keep God at arm’s length” I have to scratch my head and wonder which ones! I have a deep background in knowing and using historic hymns. Sure, the language is often more formal, but if pastors and worship leaders model how to engage with these truths by explaining them in natural language, they become amazingly meaningful and facilitate deep heart responses to the Lord. Here are a few examples of hymns that express personal love and response to theological truths:

And Can It Be That I Should Gain? (by Charles Wesley)
Verse 4:
Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray-
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.
Amazing love! How can it be,
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

Breath On Me, Breath of God (Edwin Hatch)
Verse 3:
Breathe on me, breath of God,
‘Till I am wholly thine,
Until this earthly part of me
Glows with Thy fire divine.

Come, Thou Almighty King (Charles Wesley)
Verse 1:
Come, Thou almighty King,
Help us Thy Name to sing, help us to praise!
Father all glorious, o’er all victorious,
Come and reign over us, Ancient of Days!

Fairest Lord Jesus (Joseph Seiss)
Verse 1:
Fairest Lord Jesus, Ruler of all nature,
Son of God and Son of Man!
Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor,
Thou, my soul’s glory, joy and crown.

It Is Well with My Soul (Horatio Spafford)
Verse 3:
My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

My Jesus, I Love Thee (William Featherston)
Verse 3:
I’ll love You in life,
I will love You in death,
And praise You as long as You lend me each breath;
And say, when the death dew lies cold on my brow,
If ever I loved You, my Jesus, it’s now.

When Storms says that “there is a particular style of Christian music that never requires a person to honestly open their heart to God’s presence and encounter him in a truly vulnerable and honest way” he is revealing that he believes this barrier to opening our heart to God’s presence is simply the musical style. I believe that this is disastrous and even idolatrous. In fact, to make matters worse, when Christians believe that contemporary worship songs allow them to express their heart to God but don’t give any reasons behind why they should love and adore God, there is nothing to separate their worship from the worship of the world. At music concerts around the world adoring fans are worshipping with passion, just not worshipping Christ. And the “intimacy” of the music aids them in their worship! Christian worship has specific theological content that we need to be constantly reminded of because we are so forgetful due to sin’s deceitfulness.

Having said all of this, I want to make it clear that I do believe music can either help or hinder the engagement of our hearts with the truth we are singing about. That’s the whole reason why I write new music to historic hymns. The tunes used for many of these hymns, in my opinion (and the opinion of many others) make it more difficult to engage with the lyrics. For many of us modern musical styles and instruments express more of our “heart language” than simple, four part, rhythmically static melodies do. The amazing variety in modern musical styles gives a broader palette for songwriters and “worship bands” to draw from to support the truths we sing about.

I am also not opposed to using more simple songs in congregational worship (though I doubt I’ll be using Draw Me Close any time soon). Kevin and others have already pointed out that we can invest meaning in these songs as worship leaders by our exhortation and by the context of the worship service around the song. I will choose these songs when I know they are meaningful to some in the congregation (for various reasons) and also for those who are young in the faith or of diminished mental capacity such as adults of low intelligence or children. Most of our songs contain a depth of truth that would be difficult for these people to fully follow, while simple statements of love and adoration are more approachable. I think it wise to plan for the whole spectrum of Christian maturity and intellect in our entire services, including our sermons. As far as possible from my human planning perspective, I want there to be something in the service that will particularly edify each person there, whatever their maturity, intelligence, or musical background.

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