Christian music has shaped Western Civilization.  Our modern music theory can be traced back to the chants systematized by Pope Gregory, and the Jewish and early Christian antiphonal songs that proceeded them.  For centuries, the church commissioned some of the greatest works ever composed.  Rock and Roll, one of the few art forms that the U.S. can take credit for, can easily be traced back through R & B, to gospel to and African American spirituals.

Something changed in the last few decades.  When it comes to pop music, the church stopped creating art, and started trying to market knock-offs of mainstream radio.

According to Michael Frost, the church is in exile.  It needs “songs of revolution,” music that tells the story of our true home, the world to come. We have to start writing the kind of songs that inspire movements.

The music the church needs will grow out of artists embedded in the church, who are compelled to tell their own story, and dream of God’s kingdom. It will be honest about our fallen nature and the messiness of the world. It will transcend the love songs of the radio and the praise chants of the last generation. It won’t always be clean, and it won’t always sound like something a good Christian should say.

I’ll be honest. There’s very little Christian music I find listenable. Even less of it can be called “songs of revolution,” the type of music, that a truly counter-cultural, missional church will need. Here are 10 songs that I believe are a step in the right direction.

What songs would you add to this list?

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