Confused Gospel Singers

The Baptist Church that I attend, like many others, invites 'Gospel Singers' to the Sunday evening service in an effort to stir the soul of the unsaved through the singing of the Gospel message. It is of course acknowledged that an unsaved soul will never be stirred apart from the workings of God's Holy Spirit. However, the idea is, that if the gospel message including the sinners need of salvation and the Saviours provision of the same not to mention the need for the sinner to repent and trust Christ, then God's spirit can take these truths and cause conviction in the heart of the sinner.

Sad to say many so called 'Gospel Singers' are confused about their role in this matter. This is not only in my own church but I have come across this problem in many assemblies up and down the country.

'Gospel Singers' in many cases are not 'grapsing the nettle' and dealing with the themes of sin, God's wrath, Christ's atonement, faith and repentance. In evangelical circles we often cry out for a preacher who will take us to the cross and as Paul said in 1st Corinthians 1 v18 'For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.' There is power in the preaching of the cross and there is power in singing about the cross.

'Gospel Singer', sing about the cross. We don't want nice little dittys about heaven or about prayer, these songs might be alright for our own edification but they are not for the Gospel meeting. Sing the message that will be of use to a perishing sinner. What would you think of a doctor who when consulting with a patient who was gravely ill spent the time rambling about secondary issues instead of dealing with the root cause of their patients problem and discussing the cure. Let us ask the sinner in our songs:-

Have you been to Jesus for the cleansing power, are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?
Are you fully trusting in His grace this hour, are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?

I trust this will help clarify the confused.