How often crucial moments come to a movement like Fundamentalism to test if it will be deterred from its appointed course. Although there were symptoms appearing in the 1970s when my dear father and I entered the Fundamentalist movement, it was not until the 1980s that such moments of concern became more and more evident. We had completely left the Pentecostal denominational system with its ecclesiastical leaders, its contemporary music, and its heavy leanings toward an existential Christianity. Sad to say, we began to see similar symptoms appearing in Fundamentalism. My father, who had been a puritan in the denominational system, knew that one could not purge an apostasy. One’s only recourse is to make an exodus from the system and to begin again upon the Word of God.
It may be that all movements, amidst their strengths in God and His Word, have some weaknesses, even in their beginning. Apparently Fundamentalism, amidst its once strong ecclesiastical and doctrinal separation, was weak in personal separation. The places in the world their adherents attended for entertainment, their dress standards, cosmetics, jewelry, mixed swimming, and a number of other “personal” matters with the world and the flesh were not consistently addressed in their public message. This became spiritually costly as the years unfolded. Such areas, we were told, fell under the label of “soul liberty.” The sad reality of such a view is that if the “flesh” dominates the heart and life, then it will sympathize with the world, producing a message that tolerates the flesh and the world.
There were a few men I heard in those early years that warned us about such things, but it was not part of the public proclamation of Fundamentalism. Thus, the movement became vulnerable to these powers that eventually led to compromise with the world in music, dress, and casual lifestyles of the world. The forms of worldly music, the latest fashions of the world’s “look,” the world’s colloquialisms, etc. all eventually became the enticing desire of most Fundamentalist young people. Even the entertaining programs of the world began to be brought into student activities, yet with a “Christianized” twist. It must even be acknowledged that some of the “traveling” church ministries inculcated programs and activities into their repertoire that were imitations of the secular TV shows, catering to the fleshly side of teenagers. Such gimmicks of comic and folly were part of their Gospel presentation. This became a Gospel “dumbing down” parallel to the public school “dumbing down” we were decrying. Children’s church implied that worship was not a family matter; children were not to sing the traditional hymns and sit through a sermon in a formal manner. Therefore, today our churches are now witnessing the product of all those years: grown children with no more than a storybook knowledge of the Bible. As a result, Fundamentalist college students are so immature in their natural living, so immature in their creativity of things “for God,” and so immature in their concept of what a Christian is. We have let them dress “any-old-way” in coming to church or to church functions. They have become walking billboards for the world in clothing advertisement of secular names and logos. The Fundamentalist youth basically dress now as the world does; there seems to be no line of demarcation. We should have been setting the standard in spite of the world’s persecution, yet we have succumbed to their mold of dress. We have pampered them in being “cool” for God and “hip” for Jesus. They are now consumed in mental and emotional problems that deeper teachings could have remedied if presented in their earlier years.
As we view the sub-cultural youth of our society today, who will take leadership tomorrow? What we see in the secular world is paralleled in the institutional Church. The one-sided diet of evangelism programs has produced great deficits of spirituality and depth of heart among these youth. They are now entering our pulpits with no deep relationship with God.
The Warnings of the Past Continued
Service to Christ presupposes that a person is genuinely born again and gives evidence of that conversion. Nevertheless, Fundamentalism began using people in its choirs, orchestras, music specials, athletic programs, etc. who were not saved or who did not have evidence of godly fruit. They were used in the church to “encourage” individuals toward Christian service rather than establish a standard for worship.
How often the contemporary comes into the vocabulary of young Fundamentalists and they are not corrected. The contemporary clichés have become a part of the vocabulary. “Jesus Christ is my coach now,” or “I found Christ to be my natural high,” or “Jesus is the Awesome of my life.” Such clichés demean our Saviour; they foster disrespect for God and make Him an alternative of the world, dragging Him down to the level of the world. Such clichés at times border on the side of blasphemy and even the risqué. We need to keep our language of God in the context of the Scripture, and if needs be, explain it.
Although Church history gave us a stronger, biblical view of “eternal security,” the twentieth century brought to Fundamentalism a new view, producing a false assurance to such carnal living. The crucial view of the Elect was the perseverance of the saints, not simply that one “believed” sometime in the past. John 10:27 declares, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” Each of these verbs is in the present tense: they hear and continue to hear, I know and I continue to know, and they follow and continue to follow me. Anytime the command to “believe” on Christ is given in the New Testament, it is always in the present tense (continuing to believe), not the aorist tense (meaning once for all). John 10:28 also states, “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” It is to the them of verse 27 that such eternal life is given, for they shall never perish.
Today we are hearing more and more of a universalistic security being preached that is not biblical. Our forefathers were honorable in declaring the Neo movements within Evangelicalism as non-Christian, and not being true to the Word of God. But today, our present leaders are calling them “Christian” and fellowshipping such organizations. The Word of God becomes the litmus test of whether an individual or organization is truly Christian. Though John the Beloved gave us the truth of “Ye must be born again,” he also was the one who gave the test of whether an individual is born again (read First John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1; 5:4; 5:18). Not everyone that says he is a Christian is one, and I must through the Word of God discern who is a Christian and who is a false one. In John 10 we are not only given the test of who is a true shepherd but also who are of the true sheep of Christ.
The Warning Against the Music
How often over the years the warning concerning the music has come from the preaching and pen of a number of men. My father believed that we had already lost the battle against Contemporary Christian Music in Fundamentalism. We were warned about Patch the Pirate music, Majesty Music, and now we have had a whole generation raised on this kind of music, and we are reaping a whirlwind. We warned in our own book of Confronting Contemporary Christian Music of the ethereal, surrealistic sound that had taken over Fundamentalist music; the men were sounding like women, and even the women had lost their quality, classic sound of days gone by. We were warned of the “easy listening” sound that was invading the Fundamentalist music fifteen years ago. Where did it come from? It came from the Neo-Evangelical sound. We warned of Ralph Carmichael and his music that already had plagued the Pentecostalists, but there were young music teachers stepping forward with their recordings bringing Mr. Carmichael into the Fundamentalist music. This became a powerful influence in the years to follow. Bill Gaither and all of his music had permeated the Pentecostal and Charismatic world; Southern Gospel music was the hallmark of the Pentecostalists. But we were shocked after having left the Pentecostal movement to see leading Fundamentalist music teachers promoting this music. Bill Gaither’s Homecoming videos and DVDs are in the homes of many Fundamentalists. Within their church hymnbooks you will find Bill Gaither, Dottie Rambo, and others who have lulled us into the contemporary sound.
We were told by Frank Garlock in the 1970s that the “music” is the message, and that the music of CCM was the music of the world. It does not matter what lyrics are placed with the music; the music is telling us something different than the “Christian” words. Even with Scripture placed to such music, it is still of the world. You cannot carry the ark of God upon the cart of the Philistines; death will ensue! How did we get to this point in Fundamentalism that most listen to contemporary music (and many do not know it is contemporary)? Oh, the plague in Christian schools of students filling their MP3 players with such music. Much of the music coming from the recordings of Fundamental quartets is filled with “the sound” of the world. Although some of it may not have the beat of the world, it often copies the “style” of the “Doo Wop” and other “sounds” of the world. This proves that even Fundamentalist music is fast becoming entertainment rather than worship. “The Look” of the world has taken over, and “The Sound” of the world has become “trendy” in Fundamentalist music.
The years have proved that the pulpits of Fundamentalism and the colleges and universities did not deal with the music problem. There were those in the 1960s and 1970s that said something about it. But most preachers were ignorant of it and left it up to the “music” director to be the authority of what was right and what was wrong. The problem began when we trusted certain men to write our music; we trusted that they knew biblical philosophy for writing music; we trusted that they knew how to keep the world out of the music; we trusted that they would not slowly take us down the path of dialectically mixing the music. Yes, we trusted them; yet how often music composers “listen” to “new” music in order to get “fresh” ways of writing. The elasticity of their music begins to stretch more and more into the contemporary. This is like the realistic art teachers who keep calling the student from the real and eventually requiring him to draw the surrealistic and the abstract, giving argument to the innocent student that this will make him a better artist. Similarly, the music teachers ask the student to write music with certain styles just so he will be knowledgeable of them and to give him a broader perspective of the variety of musical styles. After all, the student is told, music is amoral.
When our Fundamental schools begin broadening the acceptance of various styles of music, it is the announcement that such styles are permissible for the Christian. When the male vocal ensemble Chanticleer came to Bob Jones University, there were a few students who were concerned and voiced their concern. Members of the group were clearly identified in the San Francisco Bay Area with the sodomite community. It was not the music that was the concern; it was the lifestyle of its members. When the group came and sang, when they provided a few private music lessons, what did this promote to Christian youth? Will any be influenced by the dress style and lifestyle of such a group?
There is also the promotion of Bluegrass music among the students in concert. Bluegrass pioneer Bill Monroe characterized his music as Scottish, blues, and jazz. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor, and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. This eclectic, dialectic style of music ought to inform us about this type of music. Though some may categorize Bluegrass music as folk or a “cultural” music, yet it is not a music that promotes the higher ideals for a life in God. The carnal man will flourish under such music.
Once the world is invited within the sanctity of God’s people, the accepted eclecticism will begin to expand. We were grieved over the recent Valentine’s Day concert “Celtic Sounds: Songs of Love” given by the Academy of Arts at their Logos Auditorium in Taylors, South Carolina. It was promoted as a program featuring traditional Celtic classics as well as “gorgeous sacred love songs with a Celtic flare.” The secular group Celtic Woman has contributed to making Celtic music especially popular here in America. Although many today are enchanted with the pagan Celtic past, the music of these secular productions is more in keeping with New Age music. The entire production of the “Celtic Woman” from Ireland is with a mixture of past and present music.
To promote their imitation of Celtic Woman, the Academy of Arts placed on their website (as well as YouTube) their version of the 1988 pop song “The Orinoco Flow” by the contemporary artists Enya Brennan (music) and Roma Ryan (lyrics). Some of the words such as “hear the power of Babylon” were changed to “see the sights of Babylon.” The entire last section was revised with parts omitted or either reworded: no mention of Rob Dickins, Warner Bros., or Ross Cullum (all associated with the productions of Orinoco Studios) whose names are mentioned or referenced in the original text. The seven young ladies in the Academy of Arts music presentation certainly knew the stage manner of the “Celtic Woman” concerts. The song begins with a very heavy beat from the piano, and then the orchestra brings in the full sound accompanied by drums—classic New Age styling. How is it that those who seem to have such great concern for the family do not discern this? “Fundamental” family movements such as Vision Forum have paved the way for a broader spectrum of accepted music for the Christian.
We need to ask the question, “Why are we teaching our Fundamentalist young people these songs, promoting New Age music?” I am being frequently asked about Jon Schmidt (a Mormon) and his “classic New Age” music. We ought to see that this “entertaining” music does not edify the Christian. If it is condoned for listening and performing, then it will become part of the composition for Fundamentalist music.
Such music has also been a part of the poison pumped into Fundamentalism to bring about its demise. It has become dialectic in substance now; its purity is gone; we are now heading into the fifth generation leadership, and they have no knowledge or memory of the purity of the past. The spirit of many today is the cry, “Good riddance.”
A final note needs to be observed in regard to the broadening scope of Fundamentalist music. For whom are we writing our music, and to what extent do we want to be accepted by the religious world? We were saddened by the fact that Dan Forrest, the Department Head of Music Theory and Composition at BJU, has orchestrated a selection for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Dr. Ron Staheli, the head of Choral Music at Brigham Young University, requested Forrest to orchestrate Staheli’s “Carol of Joy” (text by Eileen Berry). National Public Radio presented this work on Christmas Day 2008. Mr. Forrest was also delighted that they sang his “Oread Farewell.” On his web blog, September 27, 2007, Forrest expressed the following:
In the last couple days, Dr. Ron Staheli contacted me and asked if I’d orchestrate “Carol of Joy” (Beckenhorst 2007) for inclusion on their big annual Christmas program this year! It’s a huge honor, and we’re thrilled about the musical opportunity. The resulting recording will likely be one of the best performances of my music I’ve had!
His 2007 premier of “Arise, Shine,” based on Isaiah 60, was performed at Carnegie Hall, Robert Schuller’s Crystal Cathedral, and the Lincoln Center. Following the Carnegie Hall premier (2-11-2007), he returned to BJU where a ForrestFest of his works was performed to honor his 30th birthday.
Yes, the music coming from Fundamental schools has clearly embraced the spirit of ecumenicity. It rejoices in being accepted by a broader audience. It truly seeks no clear spiritual identification from the world’s prestige of Carnegie Hall or even the aesthetic excellence of a cult like Mormonism!
The Warnings Against Change
Several years ago there was a move among professing Christian colleges to change their names deleting the word Christian and/or the word Bible. At the time when the changes were made, these were liberal schools; we were glad for them to get rid of their hypocrisy. Now we are reading of schools in Fundamentalism changing their names for various humanistic reasons. It is evident the climate is drastically changing in America; an ill-wind is strongly blowing against any educational institution that is marked by the word Christian and the word Bible. We were sad to hear that Northland Baptist Bible College, which is located in Dunbar, WI, has changed its name to Northland International University. This will certainly, at least in name, rid itself of the offensive word and place it into a dubious context before the world, blending in with the rest of the world’s universities. Their website already shows the contemporary sound of their music, and now perhaps this will be the final step into the Neo-Evangelical arena. They state that the school wants to “prepare students for worship and music globally.”
Along with these changes have come the Neo-Evangelical guest speakers and faculty. The lineup of speakers included Rick Holland, back in October of 2010, who is the executive pastor at Grace Community Church, where John MacArthur is senior pastor. Mr. Holland is the appointed director for the “Resolved” conferences, on which their website clearly indicates their Neo-Evangelical persuasion. It is interesting to note that Dr. MacArthur is featured on that website wearing faded jeans and untucked shirt with the contemporary instruments of CCM behind him. All of this is the marking of Neo-Evangelicalism. The president and NIU administration met with John MacArthur and acknowledged that they agreed on the most “substantial issues of life and ministry.” There is also Southern Baptist professor Bruce Ware, who teaches on the graduate level at NIU. No doubt other schools will follow suit.
The list continues even in changing denominations such as the Free Will Baptist. The presentation has now been laid on the table for a vote to change the name of their Nashville, Tennessee campus from Free Will Baptist Bible College to Welch College. We are now in the fast lane of such trendy and popular changes. In recent years Fundamental schools pursued accreditation (though in the past they denounced the need of it); now the trend seems to be to change the college name to blend in with the world.
The Warning Against Being Accepted by the World
The first time Dr. Bob Jones III went on Larry King Live and gave several changes that would be taking place at the University, my father was in the final stages of Lou Gehrig’s Disease and unable to speak due to the debilitation of the disease. When I played him the video recording of it the next day, he wept through it all; and shaking his head in grief, he wrote down on paper: “This is the beginning of the end.” So many believed it was a golden opportunity of witnessing of Jesus Christ to Larry King and the world; however, my father knew it was the death of something precious. Fundamentalism was now seeking to be accepted by the world.
In the 1960s, the NASV authoritatively began to be used in graduate classrooms of Bob Jones University. It was not only the selection of a new English version, but it was also the commencement of a battle against the beloved King James Version. This all came to fruition when their press published the crucial book The Mind of God to the Mind of Man. The tides have now taken the University into the acceptance of the ESV and truly have opened the door for the students to accept basically any contemporary version they desire. Many of the students have taken this liberty to choose the NIV as their Bible. Dr. Don Jasmin and other alumni members have with consistency called their beloved alma mater back to their birth landmarks—but to no avail. History has proved there are certain identifications with God that you cannot reject without powerful consequences. Anyone that despises holiness, in reality despises God (I Thessalonians 4:7, 8).
Conclusion
Many schools have chosen the way of carnality for their Christianity; this choice often was to pragmatically prevent their imminent demise. Though the King James Version was not verbally inspired, we believe it has been honored by God to be the culminating version of several forerunners in His providence. It has been this English Bible that has fought Roman Catholicism and the Protestant apostasy. It is the only English Bible God has used with such magnitude in the fight against these two foes. However, this warhorse has been maligned and condemned not only from without but also from within fundamental Christianity. I am firmly convinced that no church or school can stand spiritually by defaming in the sight of God this providential translation in the English tongue. Standards will depart, music will degenerate, truth will vanish, and lives will be abandoned to carnality and the powers of the contemporary. It is inevitable!
Historians have claimed that George Washington died as a result of the blood-letting of thirty-six ounces from his body; in essence, he bled to death. What will the annals of eternity declare about the demise of Historic Fundamentalism? Was it poisoned to death by the corrupt powers and influences of men who secretly left off communion with God and consequently sought to deceptively and deliberately change Fundamentalism, wedding it to its archenemy of Neo-Evangelicalism? Or was it bled to death, ounce by ounce over the years, believing all that originally gave it spiritual life was no longer needed?
We weep over the death of perhaps the last biblical movement of God before the coming of His Son in the clouds. Will God now turn His attention toward the scattered remnant who are seeking to truly abide in Him and not in worldliness? [Let us now consider this truth concerning the Last-Day remnant.]