Hi Jay. Welcome to the site.You raise some frequently raised points. I'd like to give you some "food for thought".
There is not one scripture that describes what style of music God likes or dislikes. The Bible is silent on that subject. Disagreements about worship style arise between individuals, denominations, etc. but they are personal disagreements, not theological disagreements. Since the scriptures do not indicate what kind of music God likes or dislikes, there is no scriptural basis to say one style of music is better or worse than another. If the lyrical message honors God, glorifies God, praises God, and gives Him His due, the music is worship, regardless of the style of music.
In the old testament, when David danced through the streets in worship, Saul's daughter criticized him. David rebuked her, saying he would become even more undignified if it pleased the Lord. How did God respond to this? He cursed Saul's daughter. God had no problem with David dancing in his underwear, but God was displeased with Saul's daughter for criticizing David. Do you have a heart to be like David or Saul's daughter?
The point here is that each one of us worship in our own way, and it is a personal choice, in response to God. Some may prefer traditional hymns, others contemporary praise (what you are calling a "rock concert"). Some may respond to lively music while others prefer a more intimate atmosphere. Worship is for the Lord. Again there is not one scripture that describes music being used to entertain the Lord's people in the Temple. Just because a worship style is contemporary does not automatically indicate that it is entertainment or that the heart of the performer is focused on entertaining. If you criticize a worshipper unjustly, you have responded exactly like Saul's daughter. In light of how God responded to her, you should give careful consideration before you accuse someone of ungodly worship.
Just because a church is large, does not automatically indicate that they have drifted from Christ's message. The size of a church is meaningless. The truth or absence of truth in the message is where the rubber meets the road. The witness of the congregation is what matters. In Acts, we see huge numbers of people being drawn to the Lord. Did the number of people responding to the Word invalidate it? Hardly. When Soloman built the temple did he build a small one? No, he called for the finest craftsmen, and clearly wanted the best of everything in order to honor the Lord. I am not suggesting that only huge churches honor the Lord, but clearly there is nothing wrong with building an appropriate house of worship.
Jay, if you don't like contemporary worship music, then find a church that has music you relate and respond to. I just want to encourage you to be slow to criticize a church just because they are large, or because they use a style of music that you don't care for. There will be people in heaven that responded to Hip-Hop, Rock, Classical, what-have-you. What will you do then? Go to another heaven?
Used by churches all over the world to help teach worship, the Experiencing Worship study can help your worship team too.
Your team will learn why we worship and gain a better understanding of how to worship.
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This is the debut album by EXW friend Paul Langford. Paul is a Chicago based singer, arranger, keyboardist, producer and conductor. Paul has a career that spans 14 years. Paul's work includes arranging for groups like GLAD, Voices of Liberty, VoiceTrek, The Chicago based "Caroling Party" and Day of Discovery Singers. His arranging has appeared on recordings side by side with greats like Gene Puerling and David Maddux, and he has sung with Don Shelton, Bonnie Herman and Bob Bowker, among others.