Confessions of a "Crossover" Artist
This in an article originally published in the Fall 1996 issue of "the Knews"
It is reprinted here by permission of the author (me)

If you received this newsletter in the mail, chances are you signed up when you heard me perform in Church or a Christian coffeehouse, and you know me as a “Christian musician”, a “Gospel singer”, or as a “music minister.” To many of you, however, I am simply a “folksinger” or a “songwriter/guitarist.” If you know me or have listened to my songs, you know that I am also a Christian. This article is intended to clarify my musical “mission” to those who wonder if I am a “Christian musician” or merely a “musician who happens to be a Christian.” (If the distinction escapes you, or if you’re asking yourself “who cares?”, you may want to skip the rest of this article.)

As you can see from my schedule, my performances are not restricted to churches; I share my music whenever possible in secular clubs and coffeehouses as well. When singing in churches, I take advantage of the platform to exhort Christians to devote themselves more fully to Christ, to live their faith on a daily basis, to seek to know God more deeply through prayer and Bible reading. I use the Word of God together with music and personal observations to preach Jesus as the only hope of the world.

My "secular" performances, however, are somewhat different. I use fewer "religious" songs, and I rarely do anything that resembles “preaching”. I have recently been challenged in this regarding my motives. Some feel that by so doing I am compromising my faith in exchange for personal glory, or even that I am a hypocrite (that I am not the same person on a secular stage that I am in church). They imply that if I were a real minister I would be preaching the same way at Downtown Grounds Coffeehouse that I do at First Baptist Church.

As for the charge of glory-seeking, I admit I am not immune to the seductions of pride and selfishness - I spend a great deal of time examining my own motives and guarding against temptation. Of course I love what I do - nothing gives me the joy and satisfaction I get from pouring my heart out through my music, but I really don’t care if I get rich or famous; it’s the sharing that fills me. As for the charge of hypocrisy, I invite you to examine my life. Observe how I behave in church, at home, at work, or on the street. You won’t find perfection, mind you, I make plenty of mistakes, but if you see me compromising my values or my personal integrity, or engaging in activities that are inconsistent with what I claim to believe, I give you permission to call me to task. Honest, loving correction offered by a friend should be welcomed by anyone who wants to grow.

As to why I handle my so-called secular concerts differently, there are lots of reasons. For one, it simply makes sense to adapt your message to the needs of your audience. “Let your light shine before men”(Matt 5:16) does not mean we are to grab people on the street and command them to repent, it means to display Christ by the example of our behavior. St. James wrote, "Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom. ...the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy; and the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”(James 3:13,17-18) Not only do I question the value of “in-your-face evangelism" in such settings, I feel that it would be unethical for me to force-feed my faith to people who came expecting to be entertained. Since I am hired by such venues to provide entertainment, I believe my commitment to Christ requires me to provide the best quality entertainment I can.

I frequently use popular "secular" songs in my performances. Many have positive messages that are entirely consistent with Biblical truth, and popular music enables me to “connect” emotionally with an audience. As far as my original material is concerned, some of the songs I write are strongly evangelistic, but many are simply reflections of my life, inspired by experiences I’ve had and people I’ve met. All, however, are a natural outgrowth of the person I am inside, permeated with the essence of the Spirit that gives me life. (Are they then, some of you may ask, Christian or secular songs? You may ask, but I won’t bother answering.)

In the process of moving into the secular folk music scene, I have been blessed to make some wonderful friendships. Many of these friends are not evangelical Christians. Of course my desire for them is that they come to know the faith that has changed my life, but for me to push it upon them too strongly would merely damage my credibility, both as a friend and as a musician. To do so would appear condescending (i.e. am I genuinely interested in their friendship or are they just my church project?), and reinforce the impression of us “born-again’s” as being one-dimensional clones. There are few things uglier than a holier-than-thou Christian. I’ve heard it said, and it bears repeating: “They won’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.” The words that Jesus spoke are life and truth, but they are worthless in my mouth unless I demonstrate them with my life. To me, that infers a commitment to caring for people and valuing their friendship, regardless of whether or not they ever embrace the Gospel that means so much to me.

Some would object that "whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God"(James 4:4), and “Love not the world, nor the things of the world”(I Jn.2:15) To this I respond, “...God loved the world so much that he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in him will not die, but have eternal life”(Jn.3:16) (By the way, the Greek word kosmos, translated “world” in the aforementioned passages, refers to the corrupt “world system”, not the world’s people.) Jesus was willing to lay his life down, not because he figured X number of people would be converted, but because of love. He died for me, knowing that I might never return his love. “His love was demonstrated in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us”(Rom.5:8) Should I not follow his example? Should I not touch as many people as I can with my life, making friends when possible, and yes, sharing my faith when the opportunity presents itself, and loving regardless of the result?

Finally, I have a conviction that I think is worth mentioning. As an artist, I wholehearted reject the notion that music and the arts are valid only when used as an evangelism tool. God has endowed many people with creative talents simply so they can beautify the world with their creative expressions - in other words, I believe in art for art’s own sake (at least insofar as it is not intentionally offensive). How dull the world would be without our Mozarts, our John Phillip Sousas, our Rembrandts, and our Bob Dylans. When artists create, they mirror God’s own creativity, and He is glorified.

For those of you who disagree and/or disapprove, I acknowledge your concerns, and I am not offended by your challenges. As my desire is to live my life for Jesus and to serve him as perfectly as I can, I make myself accountable to you as I have to God and to the leadership of my church. If you think I “need prayer”, you’re absolutely right. Please pray for me, earnestly and often.

©1996 Kyle Knapp - all rights reserved