Volume 32, Issue 3, March 2026
In part one on the subject of contemporary Christian worship, we examined some of the roots of this significant shift in worship in the modern church. We will now dig deeper to see how these roots sprouted to form what most today recognize as worship. We start by identifying “two rivers,” which flowed separately for years, and have now come together to form one stream.
The first river (as Latter Rain Pentecostals called it) of contemporary Christian worship is identified by Ruth and Hong as simply Praise & Worship (P&W). It began among Latter Rain teachers, especially Reg Layzell in the 1940s.[1] Latter Rain was and is a Pentecostal movement so extreme in its theology and practice that even many mainline Pentecostal denominations, such as the Assembly of God, openly opposed it.[2] Nevertheless, Layzell believed that he had discovered a deep but unrecognized truth in Psalm 22:3: that God “inhabits the praise of His people.” To Layzell this meant that through loud, exuberant, lengthy musical singing, God’s people would experience His presence. Psalm 22:3 would serve as the key verse of the P&W emphases, and ushering in the presence of God would be the key theme and goal. Later, bigger names such as Oral Roberts, Demos Shakarian, and Jack Hayford would help popularize both Latter Rain theology and P&W,[3] but Layzell was the originator of P&W and numerous others, who are unfamiliar to most of us today, would spread its concepts and methods. Most, however, would recognize the Christian Copyright Licensing International (CCLI) that was created out of Dick Iverson’s (a Latter Rain pastor) church[4] and replacing “song leader” with “worship leader”—was also a Latter Rain shift. This methodology is more important than it seems, for now the musical leader (not the pastor or elders) is the primary instigator in regards to worship and responsible for connecting the congregation to the manifest presence of God.[5]
At first, association of P&W with the Latter Rain Movement hindered its spread, but slowly other Pentecostal churches adopted the concept. As its popularity increased and bled over to non-Pentecostal churches, the connection with Latter Rain diminished and eventually faded away entirely, and its roots evaporated from view.[6] Aiding in this process was the praise movement and the “pace-setting praise albums of Maranatha! Music.”[7] Popular songs such as “Seek Ye First,” “Shine, Jesus, Shine,” “Lord, I Lift Your Name on High,” “The Lord Inhabits the Praises of His People,” and “Praise the Lord” began to bridge the gap between Latter Rain and evangelicalism.[8] Anne Murchison published her book Praise and Worship in Earth as It Is in Heaven by Word in 1981 rather than through a Pentecostal publisher, resulting in rapid infiltration of P&W among evangelicals.[9] At this point, the “Praise to Presence” emphasis of the Latter Rain was intact, but that was about to change within evangelicalism with the emergence of a second “river,” the Contemporary Worship river.
Whereas the Pentecostal P&W emphasis had been on closing the chasm between the Christian and the presence of God via music, based on Psalm 22:3 and Hebrews 13:15, Contemporary Worship was designed to close an entirely different gap—one between the church and the unbeliever. Keying off 1 Corinthians 9:22b, “To all people I have become all things in order that by all means I might save some,” those involved in this second stream sought to draw people to Christ and to the church by modernizing their music. P&W taught that “if we praise Him, God will come;” Contemporary Worship leaders had a different idea—“If we change it (meaning worship), they (meaning other people) will come.”[10] Thus was born the modern version of pragmatic Christianity with a strong emphasis on evangelicalism, a minimizing of theology and Bible teaching, and a devotion to “whatever works” methodology. Contemporary worship was the perfect vehicle to be adopted by the rising Church Growth Movement. Pioneered by Robert Schuller and perfected by Rick Warren, Bill Hybels, Walt Kallestad, and Mike Slaughter,[11] CAMEO (Contemporary Approach to Ministry, Evangelicalism, and Organization) churches[12] became the fad because their methods, which incorporate contemporary worship, worked—as gauged by numerical growth. Numerous musical artists, publishing houses, seminaries such as Fuller, and a growing list of ministerial entrepreneurs spread the CAMEO ideology and contemporary worship along with it. By the conclusion of the 20th century, pragmatic church growth philosophy and contemporary worship had virtually won over the evangelical church. In addition, the two rivers of P&W and Contemporary Worship had merged and were no longer distinguishable. They now formed one river, which could be called “Contemporary Praise and Worship.”[13]
This story of how Contemporary Worship became standard in most churches is the primary burden of the book, Lovin’ On Jesus. The authors see five primary sources that led to Contemporary Worship: youth ministry in the mid-twentieth century, the influence of Pentecostalism, musicians seen as worship leaders rather than pastors, baby boomers including the rise of the Jesus People who questioned tradition, and church growth missiology, motivated by the concern of declining church attendance.[14]
Influences
If, in fact, this scenario is correct, what has been the conduit for introducing Pentecostal influence via music into non-charismatic evangelical churches? After all, most non-Pentecostal Christians had not normally been exposed to these beliefs and expressions in their local churches. The answer is that CWM influences were and are introduced in other venues that make an end-run around the local church, including concerts, conferences, and ecumenical marches.
In addition to popular songs from the 1960s and 1970s such as those mentioned earlier, there were also 1970s’ influencers including Calvary Chapel, the Jesus People, Maranatha! Music, Chris Tomlin, and John Wimber. More recently, Bethel, Jesus Culture, Passion Conferences, Elevation, and Hillsong have set the contemporary worship agenda. The popularity of P&W is due largely to the influence of concerts where this music is performed. Ruth and Hong, as historians, do not pretend to know the future of contemporary worship, but they know it will morph over time; and it is here to stay. There is no going back.[15]
Second in influence only to the concerts are the large conferences, which seem to be everywhere these days. Even many of the conferences which feature solid Bible preaching and teaching will often turn to CCM/CWM musicians to lead music. But others such as IHOP, Passion, and Urbana show little discernment, either in teaching or music. At Passion, for example, prosperity teacher Judah Smith may follow Reformed pastor John Piper. Its musical performers are just as varied, although the CCM/CWM pop-rock style of worship is consistent.[16] The Passion conference bills the “worship sets” as attempts to foster the idea that their event will be an “experience of the heavenly community on earth.”[17]
Historically, in the broader non-Pentecostal evangelical churches, contemporary worship was used to draw people, especially in light of the dwindling attendance they were experiencing.[18] Ruth and Hong sum up the difference between Pentecostal and evangelical philosophies well:
By and large white mainline and evangelical Christians adopted contemporary worship for tactical reasons. Whereas the Pentecostal approach had been to adopt the new music as a way of encountering God, these congregations tended to implement contemporary worship as a strategic way of attracting new people.[19]
Mainline evangelicals focused on felt needs and how contemporary worship met those needs and drew people to their services;[20] Pentecostals sought to experience the presence of God. In more recent years, a blending of these two motivations (or “rivers” as they have been called) can be observed in both Pentecostal and evangelical camps. It is no wonder that “come” (an invitation to come into God’s presence) is the most used verb, equal to “save” in contemporary music.[21]
Modern CCM
Typically, throughout Protestant church history, pastors and theologians were at the forefront of writing and leading Christian music. Today that role has been handed to musicians, many of whom have little biblical training or theological insight. Besides, most popular writers/performers constantly travel and have little vital connection with a solid local church. Not only is this situation spiritually unhealthy, it is also unique in the history of the church. As Ingalls asks, “Can celebrity ‘worship leaders’ be trusted to write songs useful in church worship if they are constantly touring rather than serving in a local church?”[22] Since the late 1960s, music and performers have moved from the place of servant to that of master. Where once music played a key but subordinate function in church life and public worship, it now dominates and determines what a church is and who attends. “Music has become the touchstone of evangelical religious life.”[23] Careful biblical insight and discernment is more necessary than ever in the use of music in our worship of God.
[1] Lester Ruth and Lim Swee Hong, Lovin’ On Jesus, A Concise History of Contemporary Worship (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2017), pp. 9, 14.
[2] Ibid., pp. 16-17, 35.
[3] Ibid., p. 34.
[4] Ibid., pp. 45, 152-153.
[5] Ibid., pp. 64-65; cf. pp. 45-46, 48, 54-56.
[6] Ibid., p. 85.
[7] Ibid., p. 85.
[8] Ibid., pp. 87, cf. pp. 90-91, 102, 123, 125.
[9] Ibid., pp. 118-119.
[10] Ibid., p. 166.
[11] Ibid., p. 259.
[12] Ibid., p. 246.
[13] Ibid., p. 292.
[14] Ibid., pp. 16-22.
[15] Ibid., pp. 141-143.
[16] Monique M. Ingalls, p. 85.
[17] Ibid., p. 78.
[18] Lester Ruth and Lim Swee Hong, Lovin’ On Jesus, A Concise History of Contemporary Worship, pp. 115-119, 139.
[19] Ibid., p. 131.
[20] Ibid., pp. 116-117.
[21] Ibid., p. 137.
[22] Monique M. Ingalls, p. 48.
[23] Ibid., p. 2.