Cross-Centered Worship: “The Gospel Song”
We have noticed a disturbing trend in the corporate worship songs of the church. Perhaps you have too? It seems that we sing very little about the main point of Christianity. This is largely because the church wants to be more “sensitive” to those who are not Christians. With the best research in hand, we are told that non-Christians don’t really want to hear about sin and guilt and being accountable to a holy God. They also don’t want to hear about a Savior dying on a bloody cross for their sins. To reach them, we are confidently told, we must eliminate these topics from our sermons and our songs. Sadly, much of the Evangelical church has mistakenly signed on to this approach.
We could not disagree more strongly! The message of a crucified and risen Savior and the reconciliation that this can bring is the only message the church has! It is the one and only message the church has been entrusted with and that the lost so desperately needs to hear.
As one who has been responsible for leading corporate singing for years, I can attest to how frustrating it has become to find songs that are worth singing! There are many out there, but it takes time to find them. Today, we are starting a new feature at Not For Itching Ears. Each week, we will post one worthy (at least in our opinion) worship song for you to listen to. We will post the lyrics as well as the Mp3 along with a chord chart when possible.
We will start off with a song I discovered a few years ago. It is called “The Gospel Song”, written by Drew Jones and Bob Kauflin of Sovereign Grace Ministries. It is one of the simplest, most concise wording of the gospel in song form that I know of. Let us know if you like it by taking the poll or leaving a comment.
The Gospel Song
Holy God, in love became
Perfect man to bear my blame
On the cross He took my sin
By His death I live again
The Gospel Song
You can find a free guitar chord chart by following this link to Sovereign Grace Ministries.
Posted on November 20, 2010, in Christianity, Contemporary Church Culture, The Christian Life, The Cross, The Seeker-Sensitive Church Model, Worship and tagged bob Kauflin, C.J. Mahaney, cross-centered worship, Gospel Centered worship, seeker-sensitive, Sovereign Grace Ministries, worship. Bookmark the permalink. 5 Comments.
Not For Itching Ears 
The Gospel Song… was the first song I came to know from SGM… I had seen and purchased the cd, Songs for the Cross Centered Life”… WOW! What a blessing that was and continues to be as I find such rich gospel truth in the lyrics. I’m grateful for those in the Church who are gifted and hungry to share with the rest of us.
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Hi Tim,
SGM has been an absolute Godsend for me! Several years ago, I was attending a church that needed a worship leader. I knew I was going to be asked to step in and help, but in my heart, I didn’t want to do it. I had become so disillusioned with the man-centered dribble that was being passed off as “Worship” music. Honestly, I believed most of those songs were not even worth singing, let alone leading. It was a real crisis for me. Then a friend told me about Sovereign Grace Ministries. I can clearly remember weeping as I listened to their free song samples. I am so grateful for them!
The closest SGM church is 80 miles from my home. I have visited them many times. They are a great group who love Jesus. I wish they were closer!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Jim
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