By Bill Reeves
Your special invitation to hear SONLIGHT SINGERS (acapella Christian Chorus from San Diego) at the Bright Angel Church of Christ, Saturday, September 12, 1998, 7:00 P.M. REFRESHMENTS Following the presentation. Please stay as our guests. DIRECTOR: George Budurin. Additional information from Boyd Gulliland, Min. Ad- mission is free!
The above flyer was distributed in Las Vegas, Nevada, one being received by the faithful brethren meeting on N. Vegas Drive. Here is a case of a church of Christ having a professional chorus to sing (acapella) to it, while the per- sons in attendance are simply spectators who listen. This is entertainment pure and simple! This is not “teaching and admonishing one another”as congregational singing is designed by God to accomplish (Col. 3:16).
Satan is persistent; he tirelessly works through what can be called “incrementalism”; that is, slowly “growing” in the introduction of error by means of regular consecutive additions which are simply small steps at a time. Once the brotherhood becomes accustomed to the choruses singing in the churches, then it is not so shocking a matter to introduce the choir on a regular basis. Like dripping water wears away the stone, so incrementalism effects great changes. These professional choruses, whether individually organized, or sent out by the colleges and universities among us, to perform (“presentations”) in churches of Christ, are preludes to the choir!
The entertainment aspect of the “presentation” is high- lighted by the “refreshments following the presentation,” offered to all who attend from the area. And, this could be called “worship”? Does this church of Christ follow their invitations to worship God by the phrase: Admission Is Free? One reads in vain in the New Testament to find a thirty-second cousin to such a practice! It doesn’t take a prophet to see that a choir in this church of Christ is not far in the future!