Worship
Few things stir strong opinions in a church quite like worship music. Christians should care deeply about what we sing. Worship isn’t entertainment before the sermon or a matter of musical preference. When a congregation sings, we are putting words into the mouths of God’s people and directing those words toward God. That means theology matters.
Our church takes the theology of our worship music seriously and that is why recently the worship leaders and myself have gone through and eliminated a huge number of songs from our “grab bag” of worship. But another question has increasingly arisen in evangelical churches: What if a biblically sound song comes from a church or ministry with which we have theological disagreements? Our approach has been to evaluate songs carefully rather than automatically accepting or rejecting them based solely on the name attached to them.
Here is why.
1. Is the song biblical?
Before asking who wrote a song, we should ask what the song says.
Does it accurately describe God? Does it clearly proclaim Christ? Does it accurately communicate the gospel? Does it reflect biblical truth about sin, salvation, grace, holiness, worship, the Holy Spirit, the church, and the Christian life? Could we open our Bibles and defend what we are asking our congregation to sing?
That must always be the primary test. Our authority is Scripture; not a worship label, denomination, publishing company, or a podcast opinion. If a song teaches something contrary to Scripture, we should not sing it. End of story. It does not matter whether it came from Bethel or Getty Music. It does not matter whether the writer is charismatic, Reformed, Baptist, Anglican, or non-denominational. Bad theology does not become good theology because it came from someone we like. And good theology does not necessarily become false because it came from someone with whom we disagree.
2. Singing a song is not the same as endorsing everything about its author
If our church sings a song written by someone, are we thereby endorsing that person's church, theology, ministry, sermons, conferences, books, and practices? I don't believe we are. Historically, Christians have sung songs written by people with whom they would strongly disagree on other matters. Some hymn writers held theological positions we would not embrace. Some had personal failures. Some belonged to denominations with doctrines very different from ours. And almost none of us investigate the complete theology, denominational affiliation, church history, and personal life of every person involved in writing every song we sing. In fact, we would be hard pressed to sing the EPIC hymn “It is well” by Horatio Spafford if we judged it based on his terrible theology later in life. The song is orthodox, his later life was… not. Also, Martin Luther and other Christian leaders, especially Salvation Army, adapted melodies already familiar within their culture and employed them for Christian worship (oh, speaking of Luther, it appears that he was shockingly antisemitic later in life…). There is an important distinction between saying: “This statement is true.” and saying: “I endorse everything this person believes.”
Those are not the same thing. Paul himself demonstrated an ability to recognize truth even when it came from surprising sources. In Acts 17, he quoted pagan poets without endorsing paganism. In Titus 1:12, he quoted a Cretan poet to make a truthful point. Truth can be recognized as truth without granting blanket approval to its source. This does not mean authorship never matters. It means authorship is a consideration, not necessarily the final authority.
3. We do have genuine concerns about some of these ministries
We should also avoid swinging the pendulum too far. There have been teachings and practices associated with Bethel that we would not recommend and would not practice in our church. Likewise, there may be things associated with Elevation, Hillsong, or other churches that we would question, criticize, or reject. But, biblical discernment requires us to “test everything; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). Notice the balance in that verse. Test everything. But then: Hold fast what is good. It does not say, “If anything connected to something is questionable, reject everything connected to it.”
There are certainly circumstances where one crosses the line into serious doctrinal error and places themselves outside of orthodox Christianity. Scripture repeatedly warns us about false teachers. But we should also distinguish between: theological disagreement, questionable practice, serious doctrinal error, and outright heresy. Those are not identical categories.
4. What about the royalty argument?
This is probably the strongest argument against using songs from ministries we disagree with. The argument goes something like this: “Every time our church sings one of their songs, CCLI royalties eventually help financially support that ministry. Therefore, by singing the song, we are helping fund theology we believe is wrong.” There is some truth to the premise.
It is legitimate for a Christian to say: “I don't want my money helping support a ministry whose teachings concern me.” I respect that conviction. However, I do not believe that principle necessarily requires the church to reject every otherwise-biblical song associated with that ministry. Why? Because if indirect financial association becomes our standard for participation, it becomes extraordinarily difficult to apply consistently. Christians purchase products from companies whose owners support causes with which we disagree. We buy books through retailers that sell material we would strongly oppose. We subscribe to internet providers, streaming companies, phone manufacturers, grocery stores, banks, and entertainment companies whose corporate philosophies may be far removed from biblical Christianity.
Paul dealt with a surprisingly similar conscience question in 1 Corinthians 8–10. Meat sold in the marketplace had sometimes previously been associated with pagan sacrifices. Paul did not teach that because something had an objectionable association, Christians were automatically forbidden from using it. That seems like an important biblical principle for this discussion. Indirect economic benefit deserves consideration. But indirect economic benefit is not identical to theological endorsement.
5. We should be particularly careful about what a song communicates
There is another concern that I believe is actually more important than royalties. What will our people understand us to be communicating by singing the song? Suppose a particular song has become inseparably associated with a serious theological error or a public scandal. Even if the lyrics themselves could technically be defended, using the song might create unnecessary confusion. Paul repeatedly emphasized not merely asking: “Is this permissible?” but also: “Is this helpful?” “All things are lawful, but not all things are helpful.” 1 Corinthians 10:23
That is why our worship decisions cannot simply involve running lyrics through a theological checklist. Pastoral wisdom matters too. We ask questions such as:
Are the lyrics clearly biblical?
Is the song congregationally singable?
Does it direct attention toward Christ rather than ourselves?
Does it reinforce the theological priorities we want to develop in our church?
Could its associations create unnecessary confusion?
Is there another song that communicates the same truth more clearly?
Is this song worth spending our limited congregational repertoire on? (I’ve removed many based on this.) This last question matters. There are thousands of worship songs available. We do not need every song. Sometimes the answer is simply: “This song isn't wrong, but there are better songs available.” That is a very different judgment from saying: “This song is spiritually dangerous because of who wrote it.”
6. Romans 14 should influence the way we treat one another.
Some Christians will remain uncomfortable singing music connected with particular ministries. We should take that seriously. Romans 14 gives considerable instruction concerning disagreements of conscience among believers. Someone may conclude: “I cannot in good conscience sing anything associated with Bethel.” I can respect that conviction. But that Christian should be careful about turning a personal conviction into a universal biblical command where Scripture itself has not done so.
Likewise, someone comfortable singing the song should not ridicule the person who has concerns. Grace works both directions.
7. Our standard remains high
None of this means we casually choose worship music. Actually, the opposite is true. Because songs teach theology, we should scrutinize them carefully. Popularity does not equal theological accuracy. Our goal is: “Will this help our church worship God in spirit and truth?”
We want songs rich in Scripture. Songs about the character of God. Songs about the cross, the resurrection, grace and holiness. Songs that teach believers who God is and remind them what He has done. Songs that our congregation can actually sing together. (I get the worship leaders to use me as the lowest common denominator… will a tone deaf lunk like Pastor Art who can’t carry a tune in a bucket be able to sing this…)
Our church takes the theology of our worship music seriously and that is why recently the worship leaders and myself have gone through and eliminated a huge number of songs from our “grab bag” of worship. But another question has increasingly arisen in evangelical churches: What if a biblically sound song comes from a church or ministry with which we have theological disagreements? Our approach has been to evaluate songs carefully rather than automatically accepting or rejecting them based solely on the name attached to them.
Here is why.
1. Is the song biblical?
Before asking who wrote a song, we should ask what the song says.
Does it accurately describe God? Does it clearly proclaim Christ? Does it accurately communicate the gospel? Does it reflect biblical truth about sin, salvation, grace, holiness, worship, the Holy Spirit, the church, and the Christian life? Could we open our Bibles and defend what we are asking our congregation to sing?
That must always be the primary test. Our authority is Scripture; not a worship label, denomination, publishing company, or a podcast opinion. If a song teaches something contrary to Scripture, we should not sing it. End of story. It does not matter whether it came from Bethel or Getty Music. It does not matter whether the writer is charismatic, Reformed, Baptist, Anglican, or non-denominational. Bad theology does not become good theology because it came from someone we like. And good theology does not necessarily become false because it came from someone with whom we disagree.
2. Singing a song is not the same as endorsing everything about its author
If our church sings a song written by someone, are we thereby endorsing that person's church, theology, ministry, sermons, conferences, books, and practices? I don't believe we are. Historically, Christians have sung songs written by people with whom they would strongly disagree on other matters. Some hymn writers held theological positions we would not embrace. Some had personal failures. Some belonged to denominations with doctrines very different from ours. And almost none of us investigate the complete theology, denominational affiliation, church history, and personal life of every person involved in writing every song we sing. In fact, we would be hard pressed to sing the EPIC hymn “It is well” by Horatio Spafford if we judged it based on his terrible theology later in life. The song is orthodox, his later life was… not. Also, Martin Luther and other Christian leaders, especially Salvation Army, adapted melodies already familiar within their culture and employed them for Christian worship (oh, speaking of Luther, it appears that he was shockingly antisemitic later in life…). There is an important distinction between saying: “This statement is true.” and saying: “I endorse everything this person believes.”
Those are not the same thing. Paul himself demonstrated an ability to recognize truth even when it came from surprising sources. In Acts 17, he quoted pagan poets without endorsing paganism. In Titus 1:12, he quoted a Cretan poet to make a truthful point. Truth can be recognized as truth without granting blanket approval to its source. This does not mean authorship never matters. It means authorship is a consideration, not necessarily the final authority.
3. We do have genuine concerns about some of these ministries
We should also avoid swinging the pendulum too far. There have been teachings and practices associated with Bethel that we would not recommend and would not practice in our church. Likewise, there may be things associated with Elevation, Hillsong, or other churches that we would question, criticize, or reject. But, biblical discernment requires us to “test everything; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). Notice the balance in that verse. Test everything. But then: Hold fast what is good. It does not say, “If anything connected to something is questionable, reject everything connected to it.”
There are certainly circumstances where one crosses the line into serious doctrinal error and places themselves outside of orthodox Christianity. Scripture repeatedly warns us about false teachers. But we should also distinguish between: theological disagreement, questionable practice, serious doctrinal error, and outright heresy. Those are not identical categories.
4. What about the royalty argument?
This is probably the strongest argument against using songs from ministries we disagree with. The argument goes something like this: “Every time our church sings one of their songs, CCLI royalties eventually help financially support that ministry. Therefore, by singing the song, we are helping fund theology we believe is wrong.” There is some truth to the premise.
It is legitimate for a Christian to say: “I don't want my money helping support a ministry whose teachings concern me.” I respect that conviction. However, I do not believe that principle necessarily requires the church to reject every otherwise-biblical song associated with that ministry. Why? Because if indirect financial association becomes our standard for participation, it becomes extraordinarily difficult to apply consistently. Christians purchase products from companies whose owners support causes with which we disagree. We buy books through retailers that sell material we would strongly oppose. We subscribe to internet providers, streaming companies, phone manufacturers, grocery stores, banks, and entertainment companies whose corporate philosophies may be far removed from biblical Christianity.
Paul dealt with a surprisingly similar conscience question in 1 Corinthians 8–10. Meat sold in the marketplace had sometimes previously been associated with pagan sacrifices. Paul did not teach that because something had an objectionable association, Christians were automatically forbidden from using it. That seems like an important biblical principle for this discussion. Indirect economic benefit deserves consideration. But indirect economic benefit is not identical to theological endorsement.
5. We should be particularly careful about what a song communicates
There is another concern that I believe is actually more important than royalties. What will our people understand us to be communicating by singing the song? Suppose a particular song has become inseparably associated with a serious theological error or a public scandal. Even if the lyrics themselves could technically be defended, using the song might create unnecessary confusion. Paul repeatedly emphasized not merely asking: “Is this permissible?” but also: “Is this helpful?” “All things are lawful, but not all things are helpful.” 1 Corinthians 10:23
That is why our worship decisions cannot simply involve running lyrics through a theological checklist. Pastoral wisdom matters too. We ask questions such as:
Are the lyrics clearly biblical?
Is the song congregationally singable?
Does it direct attention toward Christ rather than ourselves?
Does it reinforce the theological priorities we want to develop in our church?
Could its associations create unnecessary confusion?
Is there another song that communicates the same truth more clearly?
Is this song worth spending our limited congregational repertoire on? (I’ve removed many based on this.) This last question matters. There are thousands of worship songs available. We do not need every song. Sometimes the answer is simply: “This song isn't wrong, but there are better songs available.” That is a very different judgment from saying: “This song is spiritually dangerous because of who wrote it.”
6. Romans 14 should influence the way we treat one another.
Some Christians will remain uncomfortable singing music connected with particular ministries. We should take that seriously. Romans 14 gives considerable instruction concerning disagreements of conscience among believers. Someone may conclude: “I cannot in good conscience sing anything associated with Bethel.” I can respect that conviction. But that Christian should be careful about turning a personal conviction into a universal biblical command where Scripture itself has not done so.
Likewise, someone comfortable singing the song should not ridicule the person who has concerns. Grace works both directions.
7. Our standard remains high
None of this means we casually choose worship music. Actually, the opposite is true. Because songs teach theology, we should scrutinize them carefully. Popularity does not equal theological accuracy. Our goal is: “Will this help our church worship God in spirit and truth?”
We want songs rich in Scripture. Songs about the character of God. Songs about the cross, the resurrection, grace and holiness. Songs that teach believers who God is and remind them what He has done. Songs that our congregation can actually sing together. (I get the worship leaders to use me as the lowest common denominator… will a tone deaf lunk like Pastor Art who can’t carry a tune in a bucket be able to sing this…)
Recent
Archive
2026
January
February
June
September
2025
March
May
August
2024
May
August
September
October
2023
January
June
August
October
Categories
no categories
No Comments