332 – Music in the Church

SEMESTER 2

332 – Music in the Church

BIBLE INSTITUTE OF CORRESPONDENCE

COURSE:  ECCLESIOLOGY II LESSON # 32
MUSIC IN THE CHURCH

INTRODUCTION:

1. There are few areas of church practice which beget more controversy than music.
2. Scripture is extremely scarce on this subject.
3. For this reason, personal taste often prevails and becomes the criteria of interpretation of relevant Scripture.
4. Let us see if we can lay a scriptural foundation for church music.

I. THE PROPRIETY OF CHURCH MUSIC (HEB. 2:12)

1. We have no direct command to sing in the church.
2. We do, however, have a pattern for it and instruction in it.

i. Ps. 100:2, Ps. 126:2, Ps. 7:17, Ps. 9:2 and 11, Ps. 21:13, Mat. 26:30, and dozens of others.
ii. The instruction in it is found in such verses as I Cor. 14:15, Eph. 5:19 and Col. 3:16.

II. THE PURPOSE OF MUSIC IN THE CHURCH

1. In the Old Testament it was for the purpose of praise.
2. In the New Testament it is always for the purpose of praise.
3. It is also a vehicle of testimony which leads others to a spirit of praise. (Acts 16:25)

Note: Even though the only place where we have a direct record of music in the church is followed by the Lord’s Table (Mat. 26:30, Mk. 14:26), the implications and instructions make the practice unquestionable.

III. SOME PROBLEMS THAT FLOW OUT OF MUSIC

1. It is an emotional release, and thus can be wrong and yet humanly enjoyable.
2. It is at least as common and usable in heathenism as in Christianity.
3. The very combination of the above makes music usable for Satan in infiltrating Christianity with heathenism.
4. It is an enjoyable activity, both by spectator and participant, and thus “performance” easily enters.
5. By this means, pride, jealousy and emulation enter in.
6. Since it involves both message and music, the message can easily give way to the music, then the latter has become a snare.

IV. THE PRE-EMINENT ISSUE (BIBLICAL SOUNDNESS)

1. Many feel religiously “moved” by fast, slow, country, classical, etc. types of music and thus count their favorite style spiritual as compared to that which does not suit their taste.
2. God gives melody, harmony and rhythm to move our hearts and thus all are (in their proper form) usable.
3. They are all, however, to adorn and beautify the message.
4. When this is reversed and the message becomes ignored because of, or made acceptable by the beauty of the music, God is not pleased.
5. Pre-eminent above all is the biblical content and soundness of the message.
6. Never allow your culture or taste to be the criteria which condemns or justifies any given type of church music.
7. Yet we should realize that some kinds of music are by their nature unadaptable to Christian use.

V. MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS IN THE CHURCH

1. It is held by Campbellism and a few other sects that instrumen­tal music is not biblically acceptable in church. Their reasons are two:

i. No scriptural command to use them.
ii. Interpretations of Scriptures which they feel forbid them.

2. Consider the Scriptures they count to forbid them. (Eph. 5:19, Col. 3:16) The objections to this are as follows:

i. That it is to be “in your heart,” does not specifically exclude instruments.
ii. If “in the heart” did exclude other manners it would also exclude words, books, etc.

3. Consider patterns and implications to the contrary.

i. Congregational worship in the Old Testament was fre­quently accompanied by music.
ii. The union of understandability of song and instrument in I Cor. 14:6-15.