In the following 9 minute video, Todd Friel clarifies some statements made by Pastor Alistair Begg after he attended a church service while on vacation. Begg remarked on the meaningless statements with which the worship leader began his ministry; statements which were followed by songs devoid of biblical truth.
If you have ever listened to Truth For Life on Christian radio, then you know that Alistair Begg is a sound biblical preacher who delivers the truth in a sincere, deliberate, self-controlled manner; the rant in the video below is uncharacteristic of him to say the least. That does add some humor to the scenario, yet it is clear that Begg is troubled by worship leaders that intend to stir the emotions of their audiences with doctrinally deficient words and songs.
My purpose in posting the following video is to help church goers understand that scriptural exposition ought to be the core of worship; furthermore, song lyrics ought to contain doctrinal truth.
Therefore, if in your church, material is routinely presented to the congregation to evoke some display of emotions; and if it has no doctrinal foundation; then you might want to start looking for a church wherein the Bible takes center stage. Biblical sermons and hymns will elicit appropriate worshipful emotions, not sentimentality….
Regarding the following video, about half-way through, Pastor Begg begins to give examples of the music and to specifically state what was wrong with it. It could be said that his examples are about men expressing their opinions about God to Him as worship; but appropriate music ought to have doctrinal content: the regulative principle (see second video in my Yoga post) would have us read the word, preach the word, sing the word…. But many pastors and worship leaders currently believe that they can design the worship service; God states differently in the Bible.
Alistair Begg is the Senior Pastor of Cleveland’s Parkside Church, a position he has had since 1983. He is the voice behind the Truth for Life Christian radio preaching and teaching ministry that broadcasts his sermons daily to stations across the United States. Wikipedia
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See also, Archives, July 2019 post: Sentimentalism, Emotionalism, Anti-intellectualism by Dr. Voddie Baucham. Dr. Baucham’s 5 minute sermon excerpt will help you see the bigger connections that just this post alone does not facilitate. Furthermore, the recommendation section of that post will take you deeper if you should desire to have more understanding.