Music in the Christian Home (Part 2)

There are four types of events describing the usage of music in the Bible.

1. Events of genuine worship where God is exalted and praised for Who He is and what He has done.  These include; Exodus 15:1, Judges 5:1, and Acts 16:25.
2. Events of pagan worship of idolatry, such as Exodus 32 and Daniel 3:5.
3. Celebration events such as Luke 18:25.
4. Carnal events that have nothing to do but feed the flesh.  Matthew 14:6 is an event where a man ultimately loses his life because of dance, assumed to music, feeding the flesh.

But the one thing you will not find in any of these passages is what style of music was being played.  We can assume certain things but we cannot know for certain as the Bible does not tell us.  Clearly the purpose and lyrics would be different in each of these cases but the style of music is unlisted in each event.

I have been in ministry now for over 28 years with the first nearly 10 years as youth pastor, and of course, we know that youth pastors are notorious for having to deal with music as an issue.  Also my family sings and has even produced two family CD’s and a coming EP by our oldest daughter with evangelist/musician Ben Everson.  I say this to clarify that music is not just one of many topics I cover as a pastor but it is a huge part of who our family is and what our family does in ministry.  Music is important to us and understanding the reasons for our music is important to us as well.

Music is also one of the most controversial and divisive topics in Christianity to today, even more so than doctrine in some groups.  As an example, if you were to walk for the first time into a seemingly fundamental church today and saw a drum set and electric guitar in the front there would be an immediate thought of “What kind of church have I come into?”  Their presence in the auditorium would give immediate pause to the church’s doctrine and standards.  We would think that before we even hear how they are used.  Yet our judgement would be based upon a perception of the instrument and their usage.  However, it is not the instrument alone that is the issue but how it is played and what it represents that really is the issue.  For instance, a drum plays well in a military band and an electric guitar is often used to electronically embed a harmless rhythm line into a song.  But because we also know that these instruments can also play something far more sinister as well we immediately judge the church based upon the instrument before we even see how it is used.  And unfortunately in most cases our “pre-judgement” is often accurate as most churches that have these instruments in the fore front have compromised their standards, but its the heart of the issue I am trying to point out here.

Please do not misunderstand me - I AM OPPOSED TO UNGODLY MUSIC!!!!  The world’s version of music has little do with godliness and should not be brought into the worship of our God.  But we must be honest enough to say that the exact style of music played in the Bible is not given to us and thus we are having to make a certain level of a judgment call about it.  With some of that judgement call being based upon our personal preference or some on our previous training of the issue of music.  Yet we cannot use our personal preferences to set our standard for others and we should not take a stand in our churches without the Bible as our basis.  

For instance, I personally do not like the sound of blue grass music and so do not listen to it all, but I cannot say that blue grass is ungodly and wicked.  I simply do not play it or listen to it and when I am in a church service where it is being played I am not as “blessed” by it as those around me.  Another example would be that I do not care for certain styles of southern gospel music either, but once again I will not preach against it based upon my preference.  I have many dear friends in ministry that LOVE southern gospel music and have it in their church at every opportunity.  Yet to my ear it is finger nails against a chalkboard - BUT IT IS NOT UNBIBLICAL - just unpalatable to me.  I cannot and will not preach against southern gospel based on that preference.

So where do we go with the subject of music and our worship?

First and foremost the question must be answered - Why do I listen to the music that I listen to?  The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 10:31 “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.”  But does that mean that ALL our music must be spiritual?  If that is the case then songs such as “Happy Birthday to You” or “The ABC Song” must never be sung again as they make no mention of God or His Word.  What 1 Corinthians 10:31 is speaking of is that whatever we do must be something that does not detract away from the glory of God or pulls us into a life of rebellion against His holiness and glory.

If we are going to begin to understand the issue of music in our homes it must be with the right foundation of the Word of God’s view of the issue.  When you understand that the style of music is not directly given in the Bible, then it is easy to comprehend that we are going to make our music decisions based on biblical principles not biblical directives.  Thus each of us are going to have to give an account as the Holy Spirit has led us and we must make our decisions based off of that truth and not based on a “this song is godly” and “this song is not godly” mindset.

Again, please do not leave this post thinking that I am giving a license to listen to whatever you want, as that is not the case.  However I have no shame in saying that I cannot tell exactly which style of music to listen but also add that you need to realize that you are going to give an account for whatever you listen to before an Almighty Holy God and there is music out there that clearly grieves Him and His holiness.  So do you want to stand before this God of holiness having grieved Him by your fleshly style of music?  That is your call not mine and that is my point.

There are however some biblical principle points we should consider about music and those are the subject of the next post…coming soon.