AN OLD APOSTASY IN A NEW AGE--4

True worship is described by Jesus in John 4:24: “God is spirit; and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”

God—The Object of our worship
In Spirit—The Attitude of our worship (sincerely; from the heart)
In Truth—The Standard of our worship (God’s Word)

We can offer up vain worship, according to Matthew 15:8-9: “This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” Instrumental music is according to the commandments of men; thus, our worship would be in vain if we used it and taught that it would be OK to use it.

Let’s consider some arguments made in favor of it.

“The Bible does not say, ‘Thou shalt not use instrumental music.’”

1. Neither does it say, “Thou shalt not put pizza and Coca-Cola on the Lord’s Table.” We serve God by what he says in his Word.
2. As we saw earlier in this series, the command to do a specific thing excludes the doing of another. God commanded the Israelites, “kill a lamb in the Passover.” He did not have to say, “Thou shalt not kill a pig.”
3. When God commands us to sing, playing an instrument is excluded. He said, “Sing.”

“Instrumental music is an aid, like a song book, communion cups, or a microphone.”

1. When God specifies a thing to be done, whatever is needed to obey him that does not change the nature of the thing is authorized—like communion cups in the Lord’s Supper, or a microphone to be able to better hear those who lead worship.
2. He commands us to sing; the songbook provides words and does not change the nature of the command.
3. Instrumental music brings in another kind of music altogether, and changes the nature of what is done.

“They used instrumental music in the Old Testament.”

1. They also circumcised their male children, kept the Passover feast, offered up animal sacrifices, and executed those who broke the Sabbath.
2. We do not serve God today under the Law of Moses.
3. (Galatians 5:1-4) “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.”

“Instrumental music will be in heaven.” Revelation 14:2, 3 says, “And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders.”

1. What did John hear? “A voice.”
2. What were they doing? “They were singing.”
3. What did it sound like? “Harpists harping with their harps.”
4. There will be babies in heaven; can we baptize babies into the church?
5. We will be judged by what we do on earth in worship; not what might happen in heaven.

AN OLD APOSTASY IN A NEW AGE--3

What does the New Testament say about music in worship? Matthew 26:30 states, “And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.” In Acts 16:25, “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.” Paul writes in Romans 15:9, “And in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, ‘Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.’” 1 Corinthians 14:15 reads, “I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.” In Ephesians 5:19, Paul writes, “Addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all your heart.” Similarly, in Colossians 3:16, he says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” The Hebrews writer declares in Hebrews 2:12, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.” Finally, in James 5:13, it states, “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise.” How do we prove a thing to be scriptural? There are several ways: —By a direct statement of Scripture. (John 4:24 is one such passage: “God is spirit; and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”) —By an apostolic example of a commanded practice. (Acts 20:7 says the disciples came together on the first day of the week to break bread, which was the Lord’s Supper—commanded by Jesus to be eaten.) —By a clear implication of Scripture. (My name is nowhere mentioned in Scripture, but the Bible applies to me; it is clearly implied in John 3:16!) There is no direct statement in Scripture where instrumental music is authorized in worship on earth. There is no apostolic example of it being used, and there is no clear implication in Scripture that it was ever used in the 1st century church. Therefore, it cannot be said to be Scriptural. We also cannot add to or take away from Scripture. (1 Corinthians 4:6) “I have applied all these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, brothers, that you may learn by us not to go beyond what is written.” (2 John 9) “Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.” (Revelation 22:18-19) “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.” When instrumental music is used in worship, we add to God’s Word.

AN OLD APOSTASY IN A NEW AGE-2

In the first part of this series, we called attention to a church in Alabama that has announced its intent to introduce instrumental music into its Sunday morning worship. I also indicated that this is a signal of a departure from New Testament Christianity. When it comes to the music we use in worship, every member of the church should be thoroughly taught on this subject. There are thousands upon thousands of people who don’t understand why churches of Christ do not use instruments in worship. There are also thousands of members of the church who don’t understand why we don’t use instruments, and the sad thing is, many of them don’t have a problem with bringing them in. Some folks think we don’t use instruments because we don’t think they are right in any setting; but, that is a misguided view. There are some things that are not wrong in and of themselves, but are wrong in religion. I love to eat pizza and drink Coke. There’s nothing wrong in and of itself with eating pizza and drinking Coke. What if I were to bring in a big pizza and a two liter Coke and set them on the Lord’s Table next Sunday morning? Would it be OK for me to add that to the Lord’s Supper? What if I were to bring in a big jar of grape jelly? There’s nothing wrong with jelly, in and of itself. Jelly makes bread taste better. But, it would be religiously wrong. Jesus specified the bread and the fruit of the vine. That excludes jelly, pizza, Coke, and anything else. Likewise, the New Testament specifies the music we are to make. It says we are to sing. That excludes man-made instruments. As anyone who knows me can testify, I grew up in a musical family. My late father, who was a preacher, played three instruments--guitar, fiddle, and mandolin. My sister is a great guitar player. I play the bass guitar. My uncles (both living and deceased) all played instruments. I have several cousins who are very gifted in playing instruments. Instrumental music is not sinful in and of itself. It is when it is introduced into worship that it becomes a problem. Many people claim that this is a small matter over which we need not be concerned; however, God does not measure sin the same way as man. Eating a piece of fruit in the garden of Eden could be considered a small matter; Moses smiting the rock instead of speaking to it may have seemed insignificant to some. When Uzzah touched the Ark of the Covenant, it might have been perceived as a small matter. The fact is, we should not think of any disobedience as being too small or insignificant to be bothered about. God looks on the heart of the person. Sin originates in the heart, and the act is just the symptom of the sin. I would like for us to examine what the New Testament teaches concerning singing. We will also look at the reasons why people think instruments are right, and see what the Bible says in response. In the course of this series, we will also examine what history tells us about the use (or non-use) of instruments in worship.

AN OLD APOSTASY IN A NEW AGE-1

George Santanyana is attributed to having said the following: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." While Santanyana has been misquoted often on this socre, and much debate continues as to what he actually meant, the statement itself is true. As it applies to history, it has often been borne out to be so. This is even clearer in religion. Recently, a large congregation of chruches of Christ in Alabama announced its intent to introduce instrumental music in its Sunday morning worship. While the elders of that church are welcoming feedback from the congregation before it makes the final decision, the eldership affirmed that it believes instrumental music in worship to be acceptable to God. Thus, the debate in Alabama among churches of Christ over instrumental music in worship--once thought to be a long dead issue--has been rekindled. In the 19th century, churches of Christ and the Christian Church went through a major division, in part, over the instrument. Now, one hundred years later, the rumination of Santanyana rings true. A new generation clamors for the kind of music it has been exposed to in entertainment, and among its religious friends. "Why not have it? It will make our services more 'user-friendly' and 'exciting.'" While the question of "Why do this?" may be legitmately asked, such should not be the focus. Rather, the focus should be on the central issue: BIBLICAL AUTHORITY. If the New Testament is our authority for all matters of faith and practice, then where is the authority for the instrument in worship? Does it matter? (MORE TO FOLLOW)

I'M BAAAAAAAAAACK......!

Okay, so it's been like, years since I have posted anything here. There are a lot of reasons for that. In between my local work, my dissertation, a debate I had with a Roman Catholic, and two sons in college, I have A LIFE! Seriously, though, there are a lot of things I wanted to comment on. Now that I am back, guess what? To alter a quote from the late Richard Nixon, "you'll have Hester to kick around some more." To say that events have moved along at a rapid pace in this country would be an understatement. To date, 12 states have approved same-sex marriage. The President has given his full support of this; that is not surprising. What is surprising are a couple of developments. First, there are leaders in the Republican party who are more than willing to drop opposition to same-sex marriage, and have gone public with their thoughts on the issue. Time will tell if their influence will prevail within the GOP. The second development is extremely troubling. Within churches of Christ, the number of those accepting homosexuality as a viable lifestyle is growing. Some are wanting to push colleges and universities affiliated with us to become "tolerant" and accepting of homosexuality. Folks, the Bible has not changed about this. Romans 1 is clear. Homosexuality is sinful. I have a lot more to say about a lot of things, but for now I will sign off. Oh, one more thing: my wife Brenda told me today that I am "A-D-D." I don't know where she gets that. Hey, look at that spider!