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When many
first hear there are some churches which do not use instrumental music in their
service, they often think it is a little strange. Instrumental music is so
prevalent among modern churches that the vast majority have never experienced
religious services without it. Although its use is widespread, most don't
realize when or how it became accepted among the various denominations.
Historically, instrumental music did not become a common practice in the Roman
Catholic Church until the Middle Ages and it was not accepted by the Protestants
until the mid to late 1800's. The Bible does not give any explicit commands for
Christians concerning the use of instruments in music. There is no passage that
plainly says, "Thou shalt use instrumental music in worship" or, "Thou shalt not
use instrumental music in worship." Since instruments in worship are neither
openly commanded nor condemned, does it make any difference whether we use them
or not? Is the use of instrumental music a matter of doctrine or opinion?
The Real Issue
Is Not The Instruments Themselves, But Our View Towards the Authority of the
Scriptures
 We need to be
careful to respect the will of God for our lives. When God has given us freedom
to choose in certain areas, we should respect everyone's freedom to express
their personal judgment in those areas. When God has expressed His desired will
on any subject, we must be careful to follow His will rather than our own.
According to Jesus, our salvation is dependent on whether or not we are
submissive to the will of God. We must pay close attention to the warning He
gave in the Sermon on the Mount.
"Not
everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he
who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day,
'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name,
and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never
knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'" (Matthew 7:21-23)
The word "lawlessness" (iniquity - KJV) is translated from "anomia." It is
defined as "the condition of without law" and is also used in the following
verses:
"Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at
the end of this age. The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will
gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice
lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing
and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 13:40-42)
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed
tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's
bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men,
but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness." (Matthew 23:27-28)
"Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness." (1 John
3:4)
The sin of lawlessness includes going beyond what has been delivered from God.
In 1 Kings 12:25-33, we can read how Jeroboam was guilty of lawlessness when he
changed the worship of Israel. This rebellion against God eventually led to the
downfall of Israel. Jeroboam established new priests, new feast days, and a new
location for worship. God did not command any of these things, but 1 Kings 12:33
tells us that Jeroboam devised these things in his own heart. God did not
specifically tell Jeroboam not to do any of these things. Instead,
Jeroboam was supposed to obey what God had already commanded concerning worship.
Because of Jeroboam's lawlessness, God rejected him and eventually destroyed his
family. It makes no difference whether we live under the Old or the New
Covenant, we must follow God's instructions if we are to be pleasing to Him. In
2 John 9, we are warned, "Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the
doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ
has both the Father and the Son." This warning is just as true today as the day
it was first written.
There is a growing tendency in churches to discount the importance of following
God's will exactly as He revealed it. Some say it doesn't really matter. They
say things like, "I can take it or leave it, it doesn't matter to me." When
people talk like this, they are really saying, "I am not that concerned about
what the Bible teaches or Bible authority or God's will."
In Matthew 21:23, the chief priests and the elders came to Jesus while He was
teaching in the Temple and asked
Him, "By what authority are You doing these things? And who gave You this
authority?" Jesus did not rebuke their concern for the need of the proper
authority. He recognized that these men were not interested in knowing the truth
so He answered their question with a question. In the next two verses, Jesus
replied saying, "I will ask you one thing too, which if you tell Me, I will also
tell you by what authority I do these things. The baptism of John was from what
source, from heaven or from men?" Jesus understood that there were only two
possible answers for the source of John's baptism. Either it was commanded by
God or it was devised in the heart of man. Everything people do in their
religious service falls under one of these two categories. Either God commanded
it or man invented it.
The question those who use instrumental music must answer is, "By what authority
are you doing these things?" The burden is not on those who do not
practice something but on those who do practice it. They are the ones who
must give answer to man and God.
When we baptize one into Jesus, what authority do we have?
When we take the Lord's Supper, what authority do we have?
When we collect or spend money, what authority do we have?
If we use instrumental music, what authority do we have?
We should be able to give book, chapter, and verse in God's Word to establish
the authority for anything we are doing in our worship to God. If no scriptural
authority can be found, the practice must be given up. To do something without
Biblical authority is to ignore the will of God. Scriptural authority can easily
be provided to prove it is right to baptize a person in Jesus and to observe the
Lord's Supper. There are many passages available to instruct us concerning the
collection of money and the manner in which it is to be spent by the church.
Those who use instrumental music in worship to God must provide the passage
where God told us that this is what He desires.
Biblical
Authority Was the Central Issue of the Protestant Reformation.
In the 1500's, a religious movement known as the Protestant Reformation was
begun. The goal of the Reformation movement was to reform a corrupt Catholic
church. Three of the most important leaders of this movement were John Calvin,
Huldreich Zwingli and Martin Luther. They took the position that proper
authority comes from God alone. The position of the Roman Catholics was that
authority comes not only from God, but also from church tradition, church laws
and the Pope. This was the major issue of the Reformation. There were many
different religious disagreements and conflicts between the Catholics and
Protestants, but the central issue was the desire of the Protestants to turn to
the Bible for their authority and the willingness of the Catholics to allow the
Pope and church hierarchy to make rules for them to follow.
The Protestants developed two different views towards Biblical authority.
  1.
The view of Calvin and Zwingli. Calvin and Zwingli took the position that
we can only do what the Bible teaches and we are not to go beyond what is
written. They expressed their position by teaching, "Only that which the Bible
commands or for what distinct authorization can be found in its pages is binding
or allowable." In other words, they taught that we can do only that which the
Bible authorizes us to do.
This is the Biblical position. It is not the correct position because Calvin and
Zwingli taught it, but because it is the position taught by the Bible itself in
both the Old and New Testament.
"You shall not add to the word which I am commanding you, nor take away from it,
that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you."
(Deuteronomy 4:2)
"So you shall observe to do just as the Lord your God has commanded you; you
shall not turn aside to the right or to the left." (Deuteronomy 5:32)
"Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor
take away from it." (Deuteronomy 12:32)
"Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all
the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right
hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go." (Joshua 1:7)
"Every word of God is tested; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. Do
not add to His words Lest He reprove you, and you be proved a liar." (Proverbs
30:5-6)
"But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel
contrary to that which we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have
said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel
contrary to that which you received, let him be accursed." (Galatians 1:8-9)
"And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the Father through Him." (Colossians 3:17)
"Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He
said, "See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the
mountain." (Hebrews 8:5)
"If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God." (1 Peter 4:11)
"Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have
God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son."
(2 John 9)
"I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if
anyone adds to them, God shall add to him the plagues which are written in this
book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God
shall take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are
written in this book." (Revelation 22:18-19)
In June or July, 1524, images, relics and instrumental music were removed from
the Reformed churches of Germany because there was no authority for them in
God's Word. Singing without instrumental music was the practice of all the
churches in the Reformation movement with the exception of the Church of
England.
 2.
The view of Martin Luther. Martin Luther had another view towards Bible
authority. He believed that whatever is not forbidden in the Bible is
permissible. His position could be summed up by, "If the Bible doesn't say you
can't, then you can. There is nothing wrong with a practice as long as the Bible
does not say you can't." The reason Luther took this position was that he also
believed in infant baptism. The Bible does not say you can't baptize infants,
but the Bible does not authorize it either.
Nearly every denomination today follows Luther's view towards authority. If you
talk about instrumental music to most people today, the first response you will
most likely get is, "The Bible doesn't say you can't!"
How We
Establish Bible Authority is the Central Issue Concerning Instrumental Music
The two views taken are that either we can only do that which the Bible
authorizes or we can do anything the Bible does not specifically forbid. Which
one is based on the teachings of the Bible?
If we take the position that we can do anything as long as the Bible doesn't say
we can't, then on what basis can any of these things be opposed?
Burn incense or candles during worship
Have a Pope, Archbishops, Cardinals
Using
Water in the Lord's Supper rather than Fruit of the Vine
Praying through Mary
Infant Baptism
Instrumental Music
The only way any of these things can be opposed Biblically is by acknowledging
the fact that the Bible tells us what God wants, which excludes everything else.
Concerning incense and candles, the Bible is
completely silent. To add them to our religious service would be adding to the
Word of God. The Bible does not say we can't use incense and
candles in our worship, but neither does it instruct us to use them. The use of incense and candles are from what source, from heaven or from men?
The Bible doesn't specifically say that we are not to have church government
like the Catholic hierarchy of the Pope, Archbishops and Cardinals. The Bible
does provide instructions concerning the organization of the local church under
elders and deacons. If we alter the pattern of church government revealed in the
Bible, we are putting our views and desires above God's will. Although the Bible
may not specifically say we can't have Archbishops and Cardinals, where does it
say we can?
We are instructed to use unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine for the
Lord's Supper. To water rather than fruit of the vine (as the Mormon's practice)
or any other substitute would be going beyond what is written, although the
Bible does not say you can't use water rather than fruit of the vine.
The only way we can Biblically oppose the practice of praying to God through
Mary is by showing how the Bible instructs us to pray through Jesus. The Bible
does not say we can't pray through Mary, but it does tell us to pray through
Jesus. In John 14:13-14, Jesus told His disciples, "And whatever you ask in My
name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask
anything in My name, I will do it."
In the Scriptures, we are instructed to baptize believers who are repentant. We
are never told not to baptize infants, we are simply told who we are to baptize.
If someone wanted to baptize their pet, no one could point to a passage that
commands us not to baptize cats and dogs. The only way we could prevent
Christians from getting involved in such foolishness is to teach we must
practice only that for which we have authority.
This same principle applies to the use of instrumental music. The Bible does not
say that we can't use instruments. God simply told us what kind of music we are
to be making when He told us to be, "speaking to one another in psalms and hymns
and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord" and
to be, "singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God." (Ephesians 5:19,
Colossians 3:16)
Where does
the Bible say you can’t?
 1.
Priests were to be taken only from the tribe of Levi.
God never said Israel
could not have priests from the tribe of Judah. God did tell them He
wanted the priests taken from the tribe of Levi. Hebrews 7:14 tells us, "For it
is evident that our Lord arose from Judah, of which tribe Moses spoke nothing
concerning priesthood." God didn't say one from the tribe of Judah couldn't
be a priest. He just said that priests were to be take from the tribe of Levi.
By giving this command, all Israelites who were not Levites were excluded from
the priesthood.
2. Moses was not told he couldn't hit the rock. In Numbers 20:7, God gave
some specific instructions to Moses when He said, "Take the rod; and you and
your brother Aaron assemble the congregation and speak to the rock before their
eyes, that it may yield its water. You shall thus bring forth water for them out
of the rock and let the congregation and their beasts drink." We could make a
long list of things the Lord did not tell Moses not to do. The most
important thing to notice is that God did not tell Moses not to strike the rock.
God did tell Moses to take his rod, assemble the people, and speak to the
rock. Moses took his rod, assembled the people and struck the rock. Remember,
God never told Moses not to strike the rock! He was not given the
authority to strike it either.
What was God's reaction when Moses struck the rock without having the proper
authority? In Numbers 20:12, God told Moses and Aaron, "Because you have not
believed Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel, therefore
you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them." Moses
was trying to play God. He lifted up his will to be equal or greater than the
revealed will of God. This is what anyone does when they do anything other than
what God commands. Moses did not treat God as holy. Holiness includes the idea
of separateness. God is separate. He is in a class all by Himself. We can not
treat God's Words lightly. His Words are to be more special to us than any other
words in existence. Moses sinned because he was willing to add to God's Word,
and as a result, he was not able to enter the promised land.
The apostle Paul reminded the early Christians to pay close attention to these
examples when he wrote, "For whatever was written in earlier times was written
for our instruction" (Romans 15:4), and "Now these things happened to them as an
example, and they were written for our instruction" (1 Corinthians 10:11).
 3.
The example of Nadab and Abihu. In Leviticus 10, we are given another
example that demonstrates the need of following God's commands exactly as He
delivered them. There we are told, "Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took
their respective firepans, and after putting fire in them, placed incense on it
and offered strange fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. And
fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died
before the Lord." (Leviticus 10:1-2) In the very next verse, Moses told Aaron,
"It is what the Lord spoke, saying, 'By those who come near Me I will be treated
as holy, and before all the people I will be honored.'"
Nadab and Abihu did not treat God as holy. They were careless with His words and
added to them. Nadab and Abihu were from the proper tribe (the Levites), they
had authority to offer incense, they used the right incense and the right fire
pan, but the wrong fire. Just one seemingly insignificant violation brought
swift destruction upon them. No one is allowed to lift up their desires or
opinions above the authority of God's Word.
Notice what God said about Himself in the Scriptures:
"I am the Lord, that is My name; and My glory I will not give to another."
(Isaiah 42:8)
"For My own sake, for My own sake, I will do it; for how should My name be
profaned? And I will not give My glory to another." (Isaiah 48:11)
God will not share His glory with any other. Only He is the Creator, only He is
the Almighty, only He is the Holy One. For man to exalt his desires above God's
Word, is to try to share in God's glory.
4. The example of Uzziah. In the beginning of his reign, King Uzziah did
right in the sight of the Lord. God blessed
him because of his faithfulness and he became very successful. Although there
was much good in the life of King Uzziah, in 2 Chronicles 26:16-20, we can read
of King Uzziah being punished by God for offering incense in the Temple. The Law
of Moses never stated that a king could not be a priest. It never said a king
could not offer incense. The Law did state that offering incense was the
job of the priest. For anyone, including the king, to go beyond that was to act
without authority from God.
When Uzziah became strong and proud, he acted corruptly and was unfaithful to
the Lord (2 Chronicles 26:16). How did he become corrupt and unfaithful? He did
something which he was not authorized to do. He decided to play God and make up
his own rules. The Bible did not say he couldn't offer incense, but he was not
told that he could either. The priests tried to warn him by saying, "It
is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord, but for the priests, the
sons of Aaron who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for
you have been unfaithful, and will have no honor from the Lord God" (2
Chronicles 26:18). Instead of repenting of his lawlessness, Uzziah became
enraged with the obvious attitude, "I am going to do it anyway!" God immediately
struck him with leprosy and he remained a leper until the day of his death.
The need to follow God's instructions carefully can be illustrated from modern
life. If you ordered a shirt from a department store, and they added a belt, a
tie, and a pair of shoes and charged you for them, would you pay them? What if
you told the store manager that you didn't order these things and he replied,
"You did not tell us we couldn't send these other items also." Would you
be satisfied with this reasoning? Do you think God is pleased when man treats
His Word in the same careless and disrespectful manner?
What if a young man asked his father if he could borrow the car to go to a
friend's house to study? He finally returns at 5 a.m. and his father asks him
where he has been. He replies that he went to a friend's house to study, but
then four other friends came over and they all took the car to another town
fifty miles away. The father didn't say he couldn't go out of town after
he finished studying! Do you think the father would be impressed by this kind of
reasoning? If the boy's father can expect his words to be followed closer than
that, how much more should God be able to expect us to carefully follow
His commands?
The Need of
Obedience Is Also Taught in the New Testament
Although the covenants were changed by the coming of Christ, God's attitude
towards those who add to or take away from His Word has not changed. If we try
to change His Word, we are still saying that our authority is above God's.
 In
Mark 7, Jesus severely rebuked the scribes and Pharisees. They were worshipping
God, but it was vain worship, because they were practicing that which God had
not commanded. These men asked Jesus, "Why do Your disciples not walk according
to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with impure hands?" (Mark
7:5). Notice how they were concerned about observing the tradition of the
elders. They had invented a set of rules which included the need of washing
hands before eating. There is nothing wrong in washing hands before eating, but
it becomes very wrong when one requires it as service to God when God has not
commanded it. By doing this, man is claiming to have the authority to set up the
rules.
Jesus rebuked them by saying, "Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as
it is written, 'This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far
away from Me. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts
of men.' Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men'"
(Mark 7:6-8).
Even as small a matter as washing hands can cause one's worship to be vain.
Instead of following God's rules, they were elevating their own ideas above the
Scriptures and were rejected. Their washing was being done on man's authority
instead of God's.
We Must Live
by Faith to be Pleasing to God
"But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must
believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."
(Hebrews 11:6)
"But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith;
for whatever is not from faith is sin." (Romans 14:23)
To live by true faith, we must be following the Word of God. As Romans 10:17
teaches us, "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." If
God's Word does not teach something, it cannot be done by true Biblical faith,
it can only be done by our own will. This is serious. Anyone who uses
instrumental music does so without authority from God.
What God
Authorizes Us To Do
 1.
We are to sing with the spirit.
"What is the result then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with
the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the
understanding." (1 Corinthians 14:15)
Does the phrase "sing with the spirit" authorize playing instrumental music? If
it does, can we pray with instruments since we are also told to "pray with the
spirit"?
2. We are to make melody in our hearts.
"Speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and
making melody in your heart to the Lord." (Ephesians 5:19)
We are to speak to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.
Instruments cannot speak or sing.
The phrase "make melody" is from the Greek word "psallo" and is to be done "in
your hearts." Nothing is said about making a melody on an instrument.
Some claim that "psallo" means playing a stringed instrument. It could mean this
during the time of classical Greek, but Paul made it plain where the melody is
to be played. The only melody mentioned is the one that is to be in our heart.
Some have claimed that "psallo" means one must play an instrument to follow
this. If so, everyone must play. This view would turn the congregation into an
orchestra since everyone is commanded to make a melody. Also, if this view was
correct, anyone who didn't know how to play an instrument would not be able to
obey this command.
The Greek Orthodox do not use instruments. This was one of the issues that
caused them to divide from the Roman Catholics in 1054. Do the Greeks not
understand their own language?
Everyone can make a melody in their hearts regardless of their knowledge of
music. This is what God revealed that He desires. If we make melody on an
instrument, we are adding to what God commanded.
We are to make melody "to the Lord." Contrary to the practice of many modern
churches, this is not an activity that we engage in to entertain ourselves or
please ourselves, it is to the Lord. It is up to God to tells us what He wants
and what pleases Him. We must have the attitude of the apostle Paul when he
wrote, "For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I
still pleased men, I would not be a servant of Christ" (Galatians 1:10).
Some argue that Ephesians 5:19 does not apply to the assembly. They are right.
It is a broad statement. It does not matter whether we are assembling with other
Christians, or in school or in our home. There is never a time when the
Christian is authorized to play an instrument to God. This is broader than the
assembly. It covers any time we might be involved in psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs. We need to be consistent and always apply this passage. We must
always remember that it is the Lord we are to serve and please, not ourselves.
3. We are to sing with grace in our hearts.
"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).
This passage reveals three specific things that God wants us to accomplish with
our music. He wants us to teach, admonish, and sing with grace in our hearts.
Each one of these commands can only be followed with our voices. Instruments
cannot teach, admonish nor sing with grace. To add instrumental music to our
worship to God is to add another kind of music that God has not authorized.
As long as we practice what the Bible says, there is no disagreement that we are
doing what is right. Everyone can see that the Bible teaches Christians to be
"speaking to one another" and to be "making melody in your hearts." Christians
are to be "teaching and admonishing one another" and to be "singing with grace
in your hearts." None of these points are debated by anyone. The disagreement
comes when people try to add instrumental music to God's commands. This is where
we can see that the real issue is not instrumental music, but our view towards
the authority of the Word of God. Do we want to follow exactly what the Lord
commands, or are we free to add our own ideas to what He has revealed?
If we are serious about not adding to the Scriptures, those who use instrumental
music in their worship must find a passage that authorizes their practice. Until
that passage is found, the question must still be asked, "Instrumental music is
from what source, from heaven or men?"
Some Argue
that Instrumental Music is an Aid to Our singing, not an addition to God's
commands
An aid can only be an aid as long as it does not change or add to the nature or
action of what is being done. One example would be the use of communion ware
commonly used by churches. It does not matter if we use silver, aluminum, gold
or paper plates to pass out the unleavened bread. The plates and trays are
merely an aid to carry out the Lord's commands to eat and drink the bread and
fruit of the vine in remembrance of Him.
When a teacher or preacher uses a microphone, it does not change the nature of
the obedience to God's commands concerning teaching. The correct teaching can
still be accomplished although the sound volume may be aided by new technology.
Songbooks do not change the fact that we are singing and making melody in our
hearts to the Lord. The action is still the same, although we might use an aid
to enable us to better carry out the Lord's commands. Instrumental music is not
a mere aid but an addition. God told us how He wants us to make music. We
are to "make melody with your heart". When we add instruments, instead of aiding
the melody in our hearts, we are adding another melody of a different kind.
Aids to following God's commands are not sinful, but God has always rejected
additions to His commands.
What would happen if someone wanted to serve roasted lamb during the Lord's
Supper to help us remember that Jesus is the true Lamb of God? Would this be an
aid or an addition? God commanded what He wants us to use to remember the
sacrifice of the Lord. He commanded us to use unleavened bread, and to change
from bread to lamb would be an addition to God's law rather than an aid. Using
lamb to remember Jesus being the Lamb of God might seem like a good idea to us.
The Bible doesn't say we can't do this! The Bible does tell us
what to use and to use any other kind of food not authorized by God would be
lawlessness, or without law.
To use instruments in worship to God, we must find the passage that authorizes
it, or admit that we are practicing that for which there is no law. Worshipping
God without law is what the Bible calls lawlessness or iniquity.
Some claim
that Since Instruments were Used During the Old Covenant, we can Use them in
Worship Today
Those who want to justify the use of instrumental music today continually go to
the Old Testament for their justification. Below are some of the passages used
to show that instruments were used by the Jews during the Old Covenant.
 "Then
Hezekiah commanded them to offer the burnt offering on the altar. And when the
burnt offering began, the song of the Lord also began, with the trumpets and
with the instruments of David king of Israel. So all the congregation
worshipped, the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded; all this continued
until the burnt offering was finished." (2 Chronicles 29:27-28)
"Four thousand were gatekeepers, and four thousand praised the Lord with musical
instruments, 'which I made,' said David, 'for giving praise.'" (1 Chronicles
23:5)
"Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy; And on the harp I
will praise You, O God, my God." (Psalms 43:4)
"Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; Praise Him with the lute and harp!
Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; Praise Him with stringed instruments and
flutes!" (Psalms 150:3-4)
The Jews used instruments because God commanded them to be used. In 2 Chronicles
29:25, we can read how Hezekiah stationed the Levites in the house of the Lord
with cymbals, harps, and lyres. He did this because, "the command was from the
Lord through His prophets." Hezekiah would have been wrong if he had not
followed the Lord's commands. Some reason that since "Jesus Christ is the same
yesterday and today, yes and forever" (Hebrews 13:8), then we can worship with
instruments because their use was commanded in the past. We must understand that
God the Father and Jesus do not change, but the covenants have changed!
We cannot go to the Old Covenant for our authority in worship today. The book of
Galatians was written to Christians who were trying to bind circumcision on
those who would approach God. Although circumcision was required by God in the
Old Covenant, to require it today is to fall from grace. Paul wrote, "Behold I,
Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit
to you. And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is
under obligation to keep the whole Law. You have been severed from Christ, you
who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace." (Galatians
5:2-4)
There are many other practices in the Old Covenant that we do not follow today.
No one has any trouble understanding that we no longer have cities of refuge
today, although they were commanded for the Israelites. The church no longer
practices animal sacrifices, the Levitical priesthood or physical warfare. We
understand how all these have changed because of the change in the covenants.
Why can't we as easily see that it is just as wrong to go back to the Old
Testament for our authority for instrumental music as it would be to try to
justify any of these other practices in the Old Testament for the church today?
Although it is clear that the Jews used instruments, the New Testament tells us
how we are to be worshipping God today. In Hebrews 13:15, we are told,
"Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that
is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name." If we offer the fruit of
our lips, we know we are doing right. The Bible does not say, "Thou shalt not
use the instrument!" just as God did not tell Nadab and Abihu which fire not to
offer or tell Moses not to hit the rock. God just tells us what He wants us to
do.
Today, God is telling us through the New Testament that He wants us to be
"teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or
deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father
through Him" (Colossians 3:16-17).
To "do all in the name of the Lord Jesus" is to do all by His authority. We must
be able to prove by Scripture what we do and practice. There is not one word
said about instrumental music used in the worship of Christians. The only way we
can do it is to add it on our own authority and play God.
We must always be careful to do only what our Lord authorizes. The warning of
Jesus still stands:
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven,
but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that
day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your
name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I
never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!.'" (Matthew
7:21-23)
To paraphrase the question that Jesus asked the Pharisees, "The use of
instrumental music in the church is from what source, from heaven or from men?"
If from heaven, please give the passage. If from men, please stop practicing
lawlessness.
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