Expert: Joe Norman - 4/25/2011

Question
Joe,

I have enjoyed reading some of your thoughts and insights on a variety of questions about Biblical issues found here on this website.  And I appreciate your thoughtful responses given against the backdrop of Scripture.  In particular, an explanation you gave about divorce and remarriage has helped me immensely.  I grew up in the churches of Christ and have spent half my life wrestling with a number of doctrinal concerns.

I was a bit surprised at your comments regarding instrumental music, however.  The traditional hermeneutic of “commands, examples and necessary inference” was the basis of your commentary.  And thus, the argument for non-instrumental worship was your conclusion.  Like you, I seek to worship in spirit and truth and likewise hope that my feeble efforts to praise an almighty creator somehow merit God’s approval.  Meanwhile, the body of Christ is divided over such things.

I find other passages to consider and I would appreciate your take.  Here they are:

Revelation 14: 2-3
“And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps.  And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders.  No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.”

This is a New Testament passage implicating music for worship in Heaven with the use of instruments.  I am aware that our friend Burton Coffman in his commentary points out that it is only “LIKE the sound of harps.”  But our own hermeneutic of “necessary inference” would potentially support an instrumental worship – or at least the use of harps in worship.  Meanwhile, back in the Old Testament:

Psalm 98: 4-6
“Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music; make music to the LORD with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing, with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn— shout for joy before the LORD, the King.”

Here is a passage that clearly identifies instrumental worship as an expression of “joy before the LORD, the King.”  Interestingly, the singing in this passage is presented in similar fashion as the harps in the Revelation passage – “like the sound of harps” as compared to “the sound of singing”.  The implication is the same in both; harps are being played and people are singing.  Of course, our dispensational approach to Scripture in the churches of Christ is quick to point out that the Psalms passage is part of the Old Testament and not the New Covenant.  What then do we do with this New Testament passage:

2 Timothy 3: 16-17
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

If the Second Timothy passage is teaching that the Psalm 98 passages are “God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness”, how then can we suggest that the use of instruments in worship is sinful or unacceptable to God?

Answer
Hi David,

I really appreciate your kind words to me and encouragement. I am more than happy to also share my "take" on the passages you present. I also wish to help you better understand God's Word if I can. First, the entire book of Revelation is written in symbolic or figurative language which is common in the books of prophecy #like the book of Daniel#. Also John states these were "visions" so brother Coffman is correct in stating this should not be taken literally. Also the hermeneutic we apply is not one of necessary inference. We have to determine if this is meant to be an example for us to follow. It is not.

Next is the passage in Psalms. First you correctly said this is Old Covenant and not for Christian guidance on worship. Stating such doesn't mean that Old Testament scripture is not God-breathed or useful for teaching, rebuking, etc. The whole of the Old Testament does help us better understand the mind and nature of God and tutors us in a deeper understanding of the New Testament as well. But we don't do animal sacrifices or have a priest system or a temple made like the Jewish temple with a holy of holies, etc. To bind musical instruments in Christian worship because it was used in Old Testament worship would mean we should bind all the other worship practices of the Old Testament. Such is ridiculous and wrong. The bottom line is we have no example of "CHRISTIANS" worshiping with musical instruments in the New Testament. We have no direct commands either to use musical instruments.

Now let's look at one of the passages we use to support non-instrumental worship.

Eph.5:19-21
19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, 20 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another in the fear of God.

The indication is our hearts are what accompany our voices and it is clear we are ALL to sing and make melody in our hearts to God.

Next passage:

Col.3:16
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.

Again it is clear we are ALL to sing with grace in our hearts. Not everyone can play a musical instrument and most certainly it would be near impossible to have everyone who can play an instrument to play their instruments all together. In a congregation of 800 there could be 30 or 50 or more who can play the piano. We wouldn't be able to fit that many pianos in the building and it would be ridiculous to even try it.

Then we turn to history. Now we only use God's Word to guide us but what we see when we look to history is we see verification that our understanding of music in Christian worship being voices only is correct. For approximately 700 years there was no evidence at all that musical instruments were used. But even in the few instances it was found around the year 700 AD, it was condemned by the Pope and church leaders. It was not widely accepted and used until about 1000 AD.

It is important to note that the "Greek Orthodox" still do not use musical instruments in their worship. As you have probably read in my past answers on this topic here, every founder of the major reformation movements also believed it was wrong to use musical instruments in Christian worship. John Wesley spoke against musical instruments in worship. So did John Calvin, Martin Luther, Charles Spurgeon, and others.

Here is the main thing that causes me to reject musical instruments in Christian worship. We see that the Old Testament worship was much more outward and not nearly as direct and personal as Christian worship. The high priest was the only one who could enter the holy of holies and offer sin sacrifices to God for the people of Israel. The temple was an actual building too. A large heavy curtain separated the people from God.

In Christian worship the temple of God is our hearts. We are the church and not a physical building.

1 Cor.3:16
16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

1Co 6:19  Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?

There is only one instrument which can be in this New Covenant temple. That is the voice. Also, most people think "A Cappella" means singing without musical accompaniment. The literal translation however is "In the style of the chapel or church".

Although you see an example of musical instruments in worship in Heaven when you look at the passage in Revelation, the book is written in figurative language and it is not meant to be a guide to us as to how to worship. Also if God wanted us to use musical instruments He would have given direct commands and there would be many examples of such in the New Testament. There is neither.

The bottom line is we have a choice as to whether or not we are going to seek to do what we KNOW pleases God, or are we going to do what pleases ourselves? I love to play the piano. I love listening to musical instruments. I love music. But when I worship God, I want to do it the way God wants me to do it.

He said "sing" and singing is a type of music. So this automatically excludes musical instruments. It's like when God said to Noah...build the ark out of gopher wood. He named a specific type of wood and that automatically excluded all other types of wood. God didn't have to say....don't use cedar...don't use oak...etc.

God never leaves it to man to decide how to worship Him. Even when Cain and Abel offered sacrifices to God it is clear they were told how to do it because Cain's was rejected and when God asks Cain why he is so upset God says..."if you do well, will you not be accepted?". I think it's obvious that the reason Cain's sacrifice was rejected was because God had instructed them to sacrifice animals because blood was required. Cain did it his way and not God's way. This is an example of how the Old Testament helps to teach us. We don't offer blood sacrifices anymore because Jesus became our perfect one time sacrifice. But we see that if we worship God our way and not His way, we will be rejected.

I hope my answer has helped you. I want to point out that this is not a debate site so I do not intend to debate you here. You can accept or reject my answer. The choice is yours. I do believe my understanding and answer is correct and clear. I believe God desires us to sing without musical instruments in worship and the proper use of hermeneutics supports my belief. I have studied this topic for many many years and the more I study the more I am convinced this is correct.

In Christian Love, Joe Norman