Best of: Should Christian Stations Play Secular Music at Christmas Time?

Nothing says Christmas like a water buffalo. For a poor family in Asia, getting a water buffalo is like getting a farm tractor to pull a plow, or getting a milk truck full of delicious milk, or getting a stand at the market to sell cheese. A water buffalo opens the door for work, food, and income. More importantly, it opens the door to talk about Jesus.

And nothing says Christmas better than that. This is Andy Thomas from the Masculine Journey Podcast where we discover what it means to be a wholehearted man. Your chosen Truth Network Podcast is starting in just seconds.

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Okay, how can I have a child when I'm still a child? I've got chill bumps. I've got tears coming out of my eyes. This is unbelievable. This is Christian Christmas music. This is the album, First Words of Jesus Music. Richie Kingsmore, Mark Christian, Gina Kingsmore.

We haven't even played Charles Billings. It's like a Les Mis. It's a moment. It's powerful. Richie was a part of the original composition of this.

It's just unreal. We put it on iTunes. I just put a little cool thing on my Instagram. My daughter, Hope, loves it.

It's her and I's favorite, so we'll listen to it in the middle of July. But the conundrum we've been talking about all hour long, the lines are loaded. This is Call to Action today. I'm Stu Epperson.

Merry Christmas. We only have a few minutes left. What would you say, five? Would you say we've got five or six minutes, Kim? Okay, this is a six-minute segment, and we've got five callers.

I'm going to try to get to everybody. You know, I've got Orlando's been holding on for 17 minutes from High Point, North Carolina. Listen to us on AM830, WTRU, The Truth, our flagship station of Call to Action, our station, you know, all over Jacksonville, Florida, 91.3 Brunswick, 91.7 Jacksonville, 91.9 FM. Just had an airplane next to a gentleman from St. Augustine. Listening down there on tape delay to Call to Action today, 8 o'clock tonight, you'll hear this program. Well, let's go.

I want everyone just to do a quick one with me here. Just let's start with Orlando. Now, look, we've got to be quick, gang. We only have a few minutes left. Should Christian music stations play secular music at Christmas time? Yes or no and why? Real quick. Orlando, go fast. I don't think so. We should stick to just the pure Christmas music.

You know, it's all about Christ alone and faith alone. Okay. Okay, Orlando has spoken. He's spoken with conviction. Let's jump up to Lewisburg, North Carolina, and Susan. Susan, you're on Call to Action today.

It was 2% in for Steve Noble. Go ahead, Susan, real quick, your thoughts. Very quickly, the very reason that you touched down your soul is the reason we want to listen to Christian music on Christian radio.

There's enough secularism out there without adding it to our special station. Okay. Wow. Okay, Susan says there's enough out there without adding it. Wow.

Pretty strong. What about Loretta? Loretta, what do you think about this? You know, you've got these Christian music stations playing some secular Christmas music.

They try to bring some folks in. I mean, I can see that perspective, but what say you, Loretta? Personally, I think that no is the answer. They really should not be playing secular music. The Lord says in Romans 2.12, Do not be conformed to the image of this world.

Okay, interesting. People can go right to that scripture and read it for themselves. So how much more do we have to kind of be like the world, to be accepted? It's not okay.

We're supposed to be separated from the world. I gotcha. Okay, you know, but it does get you excited when you're walking through a giant retailer and you hear Hark! The Herald Angels sing Glory to the Newborn King. I mean, that is kind of cool, you have to admit.

Absolutely. It's like when the secular people play, when the secular people play expressly John Wesley lyrics. Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace, hail the son of righteousness, light and life to all he brings, risen with healing in his wings. Amen.

Wow! And you hear that, and you're shopping, and it's crazy, it's hectic, and you just stop and you're thinking, wow, hallelujah, I just had a moment! But what you're saying is you want Christian stations to play what they signed up to play, as opposed to go into the secular charts at Christmas. It's kind of the month of exception in that area, but Loretta has spoken.

We're going to take one more call. God bless you, Loretta. Hey, thank you, did you like that little clip of the first words of Jesus' music? Isn't that strong? I loved it.

So wait until Billingsley comes in. I had this crazy dream last night, and he comes in, and then they all three are singing together. Joseph, Gabriel, and Mary.

The website for the book is firstwordsofjesus.com, and then there's a little—I'll have to put these links up— and there's a little music iTunes link where you can find it there, too. But I hope it's a blessing to you. Merry Christmas. Thank you, Merry Christmas to you. Okay, we've had some great callers. We're going to go to Sherry, listening to us in Charlotte on AM960 and 105.7 FM there, the Truth Network in Charlotte. Sherry, jump on in here. Should Christian music stations play secular music at Christmas time?

Hi there. I don't think that you should play, like, silly stuff, but for instance, there's a song called Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, and it has been conformed to, you know, if the fates allow, when it really originated, if the Lord allows. Interesting. Okay, so that kind of throws in the—okay, very—that would be almost like a crossover, like it's got some Christian nuance in it. Well, you know, Sherry, you have opened—you know, I need three more hours, because you have just opened up an entire conundrum again, a whole other portal into a whole other conundrum. Balance. Balance, you know. I like the word balance, and I think we need to have a lot of grace. But not compromise.

I'm not suggesting compromise. Well, and it's good to have these conversations. I just, very personally, from a very heart level, I guess I just love the celebration of Jesus so much, and I love the sacred Christmas musics, even some of the contemporary sacred Christian Christmas songs, that when I hear Rudolph, or I hear the completely, you know, fun, you know, goofy and nostalgic stuff on a Christian station, it's just kind of like, I've changed my dial before to try to find another Christian station. And then I'll just— I hear you, because you can find that somewhere else, but all I'm saying is some balance and consideration for some of the songs, because some of them can draw people in and, you know, bring them closer to thinking about Christ. Yeah.

You see what I'm saying? And that's what Margie said, our first caller, and listen, anyone excited about sharing the gospel, I'm right there with them. We should all be ambitious about sharing the gospel.

I guess sometimes we need to rethink how to be, you know, to be in the world but not of it, and that's an ongoing tension. Thanks for your call, Sherry, God bless you. You're welcome, thank you, bye-bye. Hey, you know, I want us all to say this, this is kind of the choral unity here, what Mary said in her beautiful prayer. She said, May we magnify God, may we make much of Him this Christmas and all year round. It's about Jesus, it's about Christ. May I remind you that Christians are just fighting today just for people to say Merry Christmas instead of Happy Holidays.

We didn't even go into that politically correct world and that whole issue. But that's a whole other thing. But this is interesting. Stepping away from what a Christian radio station should play, stepping away from what a secular radio station may stumble into, a Hark the Herald Angels Sing, and I get tickled to death when I hear, it's just so funny, I saw on the screen on my digital radio in my car, I was listening to a secular station at Christmas time, and it had the name of this band. It wasn't Poison, but it was like that, you know, this secular band. But it said, you know, it said, you know, one of these, you know, Oh Come Let Us Adore Him, they were singing a sacred song, and so the name of a sacred song was associated with a purely profane band.

And I thought, wow, you know, this is a major conundrum. But may we point to Christ, and may we step back and examine our diets. You are what you eat. You become what you listen to. You know, one of the great philosophers say, you know, whoever writes the music of a culture controls the next generation.

Whoever writes the textbooks. So what kind of diet? Just stepping back, this is a challenge to all of us, to feed ourselves the Word, be listening to redemptive things, be listening to things that push us closer to Christ. When's the last time you just broke out singing a Christian song?

I was with 40 men this morning in a restaurant at our Wednesday in the Word, the whole thing's on Facebook. If you go to my at Stu Epperson, it's on Facebook right now, you can watch this Bible study, we talked about how Mary, her soul magnified the Lord, how everything in her life was to make much of God, to make much of Jesus. Her spirit exalted in God her Savior. Like, you and me, Mary needed a Savior. And I talk about that whole thing, I got pretty deep into theology, but at the end of the thing we all started singing, Oh Come Let Us Adore Him. That's what we'll be doing forever, that's what the angels did, that's what Anna did, Simeon, Joseph, Mary, the wise men, it says they fell down and worshipped him. Just stop, please, from the breakneck speed of the holidays and worship him. Engage, lean into Jesus Christ the Lord, behold him. Let us behold him.

I would bring a lamb if I were a wise man. I would do my part, yet what can I give him? I give my heart. You know, I love this song, brilliant vocalist, these kids, that's the Give Me the Beat band, kids group, under the leadership of Mrs. Frack, they came together and they sang this song, What Can I Give Him, from Rosetti, a brilliant poet who just wrote this song about giving and about Christ. So there's so many songs and stories behind these songs, I'm Stu Epperson, that is from the first Words of Jesus music album. It's a Christian Christmas music album. Just because you hear Christmas music doesn't mean that's Christian music. And the conundrum I've expressed all hour up till now, and will continue to discuss with you, and I'm open to rebuke, I'm open to correction, I'm open to wisdom, I need a lot of that, and really wisdom on how to engage my fellow Christian radio colleagues who do play more music, who don't have to deal with this conundrum as much, who have to deal with this conundrum a lot more than I do, should I say, Christian radio stations that play secular music at Christmas time. What do you mean, Stu? I mean like Bing Crosby, I mean like songs like Chestnuts Roasting, like Jingle Bells and Rudolph and Frosty, which, I love those songs, they're fun, but when I want to listen to Christian, like, I'm a little bit with Elaine who called in earlier, who said, hey, I go to that, I can listen to those songs on all these other stations, but I want to hear Christian Christmas songs, like what I just played, those youth voices you just heard, I'm going to play my favorite, my favorite Christmas song is a Christian song, and it's also my favorite song of all time, and I've got to have it at my funeral somehow performed, it's unbelievable, it's just powerful, we're going to play it on the show today, if we have time, toll free 866-34-TRUTH, Stu Epperson in for Steve Noble, call to action today, Merry Christmas everyone, Stu, with the next couple callers are going to get the first Words of Jesus music album, which is on iStunes, download it, listen to it, be encouraged by it, hopefully it's a blessing to you, and just share the good news of Christmas, the message of the Savior, why did he come?

Why do we do all this stuff? Let me tell you, it's not about that tree, it's about another tree, and it's not about those ornaments, it's about another ornament that hung on that other tree 2,000 years ago, the split time and space in history, the split AD and BC, the cross of Christ, which is showcased on these brand new, I've got one on each arm, I've been giving away like hotcakes, these brand new Merry Christmas, putting the cross back in Christmas, it's neat how the tea, if you go to my Instagram, this Stu Epperson on Instagram, I'll put it on Twitter too, I'll put a picture of this up there, at Stu Epperson, so you can see what this looks like, we're just trying to get more people, and this is why I wrote first Words of Jesus, to get more people to realize there's a cross connected to that cradle, why did he come? With that in mind, let's talk to Joseph in Raleigh on 105.7 FM, the Truth Network there, and AM 1030. Joseph, Joseph you've got a great name for Christmas, Merry Christmas. I appreciate that, Merry Christmas to you as well.

Thank you. I just wanted to call and touch on the playing of secular music on this channel, I strongly believe it should stick with just the Word of God, that is why I tune in, and that is what I expect to hear, and I used to be a bigoted dissenter ten years ago, I found God through one of many depressive times, and just by hearing the message, it makes my day a whole lot better. Okay, Joseph has spoken. I mean, when you're Joseph, and you call any radio show at Christmas time, people need to listen.

I agree. Hey, so cool. Hey, you know what the first words of Joseph were in the Bible? The stepdad of Jesus? What were they? Oh, my soul. They're in Matthew chapter 2. Unbelievable. No, they weren't oh my soul, but it's actually one word, and it's in my book.

Kim, I should leave them out there, shouldn't I? I should just make them struggle, and then make them get the book, but I'm going to tell you, the only recorded word of Joseph, the stepfather of Jesus in the whole Bible, is the name Jesus. It says specifically, it says they brought forth their firstborn son, and it says, and he called him Jesus. That's something. So you've got a great name, man. God bless you.

We're going to send you this music album, first words of Jesus. Appreciate your call. Okay. Could I get one of those cool bracelets that you keep missing? You got it.

Kim, throw a bracelet in for Joseph. We're going to throw one in for you, man. Fantastic. I really appreciate it, thanks for having me. Yes, sir, good to hear from you. Spread the word about Christian radio, you know, tell all your friends out there, I really appreciate that. Good to hear from Joseph.

I mean, you can't not take a call from Joseph, but he took the hard line. He's like, man, I want to hear the word. I don't want to hear that secular stuff. But what about those that want to be evangelistic? What about those that want to be kind of casting the net out there?

Throw a little chestnuts roasting or throw a little, you know, over the river and through the woods, you know, just to kind of get the unbelievers to listen, then, you know, bring that rock hook of, that right hook of joy to the world. Let's see what Brandi says. Brandi, you're on call to action today. Stu Epperson in for Steve Noble and Merry Christmas, Brandi.

Merry Christmas to you. So yes, I agree with Elaine and you and the last caller. I want nothing but Christ-centered music. Music is just so powerful anyway, and some days just to get in the car after a long day, I need, and I won't, but I need desperately to hear from God and to be near him, and I do that so often in my car for music. I also think of maybe new believers who, it's a missed opportunity when they get in and there's secular music, and it's a missed opportunity to pour the gospel in through music, and yeah, it would sadden me to get in my car and have secular music on. So if you turn the Truth Network on, and you turn on, you know, your favorite Truth station anywhere, and you heard, you better watch out, you better not pout, and you heard a whole secular Christmas song, would that kind of be like, wait a second, would that be like a little bit of discombobulation there for you?

It would, it would be disappointing for me. Okay, well I appreciate your honesty. Now in a little bit, I'm going to share the statement made to me directly by a fellow Christian radio man who would disagree with you, Brandi, but I really appreciate your perspective, okay? Thanks for calling in, and we're sending you some music. We're sending you some first words of Jesus.

The whole music album is coming your way. Thank you, have a Merry Christmas. God bless you. Okay, good to hear from Brandi, and we're going to talk to Pamela, who's been hanging on for some time, another Raleigh, North Carolina caller. I tell you, Raleigh is on fire for Christmas today. Our toll-free number is 866-342-866-348-7884 if you want to call the Steve Noble Call to Action show and talk to Stu Epperson, buddies of Steve Noble, filling in for Steve was desperate.

He had to find someone, and he got to the bottom of the barrel, he found me, he said, Stu, go in there and talk in the mic. And we're going to talk to Pamela right now about the Christmas conundrum. Should Christian stations play secular music at Christmas time? Pamela, what say you?

Hello, I say no way. It grieves me like nobody's business. Oh wow. In December, I don't even listen to the Christian radio stations that much when I know there's music, I'll listen to the preaching in the morning, and I avoid it because it grieves me like nothing else.

No kidding. It has nothing to do, a secular garbage has nothing to do with Christ, and I don't think anything should be sugar-coated or trying to put a carrot out there. We're supposed to speak truth, and Santa Claus and all that other stuff has nothing to do with Christ and the truth and Christmas, and the world's just gotten too covered up in all the secular stuff and compromising, and I think it's wrong. Okay, now let me just tell you, yesterday at lunch, a gentleman looked over at me who was a guy I have a high regard for, I love this guy, and he's been a good mentor to me. And as soon as I said to him, similar to what you just said, Pamela, although I didn't use the strong words you used, but I did. Well, I didn't have done that. Well, listen, I appreciate you sharing your heart. I love to hear the no-filter of your heart. But he looked at me and he said, Well, Stu, you are a middle-aged man, and you have a deep theological grid, so of course you're going to not like that stuff.

And he said that Christian stations, that are music stations, play it in order to, again, kind of broaden their reach and create a nostalgia so that they can get more people to listen to the Christian music, so they'll use the secular Christmas as a way. But I don't agree with him. It wasn't an angry conversation.

It was very diplomatic, and he's a good friend. But I'm a little more Pamela, I think, with you, but let's get some other folks in here. Thanks for your call. God bless you. Thank you. You take care. I think if we have any left, we're going to send you something here, so make sure we get your address, okay? God bless you. This is the Truth Network.