10 Signs We’re Making Worship an Idol

9. Musical Praise Has Been Robbed of Its Unadulterated Beauty

All of these manipulations detract from the beautiful nature of musical worship. Musical praise has become “too much of a good thing.” The lack of moderation has robbed music of some of its potency and purity. Consider the message from Amos (God speaking through Amos) when God’s people had been negligent of certain requirements: “I hate, I despise your feasts! I can’t stand the stench of your solemn assemblies. Even if you offer Me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; I will have no regard for your fellowship offerings of fattened cattle. Take away from Me the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice flow like water, and righteousness, like an unfailing stream (Amos 5:21-24).” I am not suggesting that the church has necessarily reached this point, but it shows that a precedent exists for God to reject even the praises of His people when worship becomes unduly ritualistic and negligent. So many people have become divided over the confusion about musical worship for so many reasons. These deviations have robbed God’s people of true worship as a lifestyle and in doing so have robbed the music of some of its natural beauty.

10. Music Itself Has Become an Idol

This is the conclusion of all the other points: 1) Idols take attention from true acts of worship, just as music has become emphasized at the expense of other acts of worship. 2) Idols create confusion, just as musical worship has created genres, roles, and more that create confusion. 3) Idols exalt other people and things before God, just as modern worship leaders have become at times emphasized over God. 4) Idols distract from God’s true presence, just as atmospheric experientialism has distracted. 5) Idols distance people from God’s true presence, just as the expectancy of atmosphere has created the image of distance. 6) Idols demand performance over genuine relationship, just as praise has become something measured by earthly effect in both the bands and congregants.

7) Idols typically advance physical temples and work to keep God’s people isolated from influencing the darkness, just as emphasizing musical worship at the exclusion of community involvement creates the image of the church as an event and location rather than a people and community of light penetrating the darkness. 8) Idols demand gold, just as musical worship (now a worship industry) is heavily reliant upon gold to satisfy and sustain it. 9) Idols manipulate the natural beauty of glorifying God in true worship, just as musical exclusivism (musical worship at the exclusion of other forms of true worship) has actually managed to rob musical worship of some of its own natural beauty. All of this suggests that musical worship, in its present state, has become an idol. (That is not to say that it cannot still be pure, only that collectively it is in need of reform).

BONUS: How to Respond

Recognizing problems is only the first step. If the conversation is left here, it only breeds further discontentment. The Word of God is a double-edged sword. It brings death to lies that must die and life to truth in need of light. As such, a follow-up article will present solutions to help the church grow out of bad habits pertaining to exaltation of music over a lifestyle of worship.

Chris Townsend spent the first 26 years of his life as an atheist. He now leverages that background to help reach the lost and disciple the found. He has studied supply chain management & business information systems at Texas Christian University, theology at Christ for the Nations Institute (CFNI), church history at Liberty University, and apologetics at Biola. Chris is the president of Redeemed Royalty Ministries, a professor at Christ for the Nations Institute, and an itinerant apologist for weignitelove.org. Chris has written several books including Prove It: The Art and Science of Understanding and Articulating Why You Believe What You Believe and Ekklesia Rising: The Organization Formerly Known as Church. Connect with Chris at redeemedroyalty.org.