Why I Prefer the "Old."

My husband often tells me I'm an old lady at heart. Sometimes, this is very true. When it comes to style, I often prefer things that look like they've come out of an Alfred Hitchcock film. At times, I prefer to listen to music from an LP instead of my ipod. I'd rather read about people that have been dead for hundreds of years than people that are alive today. It annoys me when people say "like" too many times (incorrectly) in a sentence -- though I must admit that I'm guilty of this as well. I appreciate it when men properly don neck ties. I consider many modern styles/make up trends to be garish. I use words like "garish."

Another area in which the "old lady" in me comes out is in my preference of worship music. Give me an old timey hymn over a contemporary christian ballad any day! There are several factors that feed into my preference. These are in no particular order. (Beware, there will be song lyrics quoted so it might be a bit long).

1. Profound truth. I'm not saying that contemporary christian music has no substance. It often does. The difference is that that which is found in old hymns seems more... substantial. If contemporary christian music is jell-o, classic hymns are creme brulee. They're both sweet. But one is far more complex, intricate, and enjoyable to the discerning palate. Let's look at two songs. The first is a contemporary song about God's kingship and his faithfulness to us. The second is about the same thing, but is an old hymn.

"You're the God of this City
You're the King of these people
You're the Lord of this nation
You are

You're the Light in this darkness
You're the Hope to the hopeless
You're the Peace to the restless
You are

There is no one like our God
There is no one like our God

For greater things have yet to come
And greater things are still to be done in this City
Greater things have yet to come
And greater things are still to be done in this City."

Not bad. No heresy. Kind of vague, though.
And here's the classic hymn.

"Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation!
O my soul praise Him, for He is thy health and salvation!
All ye who hear, Now to His temple draw near;
Join me in glad adoration!

Praise to the Lord, who o'er all things so wondrously reigneth,
Shelters thee under His wings, yea, so gently sustaineth!
Hast thou not seen How thy desires have been
Granted in what He ordaineth?

Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work and defend thee;
Surely His goodness and mercy here daily attend thee. 
Ponder anew What the Almighty can do
If with His love He befriend thee.

Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore Him!
All that hath life and breath, come now with praises before Him!
Let the 'amen' Sound from his people again;
Gladly forever adore Him!" 

Specific, worshipful, spiritually meaty, saturated in truth.


2. Poetic beauty. I'm convinced that people who prefer the contemporary to the antiquated don't read or like poetry. I love poetry. Specifically, I love poetry that is beautiful. Even more specifically, I love poetry that is beautiful and calls you to adore its subject matter. So beautifully authored poetry that begs us to adore and admire the beauty of the Creator of the universe and all his works really has no rival.

Here's a contemporary Christian song that speaks of the beauty of Christ and the beauty of Salvation.

"You are beautiful my sweet, sweet song
You are beautiful my sweet, sweet song
You are beautiful my sweet, sweet song
And I will sin again

You are so good to me, You heal my broken heart
You are my Father in Heaven
You are so good to me, You heal my broken heart
You are my Father in Heaven

You are beautiful my sweet, sweet song
You are beautiful my sweet, sweet song

You ride upon the clouds, You lead me to the truth
You are the Spirit inside me
You ride upon the clouds, You lead me to the truth
You are the Spirit inside me

You are beautiful my sweet, sweet song
You are beautiful my sweet, sweet song
You are beautiful my sweet, sweet song
And I will sing again

You are my strong melody, yeah
You are my dancing rhythm
You are my perfect rhyme
I will sing of You forever

You poured out all Your blood You died upon the cross
You are my Jesus who loves me
You poured out all Your blood, You died upon the corss
You are my Jesus who loves me 

You are beautiful my sweet, sweet song (x6 -- I was tired of writing this out)
And I will sing again (x4)

You are my Father in heaven
You are the Spirit inside me
You are my Jesus who loves me. "

That song encourages us to view Jesus as beautiful especially in light of his sacrificial work on the cross. But so do this one... and, in my opinion, does so more beautifully and more effectively.

"My Jesus, I love Thee; I know though art mine.
For Thee all the follies of sin I resign.
My gracious Redeemer, my Savior art Thou:
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

I love Thee because Thou hast first loved me
And purchased my pardon on Calvary's tree.
I love Thee for wearing the thorns on Thy brow:
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

I'll love Thee in life; I will love Thee in death
And praise Thee as long as Thou lendest me breath.
And say when the death-dew lies cold on my brow,
'If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.'

In mansions of glory and endless delight, 
I'll ever adore Thee in heaven so bright.
I'll sing with the glittering crown on my brow,
'If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.' " 

3. Spiritual Maturity. Like most pleasures in life, the level at which we enjoy something is revelatory of your maturity. The entertainment you enjoyed as a child you probably now find juvenile. And likewise, if you've been a believer for a while, your worship is probably more informed and therefore deeper than when you were first saved. This doesn't diminish from the genuineness or sincerity of our pleasure in those things when we were younger, it's only a natural progression of physical maturation as well as spiritual maturation.

Here's a song we might sing with a fullness of heart on the eve of our salvation. (And in the car on our way to work too...)

"Everyone needs compassion
A love that's never failing
Let mercy fall on me
Everyone needs forgiveness
The kindness of a Savior
The hope of nations

Savior
He can move the mountains
My God is mighty to save
He is mighty to save
Forever
Author of Salvation
He rose and conquered the grave
Jesus conquered the grave

So take me as You find me
All my fears and failures
Fill my life again

I give my life to follow
Everything I believe in
Now I surrender

Savior
He can move the mountains
My God is mighty to save
He is mighty to save
Forever
Author of Salvation
He rose and conquered the grave
Jesus conquered the grave

(2x)
Shine Your light and 
Let the whole world see
We're singing
For the glory
Of the risen King

You're the Savior
You can move the mountains
Lord You are mighty to save
You are mighty to save
Forever 
Author of Salvation
You rose and conquered the grave
Yes You conquered the grave

Shine Your light and 
Let the whole world see
We're singing 
For the glory
Of the risen King" 

All of that is true. And the truth of it is glorious. But here's a song I'm actually going to put effort into memorizing and singing to myself in remembrance of the glories of salvation.

"And can it be that I should gain
An interest in the Savior's blood?
Died He for me, who caused His pain?
For me, who Him to death pursued? 
Amazing love! How can it be
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

Amazing love! How can it be
That Thou, my God shouldst die for me?

He left His Father's throne above;
So free, so infinite His grace.
Emptied Himself of all but love, 
And bled for Adam's helpless race.
'Tis mercy all, immense and free, 
For, O my God, it found out me.

Amazing love! How can it be
That Thou, my God shouldst die for me?

Long my imprisoned spirit lay
Fast bound in sin and nature's night;
Thine eye diffused a quick'ning ray,
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light.
My chains fell off; my heart was free.
I rose, went forth and followed Thee

Amazing love! How can it be 
That Thou my God shouldst die for me?

No condemnation now I dread; 
Jesus and all in Him is mine!
Alive in Him, my living Head, 
And clothed in righteousness divine;
Bold I approach the eternal throne
And claim the crown, through Christ, my own.

Amazing love! How can it be
That Thou my God shouldst die for me?" 

Each verse is filled with doctrine and truth that we could study and meditate on for hours on hours on end! And it's a joy to sing this song in its entirety because of its richness!

4. The Story. This one is perhaps my most weak argument for the superiority of the classic hymn as opposed to the contemporary christian song. What I mean by story is that hymns have survived the test of time. They've been here for centuries and are still being used. The contemporary Christian song seems to last only a few years before it's chucked out of the musical repertoire of the modern worship leader. Not only that, I have never heard of a personal story surrounding the conception of a contemporary worship song that revealed God's character to the song writer, inspiring them to write the lyrics. This isn't to say that hasn't happened, I'm sure it has. I just don't know of when/where. Off the top of my head, I can think of three examples in which personal experience was the beginning of a timeless hymn that we still enjoy today. (I won't include all the lyrics to these three songs, but just enough to give you the taste of the spirit of them).

A. Louisa M.R. Stead witnessed her husband drown in an attempt to save a boy that was drowning. In the late 19th century, being a widow essentially meant being despondent financially. Yet, she saw the Lord's hand in his provision for her in every trial. This caused her to pen the words,

"'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, 
Just to take Him at His word
Just to rest upon His promise
Just to know: 'Thus saith the Lord.'

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!
How I've proved Him o'er and o'er!
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
O for grace to trust Him more." 

B. Horatio Spafford, who had already by this time lost his only son and his business to the Great Chicago fire, experienced the loss of all his daughters as they traveled trans-Atlantic in a ship that sank. Having sent his wife and daughters ahead of him after being detained in the states, his wife sent him a telegram after the crash saying, "Saved alone." As he traveled to meet her, he wrote,

"When peace like a river attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
'It is well, it is well with my soul.'

It is well with my soul. 
It is well, it is well with my soul. 

...

My sin-- O the bliss of this glorious thought--
My sin-- not in part, but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Oh my soul!" 

C. And of course I would be remiss without mentioning one of the most known, most loved hymns of all time. John Newton's life was inundated with hardships and events that had him staring at death in the face. He eventually found himself involved in the slave trade. Wikipedia says that, "While aboard the ship "Greyhound," Newton gained notoriety for being one of the most profane men the captain had ever met. In a culture where sailors commonly used oaths and swore, Newton was admonished several times for not only using the worst words the captain had ever heard, but creating new ones to exceed the limits of verbal debauchery." He was saved after crying out to God in the midst of a dangerous storm. Reflection on his life prior to conversion, particularly over regret of his involvement in the slave trade, John Newton wrote,

"Amazing Grace. How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now am found. 
Was blind but now I see. 

'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
and grace my fears relieved 
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.

Through many dangers, toils, and snares
I have already come
'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home. 

When we've been there ten thousand years, 
Bright shining as the sun
We've no less days to sing God's praise 
Than when we'd first begun."