John Piper and Visual Worship…
So this one gets me a little heated. John Piper has answered a question about drama and video in worship services recently and his answer (although not unexpected) was somewhat controversial among those of us in church media. I would encourage you to read his whole answer here. I’m going to assume that you have.
I don’t even know where to start. I should breathe a moment to ensure that all the thoughts I have aren’t spewed out but are thoughtful and logical. I’m not sure I’ll be successful.
The problem with his whole perspective, and he would find it to be an asset, is that he places complete preeminence on preaching. That’s obvious in the following quotations:
I think the use of video and drama largely is a token of unbelief in the power of preaching.
It’s going to communicate that preaching is weak, preaching doesn’t save, preaching doesn’t hold, but entertainment does.
The logical conclusion from Piper’s statements is that video and drama cannot be used to teach and can only be used as entertainment. Thus preaching (and teaching) must be done by a pastor who is speaking to a congregation. It is this line of thinking that I strongly believe to be inaccurate.
Piper points out in his opening paragraph that media isn’t explicitly forbidden in the New Testament. (Does this mean that it is subtly forbidden?) We do find, however, significant use of storytelling and narrative throughout the scriptures. In fact, as much as 75% of the Bible is in narrative form (with only 10% as propositional instruction – from the Complete Evangelism Guidebook). Clearly, there is a significant focus on storytelling. Jesus himself spoke in parables to communicate God’s truth.
Video and drama are simply modern methods of storytelling. Incredibly powerful methods of storytelling. And, as with everything, can be used well or not so well. Preaching can mislead thousands of people to think that they can be ‘ok’ with God simply by walking an aisle. Video and Drama can be used to distract people from the truth of God’s Word. But when we meet together and use both effectively, we begin to communicate to a person holistically. We hit their mind, heart and soul. Preaching rarely expands beyond the mind.
This is why we need artists in the church. Good artists. Incredible artists. Artists who love God and can communicate His truths in new and exciting ways. If we hope to reach the next generation with God’s truth, we’re going to need everything we can get. Or to quote a preacher,” All was created through Jesus and for Jesus. (John Piper)”
Remarkable how one mans’ view can spark such a controversy. The beauty of free interpretation is the ugliness of free interpretation. Spiritual matters have essentials and non-essentials.. this is a non-essential. The devil again succeeds to dis-unify the body.
Hey Brian,
I attend a church where the Pastor does use powerpoint to illustrate his expository teachings, however we’re not talking major artistry. PK certainly engages my mind, but to deny the Word of God taught like that doesn’t engage the heart and soul is wrong. In fact the only thing that is required to touch and engage the heart and soul is His Word whether it be teaching or in a video or song. I believe that is the only thing that matters.
I would guess that the concern of Piper is the unfortunate problem of seeker sensitive churches using these same kinds of things without giving the whole council of God. In these places worship, serving, and the Word become secondary to the show and neglect teaching to be holy and set apart. I’ve never been to your church so I am not accusing your church of being seeker sensitive.
I think my biggest concern with anything that has major production like that is exactly what is bringing the people to church after the first time. If it’s anything other than serving, worship, and the Word it’s not a good thing.
Peace out- Scott.
The thing that bothered me was that he said “it’s going to communicate that preaching is weak, preaching doesn’t save, preaching doesn’t hold, but entertainment does.” Preaching doesn’t save anyone…..Jesus does. And the truth and message of Jesus can be just as easily communicated through preaching as it can through drama, video, music, books, arts, and tons of other mediums.
Brian – I wholeheartedly agree with your points here. I read Piper’s comments first, and was also upset that he would so casually dismiss a medium that is used very effectively today to reach a great number of people. Also, as you pointed out, calling one method of communication “ordained” implies that other methods are not, and this is patently false. Jesus used many different avenues to teach, including demonstrating by his actions (sometimes unaccompanied by words) a Biblical truth. We do ourselves and the world a disservice when we try to exclude some methods of communication as “not holy.”
Honestly, I think this is partly a generational thing. John Piper is an old man, and he still thinks like someone from his generation. There’s nothing wrong with his approach, if you’re trying to reach the elderly for Christ. But, if we want to reach this generation, we need to expand our horizons a bit beyond the traditional soapbox preaching.
Nice response! You should definitely send it to him!
Wow, first of all I can’t believe this has seen so much traffic today. Cool.
Anyways @Evan,
I think you’re missing the point. Piper doesn’t add balance in the last paragraph, he adds to his position that drama and video don’t belong in the Sunday morning service. This is my primary point of contention. Preaching is NOT a more effective medium for communicating to EVERY person (and I would take care claiming one medium is ordained by God while another is not). Preaching will certainly reach a mass audience and should be continued with vigor and passion. Unfortunately, preaching will always come up short in some areas and drama and video should be used to communicate God’s truths right along side of solid preaching. I agree that solid preaching should always be the center of a solid worship service, but it should be accompanied by excellent use of song and the arts.
An addendum to my blog post:
Drama and video can be especially abused to provide only entertainment (although many preachers also teach this way) and to use those mediums without content is wholly inappropriate on a Sunday morning. In this way, I agree totally with Piper. Don’t do it unless you’ve got the truth on your side.
So did you miss the next to last paragraph where he adds in the balance to his position? He’s not saying you can’t speak a message through drama and video. He’s saying it can’t replace preaching.
It’s obvious that narratives can be acted out through visuals but it’s even more obvious that MORE message can be packed into a sermon. I believe this is why God chose to write a book instead of waiting 2000 years to make a movie. The acts of reading and hearing impact the brain differently than does seeing the message being acted out. Watching a narrative take place requires more time and leaves more holes for misunderstanding. This is why Piper is stressing that preaching is more effective than visuals and is a medium ordained by God.
“Faith comes by hearing…”
And for the record, I’m a full-time church media director.
I’m going to take the middle ground on this one, as someone who enjoys and finds some skill in both visual arts and preaching.
I think it’s pretty clear that God has called the church to be speaking the truth of the Bible to the people around us. I believe that preaching is the way to do that. Jesus speaks over and over of preaching the gospel (Mt 24.14, Mk 3.14, Lk 9.2 are 3 of many). Paul commands Timothy to “Preach the Word.” (2 Timothy 2.4) It seems that God has placed a very high value on the art of preaching.
However, I also believe that God has gifted people (like you) to be able to use the arts to help us see our need and what God has done in a way that differs from preaching.
In all honesty, I believe that preaching should be the emphasis of the church, but I believe that music/drama/videos, etc. can be powerful, powerful aides in helping us learn who God is and what he’s done.
I wholeheartedly agree with you. Jesus used parables because they work on so many levels. People visualize stories they hear (Ask anyone who grew up before music videos–those things ruined our mental images of the songs and many people complained about them at first!).
Newer generations embrace a multi-sensory approach and there is nothing unbiblical about that–as long as the people who are performing are doing this unto the Lord.
Which opens up another can of worms…accountability for not only the pastors/preachers, but also the worship teams, drama teams, technicians, etc.
I hope you sent John Piper a copy of this! Good stuff Brian! Proud to be your apprentice…lol!