Should We Sing the Songs of Hillsong?

Hillsong Church is a charismatic Christian megachurch that was established in 1983 in Australia by Brian Houston. It has a number of satellite locations all over the world.  They are especially known for their original contemporary worship songs by songwriters such as Reuben Morgan, Darlene Zschech, Ben Fielding, and Brooke Fraser.  We sing a number of worship songs at Bethel that originated in the Hillsong Church such as “Who You Say I Am”, “Mighty to Save”, “Tell the World”, and “My Redeemer Lives”.

In recent years, Hillsong Church has become no stranger to controversy.  Brian Houston resigned in 2022 for inappropriate behavior with women associated with the church.  The lead pastor of Hillsong New York, Carl Lentz, was removed for having more than one extra-marital affair.  Furthermore, their official position on homosexuality is that they “consider homosexual practice sinful, and do not allow homosexuals to assume leadership roles.”

With all that, I have been asked more than once if we should be singing the songs that originated at Hillsong Church.  It is a question I take seriously and wish to comment on.

First, let’s have some history.  Bethel’s contemporary service dates back to 1995 and had the first truly contemporary format (with a rock band) of any United Methodist church in central Ohio.  The service grew quickly and peaked around 2001 with attendance often reaching 200.  The challenge in these early years was finding appropriate music.  We were not very interested in the folk/soft rock songs from the Maranatha or Vineyard churches (think “As the Deer”) and were looking for something more similar to the pop/rock music on the radio.  Hillsong quickly became a favorite source and, in fact, pretty much the only source of such music.  Songs like “All Things Are Possible” and “Shout To the Lord” were favorites in those early days.  In the early 2000s, other sources emerged such as Red Rocks Worship (Colorado), Bethel Music (California), North Point Worship (Atlanta), and The Many (Chicago).

So should we sing songs that originated in churches that we have theological differences with or have been embroiled in controversy?  I guess I prefer to take each song on an individual basis and simply ask if I see God’s truth, good theology, and strong scripture references in the lyrics.  These songs were written by individuals who may or may not agree with all the views of their church.  You might ask why they work for those churches, but let us remember that mainline churches have all but completely abdicated their role as a patron of the arts.  I am not aware of any effort by the United Methodist Church to commission new worship songs.  Songwriters go where they can make a living developing their craft. 

Rob Bell is quoted as saying, “So as a Christian, I am free to claim the good, the true, the holy, wherever and whenever I find it.  I live with the understanding that truth is bigger than any religion and the world is God’s and everything in it.”  I don’t know about you, but when I sing “My Redeemer Lives”, I feel the good, the true, and the holy in my very bones. 

All through scripture, God uses flawed, imperfect people, to proclaim the Kingdom.  God’s truth comes from the mouths of Samaritans, Roman centurions, and sex workers.  No matter the source, I believe we are free to claim the truth where we find it.  Instead of “guilt by association”, maybe we should simply look at the created art and ask if it represents the truth.  In our recent mental health series, we found great truths even in “secular” songs written by non-believers.  Again, Rob Bell has some interesting thoughts on this topic:  “Sometimes we hear people use the phrase God’s truth.  This phrase is a problem.  Why?  Because what other kind of truth is there?  If it’s true, then it’s from God.”

And finally, I would remind you that two of our worship songs, “Infinity” and “Open the Gates”, were written by a songwriter whose denomination—at the time—claimed homosexuality to be “incompatible with Christian teaching”.  The denomination was the United Methodist Church and the songwriter was Mark Fox*.

We'd love to hear your thoughts and start a discussion over on our Facebook page!

*lyrics on “Infinity” by Keri Newcomb