Expert: Marvin Howard - 5/13/2006

Question
Am i wrong to believe in the "Rapture"?.There is a verse  in the new testament saying about being "Caught Up" not rapture, in the air to be with the Lord.I just want to know cause i always believed this to happen one day.The other question is this:I love to listen to great gospel quartets singing with music and hym singing with music in the home.Is it a sin to listen to gospel music with instruments in the privacy of your own home.Singing without instruments is for worship in the church.Please help me to understand these subjects.In Christ,
Mr.Lynn Cooper

Answer
Hi!

Lynn, thank you for your dedication and search for the truth. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to answer this for you.

First, please allow me to answer the question on hymns. You are correct that music in worship is “A Cappella.” Even the name refers to its origin and use from the Latin. The definition is vocal music, but the translation is “Of the Chapel,” or in other words, “Of the place of worship.” Rephrasing your question to shed even more light on it, “Is the prohibition of instrumental music limited to corporate worship?” Let's look at some relevant passages of Scripture.

Matthew 26:30, “And when they had sung a hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.”

Quite obviously, this is not corporate worship of the church. It isn't even Temple or Synagogue worship, that which was Jesus' prescribed method for His day. Yet it was still singing. Keep in mind that the Lord and His disciples were poor and likely didn't even have instruments they could use. They had no access to modern gadgets such as tape players, CD players, or radios. As an example from my youth, they didn't even have access to phonographs. Therefore, this is going to take some deep searching.

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.”

This is a quote of Psalm 18:49. The commentaries say this is speaking of teaching those who are not God's people about God. I see no reason to disagree. This sets a principle that singing is a proper and acceptable way of teaching. Keeping this thought in mind, and considering the context of 1st Corinthians chapters 12 – 14, look at these specific passages within that context:

1st Corinthians 13:1 & 14:15, “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal…What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also.”

When speaking of confusion, Paul refers to instruments. Any instrument, whether it be “sounding brass” (maybe a horn, but possibly the cymbals used by a marching band – the Greek for “sounding” being ay-kheh'-o, which means “loud,” or “reverberating”), or a “tinkling cymbal” (probably the tiny cymbals around the edge of a tambourine), brings confusion to the message. It is quite likely that this confusion is needed in order to hide the false doctrine contained within many songs.

Ephesians 5:15-21, “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.”

Taking a deeper look at the meaning of this passage, 5:19 is used to prohibit instruments from corporate worship, and rightly so. However, is it limited to such? The Greek for “walk” is per-ee-pat-eh'-o, and means “to deport oneself,” “at large,” and “to be occupied with.” It carries reference to “a way of life.” Remember the context: teaching. The Greek for “circumspectly” is ak-ree-boce', and means “exactly,” or “circumspectly.” The English carries with it the idea of “looking (“spect” from spectacle{s}) all around (“circum” from circumference) us.” In other words, we are to be wary of the world in our singing. We are to ignore the worldly ways in our singing of praises to God.

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.”

Again, we see that singing is teaching.

Hebrews 2:11-12, “For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.”

Our sanctification will cause us to love our brethren, and sing praise to God, “in the middle of the church,” for allowing us our brethren.

Thus far, we have seen that singing is teaching. We have seen that in groups where teaching is occurring, the singing is to be vocal. Now, let's turn to private settings, where you or I might be alone. We are to be in the world, but not of the world. I am sure you heard this before. By themselves, instruments are not inherently evil. There is no problem with instruments being used for private pleasure. Does this address their use in private praise to God? Does it address their use in our teaching of ourselves? No, it doesn't.

I fondly remember listening to “Tennessee” Ernie Ford singing “Gospel” music on the phonograph from my youth (the reference to phonographs above). As a personal decision, I had to cease that activity, and I will tell you why. You must remember, spiritual music is a teaching tool. Would you constantly tell yourself falsehoods, untruths, or even outright lies? You must remember that all such “Gospel” music, produced with instruments, is performed and written by denominationalists, and as such, it is riddled with errors. To constantly deluge my brain with these untruths, even if I don't believe all the lyrics, is at the very least bringing confusion to my spiritual life. This is the very reason we must be careful in our choice of songs for worship. The books contain many songs written by denominationalists, and many contain error and are unfit for use in worship. To constantly listen to such music is to bombard the brain with denominational, false doctrine. In good conscience, I could not continue. It is up to you to make your own decision.

Now, let us turn our attention to the “Rapture.” Being “caught up,” by itself, is not false. However, there are many associated parts of the doctrine, which mock God in His teaching. The doctrine maintains that only those who are made righteous are affected at this point in time. They maintain that those who are evil will be “left behind,” in the words of Tim LaHaye. This contradicts the fact that both the just and unjust will be resurrected at the same time according to Matthew 25:31-46. Those who teach a “Rapture” also teach that going up to be with the Lord will only be temporary (seven years or three depending on the view), when Paul teaches that it will be forever in 1st Thessalonians 4:17. They teach that Jesus failed His mission to establish the Kingdom during His incarnation and first advent. They teach that man is more powerful than God and that we were able to stop Him. This is in contradiction to Jesus giving the keys of the kingdom to Peter and all the other apostles in Matthew 16:18-19 and 18:18, where the Kingdom is declared to be the church. They maintain that the kingdom is not the church, but a yet future event; that the church is just a temporary stopgap to last until He can return and be successful.

With all of these false doctrines associated with the word “Rapture,” it is far better to use a Bible name for a Bible event; namely a resurrection of the dead (1st Thessalonians 4:16), and a translation of the living (Genesis 5:21-24 and Hebrews 11:5), both of which will occur at the same time (John 5:28-29).

Lynn, I realize this has been a long answer. I applaud your eagerness to learn, and want to provide you with some other references to sermons and studies posted online in regards to these subjects. Due to the lack of linking capability in this format, you will have to copy these and paste them into a new browser window. You can then mark them as favorites, and return to them for study on your own schedule.

http://www.geocities.com/braswellcoc1/archive2.html

http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-epjVoQIhaaMlzt_TlaGJyQ58PoC8f5ml?p=10

http://www.geocities.com/braswellcoc1/archive 5.html

http://www.geocities.com/braswellcoc1/archive6.html

http://www.geocities.com/braswellcoc1/archive24.html

I pray you have a profitable study on these subjects, and with these materials. Should you have further questions, on these or any other topics, please do not hesitate to ask.

In His Service,
Marvin Howard
preacherman_1962@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/preacherman_1962
http://360.yahoo.com/preacherman_1962