PREACH!! Remember, the rich young ruler was convinced he was going to Heaven.
Please don't patronize me. I'm a born-again Christian, and I know that. I simply don't think that clinging to one style of worship that seems bent on convincing young people Christ ISN'T cool is a good thing either.
It is important that we keep the Gospel message in the music and not water it down.
I don't know what you mean by "water it down". Are you saying all the lyrics should be straight out of scripture? That they should sound like hymns?
Salvation only comes through belief in the atoning sacrifice of Christ, and THAT message doesn't come through enough in Christian and Cross-Over music.
The point of this music is to draw people into curiosity about Christianity. It is for the musicians to witness with their lives. That's not a bad thing. People - particularly older people whose musical traditions are rooted in old-style church music - have to understand that their music turns young people off.
In fact, I'm a 45 year-old professional musician, and much of it turns me off.
I believe God uses music of all kinds to speak to hearts, and He is not limited to using "How Great Thou Art".
What I like about the Switchfoot songs is that they don't give the message of Christ. They ask the questions, loud and clear, that point to answers in Christ.
Remember, as a painter you don't see primer as "watered down paint." You see it as a step in the process of laying a solid foundation for paint. It makes sure it sticks.
The music is one element of the primer...
I don't like the "Jesus is your pal" message of some of the modern Christian music I've heard, but I can't get past the sound anyway. I suppose there is real Christian rock out there, but I've only encountered stuff that would fit better alongside Michael Bolton. I like a lot of different music, but Michael Bolton ain't it. I'd rather hear good old country gospel that isn't square and doesn't back away from the sin and salvation message central to Christianity. So far, the rock I listen to is secular. It just sounds more "real" and vital.
>>However, thinking Christ is 'cool' is not going to get someone into Heaven.<<
My understanding is that they are not trying to make Jesus "cool." What I see is that they are trying to say what the scriptures say - make it clear to the "current" generation that Jesus is a human just like them and suffered the same temptations as them, and truly empathises with their human condition. Then they can call on the "God" Jesus for salvation.
To your reply in Post 15 -- I am the Programing Director in a seeker targeted church in Winchester, VA. We use all different types of media to get the message across. Secular music that is relevant to the lesson, Christian rock, movie clips, drama and videos that we create ourselves. No tradtional hymns used at our church unless the music is updated.
What matters most is that these artists are planting seeds in the unsaved. If you don't think that God is powerful enough to use anything to bring unsaved people salvation, then I respectfully question your faith. I've seen it happen many times in the past 6 years that I have been a leader in Grace Community Church.
As the wife of a former youth minister, let me just say that thinking Christ is "uncool" (or Christians are uncool) can keep people out of heaven. Sadly, I've seen kids reject Christianity because they thought it wasn't the "cool" thing. The statistics for how many people actually find Christ and seek to know him personally, if they have not already done so by age 18, are staggering. The critical time to reach people is during their teen years, when they CARE what's "cool". It's not the artist, it's not the music, it's not the cool that counts in the long run. Getting kids interested and involved, so they can LEARN the truth is the important thing.
Consequently, kids are going to choose someone to emulate. It would be nice if that were Christ, but that's unrealistic for most teens. Many, many kids choose to be like thier favorite musicians. Why not have a "cool" person who actually has a positive, life-changing message as a role model?