{"id":814,"date":"2015-04-23T03:51:58","date_gmt":"2015-04-23T03:51:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/?p=814"},"modified":"2015-08-23T03:51:18","modified_gmt":"2015-08-23T03:51:18","slug":"music-of-the-great-apostasy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/?p=814","title":{"rendered":"Music of the Great Apostasy"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Hillsong2\"<\/a>A couple of decades ago, I wrote a book entitled, \u201cThe Music of the Great Apostasy.\u201d When I revamped my website, I did not upload the book.\u00a0 I intended to revised and add to it.\u00a0 I believe the title is appropriate for this article.<\/p>\n

In the book, I predicted error in Christian music would progress until it became the music of the Great Apostasy.\u00a0 We have been seeing the actuality of that prediction, and it\u2019s going to get much worse.\u00a0 The prediction was simply a matter of looking down the logical road to its conclusion.\u00a0 There is no way that Christianity\u2019s music can be almost totally supplanted by a secular-inspired genre and not fall into the basement of carnality.<\/p>\n

That moment arrived long ago.\u00a0 But now the matter has gone beyond simply playing around with music styles of the world system.\u00a0 Just as Christianity is apostatizing in doctrine and practice, so it is apostatizing in music.\u00a0 Consider that when Israel apostatized, their music and the way they worshipped reflected their apostasy.\u00a0 Since widespread heresy is making many churches susceptible to demonic activity, no doubt the music is conducive for it.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not the words that are bad\u2014shallow and repetitive, but not necessarily bad.\u00a0 It is the obsession with music, the downright addiction that drives churches to become so music oriented that true worship and God\u2019s word are shamefully marginalized.\u00a0 It is also the bizarre way the music is performed, the atmosphere, darkness, flashing lights, smoke, etc.<\/p>\n

The standard defense is an old one, \u201cIf it feels good, do it.\u201d \u00a0Or as one adulteress said, \u201cHow can anything that feels so good be bad.\u201d\u00a0 Truth or rational consideration of God\u2019s word is not a factor in determining whether it is right or wrong.\u00a0 There is no consideration of Divine Order.\u00a0 It is all about what feels good.\u00a0 Therefore, Satan has taken that old adage and tweaked it a bit.\u00a0 The result is, \u201cIf it feels good, it must be God.\u201d<\/p>\n

Any input from the older generation is met with scorn.\u00a0 They assume that the generation that invented Rock-n-Roll doesn\u2019t know anything about good music.\u00a0 Thus, they exchange knowledge and experience, their rightful heritage, for emotion (feelings).<\/p>\n

When Hillsong\u2019s music began to get popular with Darlene Zschech and Rueben \"Hillsong3\"<\/a>Morgan, who are still worship leaders at Hillsong, I liked their music.\u00a0 The more popular they became, the more the focus on music drew people away from true worship.\u00a0 Eventually, the music that was supposed to be the facilitator of worship became the object of worship.\u00a0 \u00a0One could witness the digression into what I call Adrenalin Worship<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Adrenalin Worship<\/em> did not begin with Hillsong, but they have taken it to a new level.\u00a0 It has always been a stumbling stone for professing Christians.\u00a0 You can witness it in Southern Gospel and Black Gospel.\u00a0 Music. \u00a0Music that was meant for encouragement or entertainment was commandeered for worship.\u00a0 The more sensational it became, the more people wanted it.<\/p>\n

The problem with Adrenalin Worship<\/em> is, it is not true worship.\u00a0 Instead, it is worship from the flesh.\u00a0 When the music affects the flesh that powerfully, it is impossible to worship God.\u00a0 The reason is because when flesh is permitted to emote unrestrained, the soul cannot express through the body.\u00a0 True spirituality cannot thrive in the atmosphere.<\/p>\n

The Millennial Generation and subsequent generations do not understand that.\u00a0 Worship leaders are greatly responsible for that deficiency.\u00a0 I have watched \u201chigh energy\u201d praise bands rock the crowd into a frenzy.\u00a0 When the frenzy subsides, the worship leader might say, \u201cGod showed up tonight.\u201d\u00a0 That was false teaching.\u00a0 God is in us as the Holy Spirit.\u00a0 He does not \u201cshow up\u201d if true Christians are gathered because He is already there inside of them.\u00a0 However, the doctrine planted in the minds of the people is that the emotion they corporately felt, entirely generated by the worship band, was God \u201cshowing up.\u201d\u00a0 Thus, the activity they just demonstrated is considered as true worship, and God showed up to receive and be involved in it.<\/p>\n

Churches recognize the Millennials and succeeding generation\u2019s attraction to and strong dependency on music.\u00a0 If you are going to build a church numerically, you must have the present genre of Christian music and a band capable of performing it.\u00a0 I have watched failing churches literally turn around their sagging attendance record with nothing more than the addition of Contemporary worship music.<\/p>\n

\"Hillsong1\"<\/a>As much as it is advertised otherwise, in many church settings the worship music is not about God.\u00a0 Consider that Bethel Music flows from one of the most deceptive New Apostolic Reformation churches, deemed by some to be a cult.\u00a0 Hillsong music flows from a church with false doctrine and other serious concerns, including financial accountability.\u00a0 The music was not born in worship, so how could it inspire true worship?<\/p>\n

A significant percentage of Contemporary worship music was not created by the anointing of the Holy Spirit, but involves styles borrowed from the world system.\u00a0 The world system creates music appealing to secular people.\u00a0 That is how the secular music business functions.\u00a0 If the world system created music that made people want to repent, draw near to God, or worship Him, the secular world would reject it.\u00a0 They create music for the flesh.\u00a0 Adapting that style of music to Christianity causes an immediate problem of exciting the flesh long before the soul is stirred, if the soul is ever stirred.\u00a0 That\u2019s a big problem.<\/p>\n

God\u2019s word is clear.\u00a0 John 4:23-24, \u201cBut the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.\u00a0God\u00a0is<\/em>\u00a0Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.\u201d<\/p>\n

True worship is spiritual, not fleshly.\u00a0 It must be in truth, not heresy.\u00a0 How can music created in heresy and carnal emotionalism initiate true worship?\u00a0 In fact, it cannot.\u00a0 When the music begins, those warm and fuzzy feelings, or the rush of adrenalin, are not the true spirit of worship.\u00a0 One can get the exact same emotions at a secular music concert.\u00a0 If it is true worship, the band could suddenly shut down, leave the stage, turn off the lights and smoke machines, and the worship would continue unabated.<\/p>\n

In this period of great deception and apostasy, many professing Christians are not going to understand that.\u00a0 However, consider that the churches filling up because of the music are mostly drawing nominal Christians at best.\u00a0 They have no palate for the anointed word of God.\u00a0 Most of them will not tolerate conviction or altar calls.\u00a0 If you want them to stay for the preaching, it had better be short, interesting, and non-convicting.\u00a0 That doesn’t comport with the attitude of a true Christian.\u00a0 If that type of people sway, lift their hands, dance, jump, and otherwise move with the music during \u201cworship\u201d time, who or what are they worshipping?<\/p>\n

One could make the case that the music is drawing secular people into the church meeting.\u00a0 Okay, but if that is the goal, what are they receiving once they come inside?\u00a0 Is the church actually making them disciples of Christ, or are those individuals dictating by their finicky and flighty natures how much truth is offered to them, and the manner in which it is offered?\u00a0 If the latter, then they are simply being entertained, not converted.<\/p>\n

By morphing their church into a movie production with a music concert, Hillsong has reached the end of the logical road.\u00a0 It is now a church where the lost can feel completely comfortable, and the Holy Spirit is very uncomfortable.\u00a0 Is that what God intended when He poured out His Holy Spirit on the 120 in the Upper Room 2000 years ago?\u00a0 If so, then why didn\u2019t He supernaturally make them all fabulous singers and musicians?\u00a0 Then they could have come dancing out of the Upper Room and entertained the crowd. Instead, He gave them power to be witnesses and to do great works.\u00a0 \u00a0The modern church has willingly discarded that power and opted for Adrenalin Worship<\/em> as its most powerful tool.\u00a0 Its \u201cmighty works\u201d are accomplished by technology.<\/p>\n

There is definitely a place for music in church meetings.\u00a0 Used properly (that is, producing true worship and bringing honor to God and His word), music is a benefit.\u00a0 I believe the improper elevation of music in youth church decades ago was probably the beginning of the present error.\u00a0 Music was woven into the meeting to the extent that it went from entertainment to dominance over and subsequent displacement of the traditional paradigm.\u00a0 What at first appeared as liberty has become a pleasant bondage.<\/p>\n

Finally, nothing I write or say is going to change it.\u00a0 If we are in the great and final apostasy, the masses will not alter their focus or methods.\u00a0 I receive hope from the possibility of getting through to the ones who truly love God and have not fully surrendered to the aberrant standard.<\/p>\n

I will close with this final question.\u00a0 If the contemporary worship music pattern typified by Hillsong and Bethel music is not the music of the great apostasy, then where is that music?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A couple of decades ago, I wrote a book entitled, \u201cThe Music of the Great Apostasy.\u201d When I revamped my website, I did not upload the book.\u00a0 I intended to revised and add to it.\u00a0 I believe the title is appropriate for this article. In the book, I predicted error in Christian music would progress […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-814","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","post-preview"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paIm2N-d8","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/814"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=814"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/814\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":821,"href":"https:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/814\/revisions\/821"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=814"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=814"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.truthkeepers.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=814"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}