In an interview with Premier Christianity magazine, the pastor who founded Red Letter Christians said believers are too keen to sing about God's control and power and forget that he actually gave up that control and power on the cross.
"I have problems with a lot of the new worship music," he said. "I think it's wonderful that it's captured the music that young people can relate to and they get into it with great love and emotion. But compare 'My God reigns' with the old hymns which say: 'Jesus shall reign' - it's future tense, not present tense."
Continuing the point, he said: "The Hallelujah Chorus never says: 'God is in control'. It says: 'The kingdoms of this world will (when the second coming occurs) become the kingdoms of our God and he shall reign forever and ever hallelujah'.
"I'm a sociologist by trade. A basic sociological principle is you can't express love and power at the same time. Whenever you love, you lose power. Love makes you vulnerable.
"We have a God who loves us so much he was willing to become vulnerable."
Tony Campolo is visiting the UK for a tour with the Christian group Urban Change Makers.
You can hear a full interview with Tony Campolo on the Premier Christianity podcast.
Stay up to date with the latest news stories from a Christian perspective. Sign up to our daily newsletter and receive more stories like this straight to your inbox every morning.