Why we need to stop "holding up" Christian musicians:
There is just no reason to assume that someone you don't know AT ALL, who sings a nice song, is necessarily a good Christian.
Protections:
God, in the NT, put many levels of authority and assessment in place to protect us from false pastors... and yet with all these protections, false pastors still slip through the cracks.
But in the music industry, there are no levels of authority and assessment, no protections... none at all.
NONE.
If "bad people" slip into the ranks of Christian pastors where there is so much oversight, then think how easy it must be for "bad people" to slip into the ranks of Christian musicians... where there is no oversight.
This statement is not given to disparage any particular people, but rather, to suggest we rethink our views.
What is a Christian Musician?
The term "Christian musician" is made of two terms: one is easily verifiable, the other is not.
A. Musician: you can easily verify if the person is a musician... just listen to the notes.
B. Christian: you cannot easily verify if the person is a Christian.
Why not?
Being a genuine and sincere believer is something deeply internal, something which can only be verified through a long and sustained pattern of spiritual growth that permeates and colors every aspect of your life.
Pastors, according to the New Testament, are not qualified to be pastors unless they show this pattern of spiritual growth, fruit, and genuineness, in all areas of their life... and to such a degree it's verifiable and measurable.
Musicians, in the modern music industry, have no standards or requirements like a pastor does.
Musicians have no requirements or standards AT ALL.
NONE!
Musicians, out there making music in modern times, have no spiritual requirements or standards at all!
Christian Role Model - a Pastor:
Compare this lack of requirements to all the requiements of a pastors.
- Pastors have theological education.
- You can verify how much education, and from where.
- Pastors have a history of association with specific churches and denominations, which you can verify.
- Pastors have a verifiable history of their interactions, experiences, and different ministerial endeavors in various churches and denominations... starting from the time they were laymen.
- Pastors have to be ordained (approved) by a body of believers with authority to give approval.
- Pastors generally have much accountability and oversight, by the elders, the congregation at large, and possibly other bodies.
- Pastors have to MAINTAIN the same standards of both character and doctrine or their credentials to preach can be removed.
Christian Unknown - a Musician.
A Christian musician has none of this.
You know NOTHING about them... not really.
They don't have to verify anything about themselves, and they don't have any standards to meet as a pastor does.
1. They don't have to show involvement with a particular church or denomination, or even attend any church at all.
2. They don't have to show any theological training, not even the theological training of a 7 year old in Sunday school, none is required.
3.They don't have to show any history of church attendance, ministry, character, or even a simple baptismal record to verify their claim to be a genuine believer.
4. They don't have to be ordained and approved by anyone in spiritual authority.
5. They don't have to submit, with any oversight, to any authority or accountability structure.
6. Finally, because they have no oversight, nothing they do can cause their credentials to be removed... there aren't even any credentials to remove!
Christian Musician = Businessman
Christian musicians are just people with no ministry qualifications who are out selling a product... just like any other business.
* They are no more, and no less, than just humans claiming to be Christians in order to sell stuff to Christians. They are exactly the same as Christian plumbers or Christian lawyers... maybe they're Christians, and maybe they're not.
We shouldn't be so quick to follow and idolize so called "Christians" who have no theological requirements, no authoritative approval or governance, no verifiable history, and no oversight or accountability. It is ridiculous to put them on a pedestal, or consider them role models.
They are just people selling stuff to Christians.
Maybe they're Christians, and maybe they aren't.
Period.
Let's just have a bit of discernment and try seeing things for what they are.
Christian artists require no theological training, no history, no verification of character, no accountability, no oversight, no criteria, and no standards.
We need to stop holding them up so high, and probably...
stop paying attention to them at all.
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