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Contemporary vs Traditional "worship"

Discussion in 'General Baptist Discussions' started by Berean, Oct 20, 2008.

  1. TCGreek

    TCGreek New Member

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    I listen Chris Tomlin all the time. He's great!
     
  2. Zenas

    Zenas Active Member

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    In my church they tried to make everyone happy by going to a "blended" worship service. Now no one is happy. The young people think it is too traditional and the old people think it is too contemporary, although the young people seem to be winning. It's really sad to see your church transformed into a place you would not consider joining if you were searching for a new church. Has anyone else had this experience? One day you look at your worship service and realize is is so foreign to your tastes that you would never consider joining it as a new member?
     
  3. Bob Alkire

    Bob Alkire New Member

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    So true!!! Sometimes a pastor or someone has to put their finger print on something and it gets folks upset. But change is always going on.

    When I was a child the church we went to had 2 hymns and about an hour to an hour and a half preaching and teaching. As time has move on I've seen the preaching cut and singing go up in time, and total service time cut and services per week cut.

    I believe as Zenas said a blended might cause more trouble, all are unhappy because they aren't singing more of their style of music.

    But ever what is done, if it is to the glory of God and not man, it will work. As W.A. Criswell said one time some Christians grow better in their Christian life in one church than another. That was an answer he gave of why he believed their was so many churches in a town and many good ones. So one style might help one group and another help another in their walk. I like traditional services the best.
     
  4. Tom Butler

    Tom Butler New Member

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    This is a sincere question. Do we really know that our teenagers, our young adults and our yuppie prefer CCM in worship? Or do we just assume it?

    I've actually seen some surveys (can't remember the source) which indicates that for younger folks, the style of music in the worship services really doesn't matter. They're just as comfortable with traditional hymns.

    Well, you may say, look at how they react to CCM--raising hands, swaying, dancing. They really love it. Of course, they do, if it resembles a rock concert.

    Shoot, even us geezers clap our hands in time with an upbeat religious song. I've even found my self patting my foot on occasion. A lot of Southern Gospel songs will do that, even if the theology is shallow. But I don't pretend that hand-clapping and toe-tapping is worship.

    And let's don't automatically assume that the kids don't like traditional hymns and traditional worship styles.
     
  5. donnA

    donnA Active Member

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    This would be people who aren't there to really worship in the first place. Otherwise what style it is wouldn't matter, all that would matter would be God.
     
  6. donnA

    donnA Active Member

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    I've been to churches who wouldn't dream of anything contemporary or praise and worship, yet they do all the things and more people are affraid will happen if they have praise and wroship. Swaying, waving hands, dancing, jumping up and down, running, not one bit if p&w in sight. On the other hand we've been members of 2 blended churshes now and neither one has this happening other then an occasional (and I mean once or twice) hand waving. So all in all, what people are affraid of with p&w I've only seen in traditional hymns only churches.
     
  7. Bob Alkire

    Bob Alkire New Member

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    You could be correct or not, I don't know what goes on in someone's mind. I have never felt that music was that big a deal. I love teaching and good preaching. I don't listen to much music of any type, in church or out, christian or secular. I know of folks who don't come in till the music is over.
     
  8. donnA

    donnA Active Member

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    Worship comes from the heart, not from what kind of music christian your listening too.
     
  9. Bob Alkire

    Bob Alkire New Member

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    So true. I was talking to a friend in Texas a few weeks ago and he was telling about their church and the younger folks. Many like the CCM and modern music but many feel they got more out of the old hymns for the most part, not that there was some fine CCM but not as much. He also said a lot had to do with if home schooled, Christian School, privet school or public school, Christian College or state or other college.
     
    #29 Bob Alkire, Oct 21, 2008
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 21, 2008
  10. Bob Alkire

    Bob Alkire New Member

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    That I'll agree with. I have found I'm in such a great state of worship when all is quite, I'm in awe, love of such a God that saved me!!!
     
  11. Amy.G

    Amy.G New Member

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    Some of us raise our hands in praise :eek: during the singing of old hymns, like "Great is thy faithfulness", one of my favorite hymns.
     
  12. Tom Butler

    Tom Butler New Member

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    And so do I, when moved to do so. I fear that our young folks have been schooled to believe that in order to truly worship, you must raise your hands, sway, dance, jump up and down. Lack of such signals dead--or horrors--dull worship.

    Amy, you make my case. You obviously were moved to lift your hands when you sang that great song. It was spontaneous praise which welled up within you. It was not contrived.

    I fear so much of our modern worship is like that of a church I attended a few years ago. The service began with a steady drumbeat, then the worship leader got up and started clapping his hands. The congregation joined in. Apparently, the clapping wasn't getting the job done, because he shouted, "c'mon, people, we've got to get in the Spirit." He began clapping harder, and so did everybody else. In that church, the spirit was obviously worked up, not poured out.
     
  13. Amy.G

    Amy.G New Member

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    I agree with you Tom. I think the kind of service you described can be dangerous. We shouldn't have to be "worked up" by a song leader to be in the Spirit. Our worship should be spontaneous praise, as you said. It's a very personal thing.
     
  14. gb93433

    gb93433 Active Member
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    I am afraid that our young people have been schooled in complacency by their adult examples of lifelessness in making disciples.

    I am afraid we are seeing the same things Amos did in worship.
     
  15. Tom Butler

    Tom Butler New Member

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    You have a point. Too many of us are willing to do just about anything in and around the church--sing in the choir, drive the buses, teach, you name it--as long as it does not involve personal witnessing.
     
  16. hawg_427

    hawg_427 Member

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    That's all the Church My Wife and I go to has is contemporary worship.
     
  17. gb93433

    gb93433 Active Member
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    Some are willing to witness (evangelize) but invest little in the lives of others. It takes 20 minutes to 2 hours to witness to a person and 20 months to 2 years to get that person headed in the right direction in such a way that he can feed himself and disciple another.
     
  18. superwoman8977

    superwoman8977 New Member

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    Bring on the Contemporary. I was brought up in the age of "traditional" with the hymnals and organ and all that and when I turned 18 I went seeking. To me the music makes the church. The church I attend now opens up the service with about 15 minutes of "worship" and yes its come as you are so I am usually in jeans and sweatshirts. I can have a horrible day and decide to go to the Saturday night service which is my favorite and get in there and hear the praise and worship bands and the music and forget all about the horrible week I have had and just move with the music. I love the CCM, our church has one type of service, there isnt a hymnal to be found and yes the music is on the screen. Plus I love that during the "worship" part at the Wednesday night service you can at your leisure go up to the altar, and get the communion elements and head back to your seat for a time of prayer and reflection. We also on Sunday mornings/Saturday nights partake of communion as a church body. We have open communion however the only requirement is that you are saved, which I think is a good requirement to have.

    As for the message, you are also given a notes sheet so you can take notes and reflect later on what the Pastor preached about. Its kinda cool but he has based his series like he did 6 weeks based on the Tv show Survivor and had teams and everything a few months back he has also done one called "Grace Anatomy" and the one we are in right now is based on the road project on the westside of Indy call Accelerate 465 we are calling our series "Accelerate" . We are getting ready to finish Accelerate and do a sermon series on the movie "Fireproof" My personal opinion is that the time of traditional kinda has gone by the wayside, you are going to "get " people more with the contemporary. When I go back home they have a "traditional" service and then a contemporary and then a blended and I and my sisters always go to the contemporary and the "old fogies" go to the traditional (like my mom and dad) I dont like the blended because its too much traditional and not enough contemporary for me.
     
  19. donnA

    donnA Active Member

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    If you have to 'get' people they aren't real worshippers. Real worshippers will come to worship God on their own.
    The entire service is to be worship time, not just singing.
    There is nothing wrong with hymns, songs written to praise and glorify God.
    The only thing wrong with either contemporary or traditional, is those who claim they can not worship to one or the other of them. If worship is coming from the heart which music will not matter, you will worship God even if the music is not your personal preference. Plus the claims in the post above mine are not describing worship, but entertainment. Gives contemporary, p&w a bad name. And I've heard people who only liked traditional hymns say the samethngs. So it is two sided.
     
  20. superwoman8977

    superwoman8977 New Member

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    I cannot believe that you think that you have to like contemporary and traditional. There I said it and without music there is no spice, no variety. I for one will not go to a church with a 2 hr sermon, with no worship....worship is what "warms you up" opens your heart and prepares you for the message. And I am sorry, Worship does matter, Even before my daily devotion time and time with the Lord I listen to Praise and Worship music as like a precurser to my time with the Lord. And excuse me my church is not entertainment. I take alot of offense to that every week we have at least 1-3 people who come to the Lord and ask to be baptized, so I dont consider it entertainment and to me thats where the real heart is --when you get to a person so deeply that they are ready to give their lives to the Lord. Thats where the growth lies also. I am on the Prayer team since people in here said I needed to do more than just go to church I got involved and now I am going to help teach divorce care next session since I am taking it this session and I am on the prayer team and have helped to start a singles ministry including a woman's bible study that will be meeting in my home in 2009 after the baby is born. I am living proof of people who can be reached by one person getting the courage to "walk across the room" and take the time to minister to me when I needed it. Not bash me for my sin and for me not wearing a dress or not having long hair and having a child out of wedlock. Thats what contemporary worship is going to do for your church open up avenues and invite new people into your church. 3/4 of the divorce care attendees found out about the divorce care program we were offering and then decided to attend a service here. Divorce care was the seed planted and it would have never been planted in a "traditional" church.
     
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