Musicians and Worship
My new church, a PCA (Presbyterian Church of America), will have its first Sunday morning worship service on October 7. Being the only trained church musician in the core group, I have been asked to oversee our music for worship. After years of experience, I am more frightened than I was the day I was first asked to play a hymn for a Sunday School class.
It is not the playing of instruments that frightens me. Nor is it the challenge of choosing the correct music for worship. My fear comes from the knowledge that I, and the musicians involved are all sinners. Like all musicians, we have our likes and our dislikes. We often feel uncomfortable singing or playing music that doesn't suit our personality or our "style". We are perfectionists. We tend to be easily critical, and we often forget to love and accept those who might make us look bad if the make a mistake.
Scripture is very clear when it talks about what the attitude of our heart should be when we sing.
16 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. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Colossians 3:16, 17
18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. Ephesians 5:18-21
This is what our music and our attitudes should look like:
1. It should be based on the Word of Christ, i.e. doctrinally sound.
2. We are to sing with the thankfulness in our hearts to the Lord.
3. We are to be filled with the Spirit
4. We are to submit to one another out of reverence to Christ.
It is this submitting to one another out of reverence to Christ that is the most difficult for musicians. I find it interesting that the first thing the apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians is that we are to be filled with the Spirit. If we are filled with the Spirit, we will submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
When we keep our eyes on Christ, no matter what our weaknesses, we will find our strength in Him. He is the one that will keep us from falling, and He is the one Who will keep me on track.
It is not the playing of instruments that frightens me. Nor is it the challenge of choosing the correct music for worship. My fear comes from the knowledge that I, and the musicians involved are all sinners. Like all musicians, we have our likes and our dislikes. We often feel uncomfortable singing or playing music that doesn't suit our personality or our "style". We are perfectionists. We tend to be easily critical, and we often forget to love and accept those who might make us look bad if the make a mistake.
Scripture is very clear when it talks about what the attitude of our heart should be when we sing.
16 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. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Colossians 3:16, 17
18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. Ephesians 5:18-21
This is what our music and our attitudes should look like:
1. It should be based on the Word of Christ, i.e. doctrinally sound.
2. We are to sing with the thankfulness in our hearts to the Lord.
3. We are to be filled with the Spirit
4. We are to submit to one another out of reverence to Christ.
It is this submitting to one another out of reverence to Christ that is the most difficult for musicians. I find it interesting that the first thing the apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians is that we are to be filled with the Spirit. If we are filled with the Spirit, we will submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
When we keep our eyes on Christ, no matter what our weaknesses, we will find our strength in Him. He is the one that will keep us from falling, and He is the one Who will keep me on track.
Comments