Examining the damage wrought by one of the worst worship songs in our lifetime.

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No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another. -- John 15:15-17 (ESV)

Sometime around 2005 two men sat down to write a worship song that would capture Churchianity for a decade. It had it all. A catchy lyric, a happy beat and of course a great hook -- I am a Friend of God! The song was nominated twice for a Dove Award and soon it was a staple song in nearly every church across this country and soon the world. Fast forward 15 years and it is time to do a damage assessment. Because this was not a sound worship song. This paved the way for equally unbiblical songs that have created a generation of entitled churchgoers who believe worship and the bible is actually about them. The two writers? Michael Gungor was once the toast of the evangelical world. Him and his wife Lisa won multiple Dove awards and Grammy nominations. A few years later they were out of the church and the faith. Michael even proclaimed he was an atheist and openly challenged the veracity of the bible.

He calls me friend?

The second writer was the person who recorded it, Israel Houghton. For those who are unaware, Houghton was the worship leader for Joel Osteen and Lakewood Church, so it was not overly surprising when he announced he had cheated on his wife a few years after Friend of God and was getting divorced. He was seen and filmed on vacation with his then mistress/actress Adrienne Bailon. Mind you during the time he was committing adultery, Houghton was still writing worship music and singing Friend of God in concerts. He even released a live album entitled, "Jesus at the Center", during the height of the affair. I'm guessing Jesus wasn't actually at the center of anything at that time for Israel Houghton. So, a would be atheist and a would be adulterer sat down in 2005 to write a worship song and what they gave us is still poisoning minds today. Let's examine how:

Who am I
You are mindful of me
That You hear me
When I call

Is it true
You are thinking of me
How You love me
It's amazing

The modern trend of poor worship music I actually refer to as "Friend of God" theology because it builds on the mistakes we see here lyrically. Who is this lyric actually about? It is not about God -- it is about YOU. Be wary whenever you see too many "I's" in the lyrics of any song alleging to be about someone else. The lyric starts by referencing Psalm 8:4 but it over personalizes it beyond the intent of the Psalmist, David. Here is Psalm 8:

O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas. O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! -- Psalm 8:1-8 (ESV)

Was David exalting himself in this psalm? Heavens no! what Gungor and Houghton do here is they take the attention God pays to His creation and they apply it to themselves. David is referring to man in general and how low he is on the cosmic food chain that God would even look in our direction. To Houghton, it is not about the collective but rather the individual. The same is true for the fact that God hears us. Consider this beloved. there are only 28 words in these two stanzas yet the word "I" or "me" are repeated 6 times! Yet, is the basic premise even correct? Remember the person writing the scripture was King David, a man after the very heart of God. The vast amount of people standing in church each week are not actually saved. Is God "mindful" of them? In the sense of not wanting any to perish I suppose so but that is not how Houghton presents. Yet through the opening two stanzas and 28 words, what theology has been taught to the worshipers? That God is mindful of you, that He hears you when you call, that He is thinking of you and that how he loves you is amazing. Not that God is amazing! Just how He loves us. This would pave the way for one of the worst false worship songs ever, Oh How He Loves Us. Beloved, it is not worship to tell God how much He loves you. It is petulant and rude but most certainly not worship. It is arrogant and self-centered but most certainly not worship. When your teaching is this narcissistic it can only lead to this:

I am a friend of God
I am a friend of God
I am a friend of God
He calls me friend

This is what they call the hook. It is the line repeated over and over again like a mantra. It is what informs our theology the most. I was once at a local service where the worship leader was rambling incoherently for 15 minutes and the only thing discernable was the hook that said, "jump in the river if you want a hug from Jesus." No thanks, I will pass. Another bad example is the hook in Blessing of Abraham, where worshippers are invited to scream -- "Get your inheritance!" So, what is wrong with this hook? As a pastor friend of mine once pointed out; singing Friend of God does not make you a friend of God. When discussing the hook in lyrics, secular artist Blues Traveler writes:

"It doesn't matter what I say
So long as I sing with inflection
That makes you feel I'll convey
Some inner truth or vast reflection
But I've said nothing so far
And I can keep it up for as long as it takes
And it don't matter who you are
If I'm doing my job then it's your resolve that breaks"

Because the hook, it brings you back"-- Blues Traveler

The hook is what resonates in our minds beloved. as stated it forms our theology because we say it over and over again. Just a word here regarding Christian entertainment. There is nothing wrong with having a Christian song that is not necessarily worship. Casting Crowns has a wonderful song about the masks we wear in church called, 'Stained Glass Masquerade." I am relatively sure that the band would not claim it is a worship song however. Friend of God however became the most popular praise and worship song in this country. So, what's the damage of singing Friend of God when you're not one? Matthew 7. In this chapter there are people who stand before Christ for judgment who think that have spent their lives aligned with Christ only to discover after it is too late that He never even knew them! How does someone spend their lives under such deception? Just look around at the apostate church in this country as it grows astronomically each year. The bible says that people will gather around them teachers to tell them what they want to hear:

God wants you rich!

You're just a god with a small "a!"

Your words have the power to create!

You are a friend of God!

You see, it is not just teachers that we gather around ourselves as our darkness deepens. It is worship leaders as music as well. Think about it. What is a typical Sunday service like now in the apostate church? You go in for less than an hour and a half. Your worship set opens with you singing to God about how you guys are friends. You follow that with Oh How He Loves Us, where you actually sing to God that You are His portion. Next is the Blessing of Abraham[WA1] where you scream at God like a petulant child about getting your inheritance. You shift to slower worship songs and find yourself in the middle of a new Hillsong about how God just couldn't stand to be in heaven without you and wrap the set up with a "Jesus is my Boyfriend" song. You then hear a self-absorbed sermonette about you. A little Christianese thrown in with some Jesus fragments but no doubt that you are facing your giant the in the Valley of Elah waiting for your Ziklag moment, so you can accept your Elijah mantle! Hallelujah! Pass the offering plate! Friend of God is the reassurance of you are, even when you are not. Here is final portion of the lyrics:

God Almighty
Lord of glory
You have called me friend

It's amazing
So amazing
It's amazing
You call me friend

Has God almighty called you friend? He considered Abraham a friend according to Hebrews. The only other verses that make sense are the key verses for today. We could get into the fact that this was an exchange between Jesus and His specific disciples and not necessarily a prescriptive text for all of us. For the sake of this discussion we only need to go back one verse that people often leave out of this discussion; verse 14:

You are my friends if you do what I command you. -- John 15:14 (ESV)

Everyone wants to try on that crown of glory. The crown of thorns? Eh, not so much. Everyone wants to sing about being a friend of God but few will do the necessary work. Jesus lays it out very clearly for us. If you are my friends, then you will do what I command. Are we bearing fruit for the kingdom? Do we love each other in the family of God? Or are we just practicing sloppy agape. Where God loves everyone without exception or question. Where once you say an eight-word prayer you never have to examine yourself again and never have to carry your cross daily.

Yet there goes all of Churchianity every Sunday. Hands raised and dancing to Friend of God. The end times assault on sound doctrine is well underway but one of the most targeted areas that is rarely guarded is worship. Beloved, this is what we say to God. It is what we say about God. It forms what we believe about God. There is a huge difference between How Great Thou Art and How much He Loves Me. One is worship of God and the other is worship of self. There is likewise a huge difference between What aa Friend We Have in Jesus and I am a Friend of God. One is focused on Jesus and the other is focused on self. I am not saying everything has to be hymns either. I have heard contemporary music that is biblically sound, we just need to watch that we are not propping up false ministries that lead people away from Christ. Jesus Culture, Hillsong or Elevation music can all put out sound songs but that does not mean we should ever give the time of day to the evil forces behind their music. Bill Jonson, Brian Houston and Steven Furtick should never be tacitly endorsed by a discerning Christian.

Finally, do not even try the lame "we all worship differently" argument. When you spend worship time singing about you and sermon time hearing about you -- do not then tell me you worship God. There is nothing new under the sun beloved. This is the same sin of Lucifer desiring to be God. It is the same sin from the fall of man when Eve wanted to be like God. Man has been recreating God in his own image ever since. Do not get caught up in the sins of churchianity and what is socially expedient. Take a stand for what it is that you sing to the one you claim is your Lord and Savior. The bible is about Him beloved. this world is about His return. The very least we can do when offering up praise is that it be about the one we are claiming to praise.

Friend of God? I am still working on being a servant of God.

Reverend Anthony Wade -- July 16, 2019

Authors Bio:
Credentialed Minister of the Gospel for the Assemblies of God. Owner and founder of 828 ministries. Vice President for Goodwill Industries. Always remember that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.