Alistair Begg warns rise of 'consumer' worship eroding biblical engagement in congregational life

That change, the 72-year-old Scottish pastor said, represents more than just a design preference — it reflects a deeper shift in how churches engage with the Bible itself.

“Traditionally, the pulpit was central and visually dominant, not as an expression of the preacher’s authority, but as a reminder of the authority of Scripture,” Begg said, recalling the awe he felt as a child when the church “beadle” carried the Bible to the pulpit before the service began.

But today, in many churches, that centrality has been lost, he said.

“Plexiglass, bar stools — why? Well, you’ve got to please the consumers,” Begg said, referring to the modern trend of trying to make worship spaces feel less formal and more accessible. “It’s a noble prospect, but there’s an unfortunate symbolism to it.”

For Begg, the decline of the raised pulpit is emblematic of a broader issue: the diminishing role of Scripture in congregational life. He contended that modern churchgoers often arrive not with an expectation to encounter God’s Word, but with a more casual mindset.

“Instead of coming into worship with the express understanding that all of this begins with God in His glory, people come with coffee in hand, saying, ‘Let’s see if he’s got something good for us today,’” he said.

“Expositional preaching gives way to inspirational talks, which gives way to therapeutical endeavors,” he continued. “I’m not sure that America understands just how deep the problem is, in relationship to biblical illiteracy. You cannot continue to make your journey through life without your Bible, not as a talisman, not as something just to be revered in a corner, but without the Bible as our daily source of knowledge and encounter with God.”

Begg called for a return to what he calls “serious engagement with the Bible,” where the focus is less on inspirational talks and more on expositional preaching — preaching that seeks to unfold the meaning of the text, not just offer uplifting or therapeutic messages.

“There is a correlation between a collapse in our understanding of God and the expressions that are represented in the pulpit,” he emphasized. “You see, the task of the pastor in coming to the scriptures is not simply to provide information about what the Bible says with a few pointers to take home, fill in the blanks kind of stuff. That’s not the primary objective in the unfolding of Scripture. The desire, the longing of the pastor and the preacher and the people is that we might have a divine encounter with the living God through His Word, that we might meet God, that we might hear from God. … We don’t need to hear what Alistair knows about this or that. We need to hear from God.”

“Congregational worship is not just a get-together. It begins with God, not with myself in my need,” he told the audience, adding that when the focus shifts from God’s Word to personal experience or entertainment, something vital is lost.

“Why it is so hard, in many cases, to get people to sing? The poor people up here, they’ve got to be here one hour early in order to get themselves all jazzed up, so in the hope that they can get us all jazzed up. And if we don’t get jazzed up immediately, then we’re going to sing it again, and we’ll keep singing it until you’re jazzed up. And we’ll repeat the chorus 14 times, and we’ll make sure that you’re finally there. What’s the problem? Spiritual deadness is the problem,” he lamented.

Begg referenced the Reformer Martin Luther, who, in The Bondage of the Will, declared that without the Spirit of God, no one can truly understand Scripture.

“Even if we can quote it, discuss it, or memorize it, we don’t know it apart from the work of the Spirit,” Begg said, echoing Luther’s sentiment. This, he explained, is why so much of modern worship feels hollow — because it is disconnected from the Spirit-driven engagement with the Bible.

Begg also stressed the importance of worshiping “in spirit and in truth,” explaining that true worship requires the work of the Holy Spirit. “Dead men and women don’t sing,” Begg said, pointing to the necessity of spiritual life to engage in genuine worship.

The pastor added that the real leader of Christian worship is not the preacher, the musician or the choir director — it is Christ Himself.

“Jesus is the worship leader,” Begg said, citing the book of Hebrews. “He is the one who makes worship possible, and He is the one who leads us in praise.”

“Don’t sacrifice the exposition of Scripture for the exuberance of praise,” he concluded.

The annual Sing! conference, organized by Christian musicians Keith and Kristyn Getty, focuses on deepening theological understanding in church worship.

The theme of this year’s conference, held Sept. 4-6, was “The Songs of the Bible” and featured keynote speakers, worship leaders, theologians and artists from around the world.

In a previous interview with The Christian Post, Keith Getty said he and his wife launched the conference because of their belief in the pivotal role of music in biblical teachings and the need for Christians to stay rooted in their faith amid societal changes.

“The New Testament says we’re letting the Word of Christ dwell in us richly when we meet together singing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs,” the Grammy-nominated songwriter said.

“We live in such a transformative generation informationally, in terms of everything from artificial intelligence to gender to globalization to financial inequality. All of these things are going to reach whole new levels in the next generation.”

Getty noted that many commentators predict that by 2050, nominal Christianity might disappear due to the increasing challenges posed by Western culture.

“You’re either going to be a very serious Christian grappling with these things, or you’ll not survive,” the Irish songwriter said.

“So much of modern Christian behavior is, ‘I don’t want to be on the wrong side of history,’ or ‘I’m worried this is going to not go down too well.’ I think we’ve got to stop being such cowards. If we believe in Christ, His death and resurrection, the Gospel story and the authority of the Word of God, then we want that to be coming into every part of our minds, our emotions, in our families and in our homes. Fill our homes with songs of the Lord. Start where you are, fill your own mind with songs of the Lord and fill your family’s minds with songs of the Lord. If you have a role in your church, help your church sing songs of the Lord.”

Leah M. Klett is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: leah.klett@christianpost.com

Alistair Begg warns rise of ‘consumer’ worship eroding biblical engagement in congregational life

By Leah MarieAnn Klett, Assistant Editor Sunday,
THE CHRISTIAN POST
September 08, 2024

Pastor and author Alistair Begg lamented the diminishing role of Scripture in congregational life, warning that modern churchgoers often arrive not with a sense of reverence but with a consumerist mindset and called for a return to “serious engagement with the Bible.”

In a message delivered at the annual Sing! Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, Begg, the senior pastor of Cleveland’s Parkside Church, said that in churches around the world, the pulpit once stood as a monumental symbol of spiritual authority. Yet, over time, this symbol has all but faded, making way for a more casual and consumer-friendly approach to worship spaces.