I need to interrupt my normal writings to just rant. Recently, an interview snippet from the Bryce Crawford Podcast began to make the rounds on social media. Specifically, Brandon Lake, a singer/songwriter of Contemporary Christian Music (CCM), was interviewed (linked here) on 28 April 2025 about a myriad of topics. But the one that is making the rounds is a clip that has not only been published but has been edited and shared purposefully. The premise of Brandon’s comments in this snippet is that he would “love for more worship sets to keep ‘Bubba’ in mind.” While I could spend time refuting this statement, others have already done a great job at it, (i.e., Christ is the Cure and The Poking Stick).
Instead, I’d rather spend my time, once again, to exhort and urge you to stop listening to these people. First, I don’t know much about Bryce Crawford, and I’m not going to imply that he isn’t saved or isn’t a Christian. I think all the common zeal and fruit exist in him that would say that he truly loves Christ. However, he is a foolish kid. His zeal in spreading the gospel is equal to his zeal in rising fame. At the age of 21, having found Christ at a self-proclaimed age of 19, shows that he doesn’t know what he is talking about, except for what he feels. This is dangerous. It’s dangerous because once his zeal goes away or he faces new hardships, his faith has no development of reason, and he is prone to be like every other “exvangelical” out there.
Second, he has carefully crafted an image or persona for himself, in that the only content available of him is the easy-to-consume content. It’s content is of him spreading the gospel, and people readily receive it without conflict, or the conflict is minor, though he will elevate it by saying “preacher attacked.” It’s him responding to questions that he is equipped to answer because they are softball questions. It’s him standing next to others who have been doing this for decades, coming in to do the emotional “I get you” part of the discussion, and not the part that delivers the hard truths. He embodies the warning of 1 Tim 3:6, of being a new convert who may fall into the trap of being conceited or prideful. Therefore, my recommendation is to ignore and avoid his content until he grows in the word and not in the world.
I make this statement because, looking at his podcast, he is not discerning in who he is platforming. Whether these people are boosting his reputation or vice versa is a mystery. Though it looks like his podcast initially began for him to teach others how to understand Scripture, it has devolved into bubblegum interviews. The heart of these interviews is individuals like Carl Lentz, Judah Smith, and now, Brandon Lake. Who is Brandon Lake? Probably somebody you know, without knowing you know him.
Brandon is most known for songs that he has written, specifically in cooperation with Bethel and Elevation. Songs like “Graves into Gardens,” “Same God,” and “Talking to Jesus.” Most recently, he was featured as one of the tank top singers in Sons of Sunday, which appears to be another Elevation collective. [The song in reference is called “W.D.H.D?” and that it has 6 authors is embarrassing]. And that’s my point. Not only was what he stated in the interview wrong, but it was wrong in such a way that we should be concerned. This man is another piece in modern worship music and he is purposefully writing that we need to not use theologically rich words because the unbeliever may not understand. If this is the viewpoint of the authors of today’s Christian music, maybe it is necessary to go to the roots, which are Bethel, Hillsong, Elevation, and North Point, and cut our ties with all their music right now.
Does this mean we reject all the artists that have ever worked with these labels or churches? No. But do we need to reassess each artist to where they are and what they are writing? Yes. Because even if you are a modern hymn writer with strong theological foundations written into your work, it is likely that Steven Furtick, Bill Johnson, or Brian Houston’s name will be on that music sheet. Even if they did it just to get a dime, my concern is that they had an influence on these artists when composing this music. I think it is better for them to be assumed compromised and re-evaluated than it is to assume their previous work is just as good as after they’ve been added to the CCM machine.
Lastly, the only thing I want to say is to ignore the advice of Brandon Lake from the interview. Do not change how you’ve been addressing the congregation. Do new believers understand the concept of Justification and Sanctification? Probably not. But they’ll get there. You don’t need to apologize or state how weird these concepts can be, because the Church Fathers already dealt with that. Instead, use the words, teach the words. Don’t dumb down the church for those who aren’t a part of the church. The same Spirit who revives hearts so that they may understand Christ is the same Spirit who will develop the Christian into maturity. Cut ties with the CCM machine. Don’t promote the influencer. Read your Bible. Grow into the Faith.
Semper Reformanda.