America’s Sunday gatherings are steadily being recast as experiences—concerts, theatrical showcases, emotion‑driven productions. Lights, videos, skits, secular songs, feel‑good sermons: churches are becoming “studios,” not sanctuaries. As a Reformed Baptist, I believe this is not only unhealthy—it is a profound theological crisis. This article is a call to revival: for pastors to reclaim biblical worship, and for believers to demand nothing less than the unapologetic, expository preaching of Christ crucified. Our souls—and the church—are at stake.

From Chapel to Concert Arena

1. The “Experience” Gospel: What It Promises—and What It Delivers

Marketing agencies now advise churches to design “worship experiences” that revolve around:

• Emotional spectacle: Lights, cameras, stage smoke, social media walls.
• Cultural relevance: Broadway‑style skits, secular pop covers, evening coffee shops.
• User‑centric worship design: Surveys, mood music, multisensory worship tracks.

The promise? Engagement. Vibrancy. Numbers‑boosting appeal. But the result? The Gospel becomes a feeling, not a truth. Worship becomes an event, not a covenantal assembly. Our people leave addicted to emotional highs, starving for spiritual substance—and the next “experience.”

2. Worship or Consumerism?

A church built to impress becomes a marketplace of spiritual consumerism. When churches segment their services—“Families & Coffee,” “College Night,” “Kids Glorified”—attendance is measured in ticket sales: did people like it? Did it go viral?

This flips biblical truth on its head. Worship is a sacrifice. It is paradoxically both terrifying and tender (Hebrews 12:28–29). But if attracting people is the measure of success, worship becomes a product—and the people, consumers.

Skits, Acts & the Slippery Slope of Syncretism

1. Theatrics as Scripture?

Cross‑cultural communication is important—stories engage. But when skits approach Broadway‑level production, we must question: are we portraying Scripture, or borrowing from the world?

Take the increasingly popular “biblical drama”—actors in moonlit costumes recounting Old Testament stories with rock‑opera bite. Beautiful, perhaps. But do they amplify God’s Word, or dilute it? Do the spotlight and the script communicate text‑driven truth or emotional fabrication?

2. Drift into Demonic Mimicry

This is not mere hyperbole. In an alarming number of churches, congregants recall seeing:

• Skits depicting demonic possession, ritual exorcisms, gothic costumes.
• Secular comedic routines rebranded with Christian morals.
• Orchestral film‑score music and ambient drone using minor keys—borrowed directly from occult media.

Such appropriation of occult tropes reflects a deep theological confusion: believing that truth can be communicated by any form if it “reaches people.” The Scriptures forbid syncretism—yeast spreads (1 Corinthians 5:6). Drama plus Gospel is not juxtaposition—it’s fusion. And fusion erodes sanctity.

When Doctrine Bows to Demand

1. The Emotional Gospel

Contemporary sermons often prioritize:

• “Be the best YOU.”
• “Unlock your purpose.”
• “Your best life now!”

A devotional gospel, sure—but not the multi‑faceted, hard‑hitting message of the prophets or apostles. Where is preaching on sin? On sovereign grace? On eternal judgment? On Christ’s substitutionary atonement?

Reformed theology has always insisted the heavens declare the glory of God—but they also demand repentance. We cannot baptize the culture’s value system and call it Gospel.

2. The Death of Expository Preaching

In place of deep, verse‑by‑verse exposition, we find:

• Topical-driven sermons: “Blessings for the Kid at Heart,” “How to Build Your Instagram Brand Christianly.”
• Pop‑psychology: “Overcoming your limiting beliefs,” “Three ways to conquer anxiety”—without one mention of sanctification through suffering, repentance, sanctifying grace.

Expository preaching shapes every element of the service—from hymns to prayers to doxologies. Without it, faith is untethered from Scripture.

Consequences of a Performance‑Driven Church

1. Spiritual Addiction

Believers become worship junkies, longing for emotional fix. When a series of lit candles doesn’t evoke tears, they feel ‘dry.’ When preaching challenges them intellectually, they tune out. Worse—they begin to associate God with emotional thrills, not holiness and truth.

2. Shallow Resilience

Faith that is felt but not understood doesn’t stand up to disappointment. When financial loss hits, health crises come, award retraction occurs—such believers may abandon Christ, because their faith was built on mood boards, not doctrines.

3. False Assurance

If salvation is nearly always presented as a warm feeling or a moment of “trying,” some may assume they’re saved because they felt good. But true conversion is a radical regeneration, sovereignly wrought—testable by repentance, faith, perseverance.

4. Cultural Fossilization

Theologically shallow, culturally meshed churches cannot stand as salt and light. They have forfeited their prophetic voice, their moral distinctiveness. When the world screams injustice or false teaching, such churches only murmur, unwilling to challenge deviation.

Real‑World Warning Signs: Not Without Precedent

1. National “Praise Around the Flagpole” Events

In 2025, numerous patriotic‑styled worship rallies arranged around literal flag‑raising ceremonies—some paired with MAGA symbolism, horns, and emotive crowds chanting Christian slogans. In many cases, theology receded behind spectacle. The event became the point—not the proclamation of Christ and call to repentance.

2. Demonic Disclaimer?

Some churches hosted Halloween “exorcism dramatizations” in their foyers, with stage fog, “fright nights,” and neon cross projections—justifying it as “evangelistic outreach.” While well‑intentioned, the approach opened doors to occult aesthetics far more than scriptural evangelism, resembling secular haunted house conventions rather than missions rooted in Spirit‑empowered preaching.

3. “Feel Good” Urban Skits

In cities like Charlotte and Dallas, multi‑ethnic churches produced comedy sketches mixing secular music hits (like Drake and Billie Eilish) with Christian slogans. Shared on TikTok with thousands of views. But do views win souls? Or trivialize the Gospel?

These are not straw men—they are echoing across America, and we must face them with clear theological conviction.

The Reformed Baptist Response

1. Re‑Anchor Worship in Word

• Return to expositional sermons rooted in Scripture.
• Encourage mutual exhortation from bedside to pew.
• Choose corporate singing that is lyrically rich, theologically deep—it doesn’t need a light show.

2. Rest on Sola Scriptura

Every creative element—dramatic, musical, visual—must be judged by Scripture. Is it supporting truth, or obscuring it? Are we drawing congregants to Christ, or to feelings?

3. Re‑Educate the Congregation

We must preach and teach why doctrine matters:

• Total Depravity—why we need Holy Spirit rescue.
• Justification by Faith Alone—why we can’t earn it.
• Substitutionary Atonement—why Christ’s blood is not optional.

4. Redefine ‘Engagement’

True gospel engagement is not based on applause or click‑throughs—it’s evidenced by transformed lives, membership covenant keeping, depth of prayer, sacrificial sacrament, and Gospel‑driven relationships.

5. Resist and Remedy

• When a pastor uses secular media tropes, elders must intervene biblically.
• When a skit or dramatization borders on occult imagery, stop it immediately—and preach why it was wrong.
• When music is borrowed wholesale from the world with pop‑culture lyrics replacing gospel lyrics—replace it with psalms, hymns, spiritual songs.

Toward a Movement, Not a Moment

This impulse to perform church isn’t going away—in fact, it’s spreading. Yet Reformed Baptists across America are already reversing this trend: returning to expository preaching, high‑text hymns, robust catechesis, and spiritually rigorous worship services.

This must be our moment. Let us not replicate week’s ago attention, likes, or dollars. Let’s adopt Solomon’s wisdom:

“Guard your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” (Proverbs 4:23 ESV)

And Paul’s command:

“Let all things be done decently and in order.” (1 Corinthians 14:40 ESV)

Beloved church, the warning is not against celebration—it is against substitution. Against a masquerade called worship, informed by the world, sanitized of doctrine, and hollowed of depth.

We must reclaim our identity:

• Church is not a platform—it is a people.
• Worship is not a show—it is a sacrifice.
• The pulpit is not a stage—it is the seat of heralding divine truth—every word measured by Scripture, every sentence spoken in trembling reverence.

Let us preach Christ. Let us live in obedience. Let us build the church on apostles’ and prophets’ foundation—now and forever. May we be known by people as those who carry the Word, not those who sell a show. And may generations yet unborn know the power of the once-for-all, unrepeatable, substantive Gospel proclaimed with vigor, reverence, and Scripture‑rooted conviction.

Join the Conversation

Feel led to share this? Forward it. Discuss repentance. Pray. Ask your pastor:

• Are we seeking approval—or pursue holiness?
• Does our worship bind our hearts to Scripture? Or just to a buzz?
• How does our music reinforce doctrine—and not dilute it?

Let this be the spark in your church—a catalyst for careful reformation and Gospel‑driven devotion.