An answer to a very lengthy defence of ‘Contemporary Christian Music’ by a Free Presbyterian minister, in which there is not one mention of the Bible!
It seems to be forgotten by many that if praise is used in the worship of the Lord, it must be regulated by Scripture, irrespective of who defends it.
It is that lack which is the chief objection to ‘CCM’!
WHY NO BIBLE REFERENCES???
I understand that a very lengthy ‘thesis’ on the matter of hymnology has been mounted on Facebook by Rev Marcus Lecky. A copy was sent to me. In essence, it appears that he is defending ‘Contemporary Christian Music’.
At the first I was of a mind to simply ignore it for, in truth, it contributes nothing to the present debate on the serious matter of that parallel activity to the current departure from the preaching of the true Gospel, namely, the embracing of ‘Contemporary Christian Music’ by all too many true Christians.
Given that Rev Lecky recently commended the late Charlie Kirk and equated him with Christian martyrs, such as Stephen, the first Christian martyr, I would suggest that his opinion is to be carefully examined before it is accepted.
Back in September, 2025, I mounted an article entitled:
Let true Bible-believers be aware that Charlie Kirk was of the same spirit as Billy Graham!
In that article I said:
‘On a website, entitled: Charlie Kirk’s Wife:
What We Know About Erika Kirk’s Catholic Faith,
there is very interesting information on the unbiblical beliefs of Charlie Kirk!
There are links on that site to other articles which tell a very different story from the one the devil would have the true Christian believe!
“During a July 16 episode of “The Charlie Kirk Show” on “Real America’s Voice,” Kirk explained that he believes Protestants do not venerate or talk about Mary enough. He said she “is the solution” to “toxic feminism in America.”
(Sermon clip of Rev Lecky equating Charlie Kirk with Stephen the first martyr)
Four minutes, 45 seconds into this video, mounted by the Burke family, you will hear Rev Lecky’s opinion of Charlie Kirk.
Whatever criticism may be levelled against the Burkes, let those they criticise answer them convincingly from the Word of God!
Martin Luther, in the preface of his work, The Bondage of the Will, once said of Erasmus’s opposing arguments, ridiculing Luther’s opinions, that they were as ‘garden rubbish’ or ‘dung’.
He implies that simply labelling his own work ‘worthless’ is not a substitute for serious theological refutation.
In a simple response to Rev Marcus Lecky’s very lengthy article, which I am not going to reproduce it and thus take up a lot of space on my website, let me simply state that the use of the term ‘Modern’ by those critical of ‘Contemporary Christian Music’, is not a reference to ‘recent’, since that would make the preaching of faithful Gospel messages today ‘modernistic’!
Terminology
Rather it refers to the use of a form of terminology that is in keeping with the expressions currently used by the world as opposed to earlier hymns, with their more reverential references to the Lord and His Word and work that are in keeping with Scripture.
‘CCM’ is marked by a departure from the strongly Biblical basis of the hymns embraced by the historic Church of Christ.
Hymns of recent composition are not to be rejected on the basis of their age but on their content! Many hymns composed in the 17th, 18th, 19th centuries are rejected, and that because of their content.
They are not embraced merely because of their age.
It is to be noted that there do not appear the words ‘BIBLE’ or ‘SCRIPTURE’ in the whole of this ‘admonition’.
Surely that deprives it of true value in the eyes of the devout Christian!
I have found some ministers all too ready to proffer their views and notions, utterly void of references to that blessed Book, which is the ‘ONLY rule of faith and practice’!
That is not the Free Presbyterianism of old, which sought to ever preface its proclamations with the phrase, repeatedly used by God’s servants of old — ‘THUS SAITH THE LORD’!
In contrast, Rev David Linden rightly assessed ‘CCM’ in his sermon in Markethill Free Presbyterian Church on the Lord’s Day past. I commend that message to you.
It is mounted on the main page of ‘The Burning Bush’, Remember the days of old
Let us ever remember:
“To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them,” Isaiah 8:20.
Rev Ivan Foster (Rtd)
23rd April 2026