Why don’t worship music styles change more quickly?

Worship FAQs, part 7a – Why don’t worship music styles change more quickly? (Next Month: Why do they have to change at all?)

The two questions above get at the heart of a debate that has been causing tension in many American Christian churches for at least 30 years. Often, people think of it in terms of the “old” music versus the “new” music. More accurately, it is usually a question of the value of certain styles of music from the American pop culture versus the value of other styles of music that have been passed down to us from previous generations.

To answer the first of the two questions this month, we first need to have a basic reality check about American pop culture.

American pop culture is consumer-driven (interpretation = profit). Therefore, it is based on marketing and advertising, and on the mindset of keeping up with the trend-setters, the neighbors, the upgrades, the latest technology, and so on. The unchanging Word and Will of God are seen as old-fashioned and irrelevant. Whereas pop culture is in many ways about fitting in, Christians are called to stand out from a sinful culture and to stand up for the truth. We will look and act “different” from the sinful world around us. Whereas popular music has goals of exciting people’s emotions, making a statement, and entertaining the masses, worship music has goals of proclaiming God’s Word, praising the true God, and connecting believers across time and space.

It bears repeating: God’s Word and Will never change, never need updating or upgrading, and in fact can never be improved upon. In a culture that prizes change and “improvement” and too quickly disregards the lessons and wisdom of previous generations, God’s people understand and treasure the constancy of God’s promises and commands and the value of learning from and keeping a connection with previous generations.

The music of corporate worship reflects these truths. Music that uplifted countless believers of previous generations has inherent value for us yet today. It connects us with believers around the world who use the same music, as well as the believers who have come before us and are yet to be born. Worship music is designed to bring people together. In contrast, popular music changes so quickly and caters to personal preferences so much that it can’t effectively connect us to other age groups or generations.

So, does good worship music NEVER change, then? Absolutely not! Read next month for “the rest of the story!”