Yes! We sing.
Singing is a regular part of our worship
assemblies; many also sing hymns when they are alone or in small groups.
3 Good Reasons To Sing!
1) We sing to praise God. We are encouraged to
"offer up the sacrifice of praise to God continually that is, the fruit of
our lips, giving thanks to His name" (Hebrews 13:15). When
Paul and Silas were in jail at Philippi, they sang praises unto God (Acts 16:25).
2) We sing to teach and admonish others. Paul wrote, "Let the word of
Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another
in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to
the Lord" (Colossians 3:16).
3) Singing is also a way of expressing the joy that we have in the Lord. James
wrote, "Is any among you afflicted? Let him pray'. Is any among you merry?
Let him sing psalms" (James 5:13). We
encourage people to sing in worship and to sing for the right reasons.
We do not use mechanical instruments of music
in our worship.
While we sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual
songs in worship to God, we do not use mechanical instruments such as pianos,
organs, etc. to accompany our singing. We omit these instruments in worship not
because we do not enjoy the sounds of them. nor because we want to be
antagonistic and quarrelsome with our religious neighbors, but as a matter of
conviction and Biblical authority (Matthew 21:23-27). The
New Testament does not instruct us to use mechanical instruments in worship and
there are no examples in the New Testament of Christians using them in worship.
New Testament commands and examples of
singing:
Matthew 26:30 "And
when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives. "(See
also Mark
14:26).
Acts 16:25 "And
at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners
heard them."
Romans 15:9 "And
that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written, For this
cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name."
1Corinthians 14:15 "what is it then?
I will pray with the spirit, and will pray with the understanding also: I will
sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also."
Ephesians 5:19'
"Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing
and making melody in your heart to the Lord."
Colossians 3:16 "Let
the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom,' teaching and admonishing
one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your
hearts to the Lord."
Hebrews 2:12 "Saying
I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of die church will I
sing praise unto thee.
James 5:13 "Is
any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.
We do not wish to be presumptuous and assume that God will accept mechanical
instruments along with our singing in worship. The only way we know the mind of
God is by His revelation to us through His word (1 Corinthians 2:10-13).
The New Testament is silent on the use of mechanical instruments being used in
worship.
Mechanical instruments were used by some in
the Old Testament.
There were instructions for the use of
mechanical instruments in the worship in the Old Testament and, also, examples
in the Old Testament of people using these instruments in their worship of God
(2 Chronicles 29:25), but
they are notably absent from the teachings of the New Testament. The Old
Testament was "nailed to the cross" and is no longer in effect (Colossians 2:14); the
New Testament is our standard of authority today (Hebrews 1:1,2). It
teaches us how to be saved and how to worship God acceptably. Many things were
commanded under the Old Testament that are not taught today and which are not
acceptable under the New Testament-- animal sacrifices, burning of incenses,
keeping the Sabbath (Saturday) holy. We cannot use mechanical instruments in
worship today just because they are found in the Old Testament.
Will there be harps in heaven?
At least three passages in the book of
Revelation mention harps (Revelation 5:8; 14:2;
15:2). Some have assumed that there will be harps in heaven and therefore, we
can use mechanical instruments in worshipping God while we are here on earth.
One should remember, however, that much of Revelation is written in figurative
language. Was there a real vial full of odors which were the prayers of the
saints (5:8)? Was the voice from heaven thunder or as thunder (14:2)? Was the
harp real (5:8), or was it a voice (14:2) that was melodious like the music of
harps? One version states plainly, "the voice which I heard was as the
voice of harpers harping with their harps" (14:2, ASV). Even if there were
literal harps in heaven, that fact would still not authorize us to use mechanical
instruments in worship on earth. If so, why were they not used by the early
church?
Mechanical instruments are not an aid.
Mechanical music in worship is more than an
aid; it is an addition. Perhaps, the following illustration will help make the
point clear. Noah was commanded to build the ark of gopher wood. Noah could
have used a saw or some other tools to help build the ark. These tools would
have only aided Noah in building the ark of gopher wood. But Noah could not
have used oak wood in the construction of the ark. This would have changed
God's command. The ark would have no longer been just gopher wood. So also, we
may use books or song leaders to help us sing, but we cannot add another kind
of music such as mechanical instruments to our worship. The command from God is
sing with grace and melody in our hearts (Colossians 3:16; Ephesians 5:19). We
cannot add to nor take away from the word of God (Revelation 22:18,19).
Yes, members of the church of Christ do believe in music in worship, but the
music God wants in worship is to be from the heart; it is speaking (Ephesians 5:19), it can
teach and admonish (Colossians 3:16), and it
can be done with understanding (1 Corinthians 14:15). It
is singing!. Hence, we sing, but do not use mechanical instruments such as
pianos and organs in our worship.
