What’s Wrong With Christian Rock?
According to host Jeff Godwin – EVERYTHING!
What’s Wrong With Christian Rock? is an hour long lecture that opens with the warning:
Before Viewing This Video Seek God’s Wisdom [,] Discernment and Protection Through Prayer
What follows is a serious of questioned posed by Jeff Godwin. After a pregnant pause Godwin answers his own questions with a combination of examples and scripture.
However, do not think that Jeff Godwin is your typical bible quoting preacher waging a crusade against secular rock music. No, Godwin’s ire is aimed at so-called Christian rockers and CCM artists. CCM being a favorite anachronym used by Godwn in place of Christian Contemporary music. Where as everyone knows that secular music is the spawn of Satan, Godwin argues that Christian Rock and Contemporary Christian Music is not doing the work of the Lord and has become a tool of the Devil.
At the start of the video Godwin asks, “Can you plug Jesus Christ in to a stage with bombs going, smoke blowing, hair teased up to the moon, in skin tight Spandex and leather bouncing around with a bass guitar and rubber necking while the crowd screams?” The simple answer is “No, you cannot.”, but Godwin refuses to keep his argument simple. Esoteric is more his style and he has a mountain of unsubstantiated evidence to prove that Jesus and Rock don’t mix.
Big name Christian artists such as Amy Grant, Stryper, Carmen, and Michael. W. Smith have all fallen under the influence of Satan. Let Godwin prove it to you. Through a frame-by-frame breakdown he shows Amy Grant flashing devil horns at a concert. Stryper dresses in the colors of the occult and they evoke Alistor Crowely through their use of the number 777. Carmen uses elements of gore and comedy. He glorifies Satan by making him look tough and he belittles Jesus by humanizing him. Michael W. Smith spelled his name backwards on an album and he used a font indicative of Druid runes. Who knew? Who cared?
Obviously, Jeff Godwin. You have to give the guy some credit. He not a great speaker or even that convincing, but he’s got conviction and by attacking Christian rock he has created quite a niche for himself. But, don’t think his insight is limited to Christian rock. No, he also wants to caution you about Christian Rap (“What is rap music anyway? It’s a vain repetition”) and Christian Thrash. Those too are WRONG!
Christian rock is becoming very popular in churches today. I have seem the results of rock music whether christian by name or secular, the fruits are the same, the youth will not live Christian lives. They may continue to speak about religion, but they will not live it as is the intent of the bible. I guess one can conclude or consider, if the music will not have the same effect on your heart as the Word of God does, then there is a difference. Spiritual songs must go hand in hand with the verses of the Bible or else we may fall victim to what was spoken by Christ himself to the religious leaders of his day, “you will make them twice the child of hell that you are.”
“Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.”
-Psalms 150:3-6
People are going to continue to make music in new ways and there’s really no stopping it. I see nothing wrong with new types of music. After all, who judges what’s right and what’s wrong in the first place? God does. Do you see any place in the bible where it says, “thou shalt not rock n’ roll” or “thou shalt not enjoy yourselves while praising the Lord”? If anything, it says the opposite (see verses above). I know that some of the origins of rock music are bad, but does that mean all rock music is evil? No. Frankly, Christian rock artists know that hymns are boring. In the bible it said to praise the Lord with cymbals and trumpets. This is the 21st century! We now praise the Lord with electric guitars and drums. I think Christian rock is a positive alternative to the garbage and profanity on the radio today.