Does God Like What I Like?

Okay, let's get it all out in the open. MUSIC IS A TOOL OF THE DEVIL!....Ummm, not all music of course, just the music that I don't like.  Because God and I have similar tastes in music and therefore, I know exactly what He likes and what He doesn't. 
Sounds pretty arrogant doesn't it?  But it also sounds pretty familiar.  Not just from those who would have us sing nothing that was written after the 1850's but from those who would gladly throw the hymnbook away and have us sing the same few words over and over again ad infinitum.
So now that I have properly offended everyone, let's take an honest look at this issue that the devil does use to divide God's church in so many cases.
First, let's acknowledge that our preferences are going to be different, so we need to have a starting point that we can all agree on.  I suggest that we start with Scripture, because God's Word has an answer for everything.
The issue of worship has been a conflict from the very beginning.  I have heard it said that the first murder took place over the issue of worship.  Cain slew Abel over an offering that wasn't acceptable to the Lord.  Our problem with this anaolgy is defining who is who, so we will leave that one alone.  Jesus told the woman at the well that God was looking for worshippers who would worship him in Spirit and in truth.  So our worship must involve both the Truth of the Word of God and a responsiveness to His Spirit.  This can be accomplished in a number of ways.  Paul spoke in two different epistles about this issue.  In Eph. 5:19, he invoked the need to speak to ourselves in "psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord."  Each of those words described a different form of music, all present in their society, but each used for a specific purpose in their worship.  In this passage Paul emphasizes the use of these forms of music in personal devotion and private time with the Lord..  But in Col. 3:16, he uses the same descriptive terms while speaking of corporate worship.  He says "let the word of Christ dwell in you richly..." implying that one way for the message to be enriched in your heart and spirit is through music.  Then he broadens the application by saying "admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord."  We are to worship and sing together as a means of encouraging and edifying one another as we sing to the Lord with grace in our hearts.  Grace, now there's a concept that is not always seen in our discussions of this issue!
So these texts describe the use of varying types of music for God's glory, personal devotion, and corporate worship.  So what's the problem?  The problem is most often in our definitions of those terms, so let's talk about definitions.
What is spiritual music?  We most often want to define spiritual music by our own religious background and culture.  If that were true then that definition would be constantly changing and in constant contention.  Sadly, that is true, but I don't believe that God intended it to be that way.
Bear with me for a moment here and let me give you a scenario that is I believe is completely defensible from Scripture and is a reasonable approach to this issue. 
Eph. 5:19 talks about "making melody in your heart to the Lord." What if music is the language of our heart?  We know that it influences our heart, our feelings, our emotions.  We can see that Paul recognized the importance of music to worship, so why didn't he define his terms more specifically?  Could it be that God wants to hear us worship Him in the language of our heart?  African Christians will worship God in a different language.  Their music will also be different.  Asian Christians will worship God in their own language and to their on rythym and tempo.  We acknowledge this as natural and appropriate, why can't we see the same thing when it comes to the language of the heart between different generations in our own culture?
Music is ultimately a vehicle for the message. Even the most reverent of hymns can contain doctrinal error and be the tool of Satan to deceive and mislead.  Therefore, whatever the style of music, the key is to examine the truth of the lyrics in light of the Scriptures.
One argument made against Contemporary Christian music is the association in the hearts of many with the music of rebellion and worldliness of generations past.  It is important to understand that associations are personal, not universal and if we take this reasoning to it's logical conclusion, then we should all become Amish.  It is a similar argument to Paul's discussion of meats offered to idols.  He said that the meat was nothing, the idol was nothing, but if your heart condemns you, then you should abstain.  He did say that those who were stronger in the faith would recognize that distinction and shouldn't cause the weaker to stumble, so this issue is important.
Another issue is the use of instruments in our worship.  Many don't like guitars or drums being used in worship and I agree that these things sometimes overpower the message and distract from it, but we should be careful about associations once again, because the Scriptures are full of references to the instruments of praise used in worship by God's people and those instruments include a number of different instruments that strongly resemble the guitar and the drums.  Just look in your Concordance for the word "instruments" and then look up the definition of the names given in those passages.
And if the volume is your problem, then you need to read II Chron. 30:21.
So the Scriptures give us good reason to consider our opinions about worship to see if they line up with what God clearly says.
Let me bring this to a close with a couple of things to consider:
First, the issue here is not my preferences but our collective worship, so I need to remember a couple of things.  Spiritual maturity will result in patience, longsuffering, and deference to others.  All of us need to extend this grace to those around us as we worship together.
While some consider this issue the evidence of compromise and wandering from the true faith in modern churches, let me offer a different possibility.  Could it be that Satan knows how important music is in worship and that he has chosen to use it as a barrier between one generation and the next in an attempt to keep the Gospel from being passed down?  If this is even a remote possibility, shouldn't we consider it?  We would never say that we will share the Gospel with the world as soon as they learn our language.  Neither should we say, we will worship together with the next generation as soon as they agree to only do so in the language of the heart of our generation.
I believe that God hears, not the words, the beat, the tempo, and the volume, but the attitude of the heart whether we are singing Amazing Grace or the latest thing off the pen of Chris Tomlin. So come, let us worship the Lord together. Amen.

Cracked Pots

It amazes me, how God uses broken vessels to carry His Living Water.  It has been a while since I posted to this blog.  I could say that I've been busy, this has been an amazing summer filled with fruitful work and ministry. But in reality, I've just been distracted.  I've told people for a long time that God blesses me far beyond what I deserve, and that has become more real to me in these last few days.  At our Men's Retreat over the weekend, the Lord spoke to me and said, "Are you enjoying the blessings that I've been pouring out on your church?" He said, "Just imagine what I could do if you would just give me your whole heart, all of your attention, the full measure of your strength, and a single-minded focus."
The very first speaker quoted Ps. 19:12-14. It reminded me that my words, my thoughts, my actions, and the things that my heart meditates on are constantly in the sight of God and I need to be sure that they are acceptable to Him.
It is easy to let yourself think that the blessings of God are the result of your efforts, when in fact, I've learned that they are more often in spite of your shortcomings.  All God wants from us is a vessel that He can use.
I guess my challenge today is that we give ourselves fully to the Lord so that He has a little more to work with when He sets out to bless our lives and our church.  Because it truly is amazing how much Water He can haul, even in a cracked pot.