Originally posted 8/27/24
A little over a year ago, I became the Worship leader for our church. I was not a pastor and I would not attempt to fill that role. My job was to lead the music and set the tone for worship. It was a job that I felt grossly unqualified for. I had always led music on days when our Music Pastor was gone. My musical skills are limited. I took piano lessons and singing lessons when I was young. Many have said that my sense of rhythm is my own. While I am not necessarily qualified, God has certainly equipped me to meet the needs of my church at this time.
Since I have been teaching Bible studies and leading the women in my church, I have made it a point to pay attention to solid doctrine. I won’t teach from any material that isn’t rock solid theologically. As I began to investigate solid theology for Bible study material, I began to see things about our contemporary Christian music. Many of the popular groups are from churches that are not Biblically solid in my opinion. Should my approach to music be any different than study materials?
John Piper wrote an article called, “When Worship Lyrics Miss the Mark”. You can read the article here. He writes about the song “What a Beautiful Name”. His concerns with the second verse where it says, “You didn’t want heaven without us, so Jesus, you brought heaven down.” I’ve sung those words and wondered at the intended meaning. In fact, that part of the song always bothered me. Does this imply that God was lonely? Does the gospel center on me or on Christ? Do we honestly think that the sovereign God and creator of the universe needs anything from us? Aren’t we making ourselves more important than we really are?
I made a commitment with my new role that we would only sing things from theology solid sources. I don’t want to sing a song that was produced by a church that isn’t doctrinally sound. I feel like it gives the impression that I am endorsing that particular church or pastor. I also don’t want to give the impression that our church is endorsing a church with doctrine that we disagree with. I am sure each of these churches does many good things. However, God has laid it on my heart to avoid music from Bethel, Elevation, and Hillsong at least for now. According to John Piper, a congregation learns its theology and takes it down into the crevices of their soul by the songs that they sing, not just by the preaching they hear.” I believe this to be true because I have kept many tunes in my head after church. If we are going to remember what we sing, we better be singing good stuff.
There were many songs that our church had been accustomed to singing that fell in the category of music I felt God wanted me to avoid. Some of my favorite songs were songs that I felt I needed to avoid. In the beginning, I thought maybe it would be ok to sing individual songs that were in and of themselves theologically sound. Was that what God wanted or did he want more? If I sang one song from a group and not another, would that be obeying or disobeying God? I honestly can say, I really don’t know.
One of my favorite songs is “Trust in God” by Brandon Lake. It incorporates the hymn, Blessed Assurance. I would love to use it on Sundays, but it is produced by Elevation Worship. Another one of my favorite songs is “Soon”. I love the melody, the music, as well as the words. The first couple of times I used it in church, I didn’t realize it was produced by Hillsong. There are many more I could talk about.
I was planning on playing “Soon” for our offertory one Sunday morning. As we were driving to church that morning, I began to have an internal debate about it. I was attempting to rationalize why I could go ahead and do it as planned. Surely it wouldn’t hurt to do it this one time. Who would actually know? The closer I got to church, the more uncomfortable I became about doing it. It was more than just about the music. It was about the way we rationalize our actions. I was doing the same thing. I was rationalizing why I was going to do something that God did not want me to do.
I sat down with our guest pastor and talked with him about my inner debate. He told me how there are pastors he no longer quotes from the pulpit because of their current theology. He told me that he doesn’t discount everything they do, but he doesn’t quote them from the pulpit any more. He doesn’t want anyone to get the impression that he endorses everything from a particular source if it isn’t rock solid. We talked about the privilege and weight of stepping on the platform. What we do on that platform determines the ability of others to worship. We don’t want to do anything that might hinder someone’s worship.
Sin begins that way. How many times have we said that it won’t hurt to look. Eve saw the fruit, she wanted it, and she took it. We find something that looks good, we want it, and we take it. We might even ask ourselves the most dangerous question, “Who will know?” Can’t I do it just this once? Many years ago, Lays Potato Chips had a commercial that stated, “You can’t just eat one.” It is so true. We all have our temptations and they are different for each one of us, but it starts with just once. We rationalize that we can do it just once or no one will know. We try to hide but that is the very tool that satan needs to lure us into temptation.
We have to recognize how sin starts. It begins with something very innocent and builds to something bigger. It begins with doing something just once. Jen Wilkin often says, “Sin has collateral damage, and obeying God has collateral benefit.” What we do has an effect on those around us.
After my discussion with our visiting pastor, I changed the music. For me, I needed to honor the commitment I made not to do certain music. It is a sacred honor for me to step on that platform and lead the music for my congregation. I do not take that lightly. I can only do what I think the Lord wants me to do.
Am I saying that no one should listen to Elevation, Bethel, or Hillsong? I know this is a complicated issue for most of us. Music is a powerful tool and we keep tunes in our heads long after listening to something.
I am not here to tell you what you should or should not do. I would only ask you to prayerfully consider the issue. Listen to God and He will direct you.
#faith, #Bible, #Scriptures, #Christian Women, #Discipleship, #womenintheBible, #music, #Hillsong, #Elevation, #Bethel #Contemporary Music