Steve Knight - You’ve been pretty critical of Christian artists/musicians who have chosen the route of “mainstream” success (whether as a CCM artist or otherwise), rather than making the kinds of sacrifices you have made to use those gifts and talents for evangelism. First, isn’t there something important about being “culturally relevant” (i.e., contextualization)? I mean, NLM would not be able to reach its audience without performing high-quality music in a particular popular style/genre with a stage show that is creative and artful, right?

David Pierce - I believe that Christian artists should not be normal artists. They should defy the conventions of the typical art scene and play by an entirely different set of rules than the world does. Many Christian artists say they want to be radical for Jesus, but they follow the same set of rules as the world. If you truly want to be “radical” in a way that will allow you to see God’s power, you are going to have to go against conventional wisdom.

I think that one of the problems with most Christian artists is that they spend too much time honing their skills or practicing their instruments.

Sometimes I feel like there are more bands than people. There are millions of talented musicians and artists in the world. That is why it is so foolish to believe that the key to “success” is making the best music or producing the best art possible. The key is knowing Jesus.

For example, if you are in a band, what if you made a commitment that for every hour you practiced, you would spend an hour seeking Jesus? What would happen to a band like that? I don’t mean doing this in a labored way, as if prayer is a burden you have to carry. I mean recognizing that God is with you and that he hears you, and then asking him to move.

Hebrews 11:6 says, “… without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

I think the typical band figures, we’re a Christian band, so we should pray before we rehearse. So they pray, “Jesus, help us to have a good practice!” And then they practice for about four hours. Afterwards, if they are really radical, they might say, “Thank you, Jesus, for giving us a good practice.”

But instead, I want to challenge you to start really seeking God. Put a map of the world on the floor, and pray, “Lord, give me a place to go.” Don’t limit him; really seek what he might want. Then pray for the clubs or galleries or publications that you think he wants you to approach. Pray as much as you paint, or write, or film, or practice. I think this would revolutionize the Christian art scene.

Steve Knight - For the past 20 years you’ve pioneered this particular type of music evangelism, and now you’re passing along this charge to a new generation of musicians/artists through the 3-month Steiger Radical Missions and Leadership Training School and through the new Evangelistic Artists Association. You’ve also got a new book written directly at Christian artists/creatives. What can you tell us about that? And to those Christian musicians and artists who might be reading this, what would you say to challenge and encourage them toward mission? How can they get involved with Steiger and take the next steps toward using their musical/artistic talents for a missional purpose?

David Pierce - Before I talk about how you can be involved with Steiger, I want to ask this question to everyone reading this: do you want a normal life or a revolutionary life?

Jesus tells us that there is a narrow road that leads to life and a wide road that leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13-14). I believe that this is not only a message to those who don’t believe in Jesus, but also to those of us who do. For believers, there is a narrow road, and there is a wide road. I think you can believe in Jesus and still take the wide road—be a nice Christian guy, do the normal things—and God still loves you. He doesn’t love us because of what we do; he loves us because he loves us. But I think he looks at us and says, “I have another road you can take. It is a narrow road, it’s difficult, and it’s going to cost you everything. But it’s the best.”

I believe that God would say to many of you reading this, “Take the narrow road.” Be willing to be truly radical and not be ashamed to tell people the truth. Be willing to pay the price and live the revolutionary life you were created for.

One day I was listening to the radio, and a well-known Christian band was being interviewed on a popular station. This band had achieved considerable success in the secular music scene. The interviewer asked the singer of the band where he got his inspiration. It was as though he was setting him up to talk about his faith in God. The singer in the band responded by saying, “I know some people would say we’re a Christian band, but we’re not.” Then he said he got his inspiration from different social issues and life experiences. And as he spoke, it was as if I heard a voice saying, “If you deny me before men, I will deny you before my father in heaven” (Matthew 10:33).

How bad will it get before we open our mouths? How many people will have to die? How desperate does it have to become? How can we be silent when all day long, people hear nothing but lies, from morning until night—every time they turn on the television, every time they open the newspaper, every day they go to school. All they hear is lies. And those of us who are followers of Jesus … who have an answer for the desperation in people’s hearts, for the cries deep in the souls of those who want to believe there is some purpose to life but who are being destroyed by the world’s lies … how can we be silent? How can we act as if it’s not our responsibility to tell them that there is a Savior, that there is a way out? If God has given us a platform, do we not have a responsibility to rescue as many people as we can? God have mercy on our souls if we choose to remain silent.

Now, there are many ways to be involved with Steiger. If you are an artist who feels that God has called you to use your God-given talent to bring the Gospel message to the secular world, I would encourage you to be involved with our new Association of Evangelistic Artists. The Association exists to challenge, train and equip young evangelistic artists to boldly and effectively share the gospel outside the church using music and art. There is going to be a free two-day seminar on October 1st and 2nd at Bethel University in Minneapolis. If you are interested in attending, please contact Aaron at Este endereço de e-mail está sendo protegido de spam, você precisa de Javascript habilitado para vê-lo .

In addition, we have a 3-month training school in New Zealand for those who want to work with Steiger. Check out our website – www.steiger.org – for more information about Steiger or check out - http://timetoact.steiger.org - for more information about No Longer Music. 
 

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