Instrumental Music
Chapter four
Clarence W. Fell
Chapter Four
Instrumental Music
Singing
In our day singing with musical
instruments is common place. Most
religious groups today use a variety of musical instruments in their worship services, but in the beginning of
Christianity things were quite different.
Christians originally sang their praises to God without musical
instruments. This type of singing is
commonly referred to as a cappella singing. Musical instruments were not added to
Christian worship until sometime after 650 A.D.
The Restoration
When the leaders of the restoration
movement looked to the New Testament to see what to do about instrumental music
they found no record of it in the New Testament. The Christians of the first century and for
several hundred years to follow sang without instrumental music. The leaders of the restoration realized that
if true New Testament Christianity was
going to be restored, then musical instruments would have to be removed from
their worship.
Many people today view our practice of
singing without musical instruments
as rather odd. They often become
defensive when they learn that we believe it is wrong to use musical
instruments in worship. To defend their
use of musical instruments they come up with a variety of arguments. In this chapter we will look at their
arguments. We will see whether or not
they have a reliable basis for adding musical instruments to their worship.
But David...
Perhaps the most common defense made in
favor of musical instruments is an appeal to David’s Old Testament use of
musical instruments. Psalms 150 is a
popular reference to show the Old Testament use of musical instruments in
worship.
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise God in His sanctuary;
Praise God in His mighty
firmament!
2 Praise Him for His mighty acts;
Praise Him according to His
excellent greatness!
3 Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet;
Praise Him with the lute and
harp!
4 Praise Him with the timbrel and
dance;
Praise Him with stringed
instruments and flutes!
5 Praise Him with loud cymbals;
Praise Him with clashing
cymbals!
6 Let everything that has breath
praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord!
It is
absolutely true that David worshipped God with musical instruments. No one can deny this Biblical fact. It is also true that David worshipped God under the direction of the
Levitical priesthood. His day of worship
was Saturday, his worship ceremonies included animal sacrifices, and he was regulated by
various dietary laws. Verse 4 of Psalm
150 also included dance as an acceptable part of Old Testament worship.
David lived and worshipped under the
Mosaic system that ended with the beginning of Christianity. The Old Testament, while valuable to us in
many ways, is not a buffet line from which we can select whatever items we like
and add them to Christianity. We do not
follow the Law of Moses, we follow Jesus.
Jesus is our leader. He has all
authority (Matthew 28:20). Those who
appeal to David as their authority for using musical instruments are appealing
to the wrong leader.
It is also important to notice that David
did not presume to add musical instruments
on his own authority. The Bible tells us
that God commanded musical instruments to be used in the Old Testament.
And he stationed the Levites
in the house of the Lord with cymbals,
with stringed instruments, and with harps, according to the commandment of
David, of Gad the king’s seer, and of
Nathan the prophet; for thus was the commandment of the Lord by his prophets (II Chronicles
29:25).
David was directly commanded by God to use
musical instruments under the Law of Moses.
David did not presume upon his own authority to add musical instruments
to the worship of God. He was commanded
to use musical instruments. David did
not have the option of not using musical instruments.
When the leaders of the restoration
movement looked for a similar command or authorization in the New Testament,
they found none. Christians were neither commanded nor
authorized to use musical instruments
in their worship. The leaders of the
restoration movement did not dare presume upon their own authority to add
musical instruments to God’s New Testament pattern. They would no more dare to add the Old
Testament musical instruments than they would presume to add the Levitical
priesthood, new moon festivals, or Sabbath regulations.
It is also important to notice that in II
Chronicles 29:25, not just any body could play musical instruments in the
worship service. The text clearly states
that David,
...stationed the Levites in the house of
the Lord with cymbals, with stringed
instruments, and with harps, according
to the commandment.
The
Levites were the ones specifically assigned this duty. The use of musical instruments under the Old
Law was not like the common modern practice where any member who desires can
make arrangements to play an instrument or sing a song. The use of musical instruments in the worship
was limited to the Levites. The popular
modern practice of having a solo or quartet entertain the audience is not what
the Jews practiced under the direction
of the Levites. The popular modern
practice is not authorized by the Old Testament or the New Testament.
Those who appeal to David as their
authority for adding musical
instruments to their worship need to consider also the attitude
David expressed in Psalms 19:13,
Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have
dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, And I shall be innocent of great
transgression.
God Doesn’t Care
Another argument that is commonly put forward
is that God doesn’t care whether man adds musical instruments or not. It is surprising that anyone would make this
argument given the fact that the Bible clearly warns against making any changes
in the Biblical pattern. This casual
attitude that would tinker around with God’s divine pattern is condemned beyond
question. Consider the following verses.
I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a
different gospel, which is not another;
but there are some who trouble you and want to
pervert the gospel of Christ. But
even if we, or an angel from heaven,
preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any
other gospel to you than what you have
received, let him be accursed (Galatians 1:6-9).
How
could anyone advocate making changes in the light of this passage?
Brethren, I speak in the manner of men: though it is only a man’s covenant,
yet if it is confirmed, no one annuls or adds
to it (Galatians 3:15).
The
covenant of the New Testament has been confirmed by the blood of Christ. We dare not
tamper with that divine covenant.
Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or
epistle (II Thessalonians 2:15).
It is
clear from this verse that God intended for the pattern of New Testament
Christianity to continue on unchanged.
The leaders of the restoration
movement chose to respect this divine teaching. They removed musical
instruments from their worship and thus restored the original a cappella tradition.
For I testify to everyone who
hears the words of the
prophecy of this book: If anyone
adds to these thing, God will
add to him the plagues that are
written in this book; and if any
one takes away from the words of
the book of this prophecy,
God shall take away his part from
the Book of Life, from the
holy city, and from the things
which are written in this book
(Revelation 22:18,19). In the light of these two verse it is
rather astounding that anyone would
approach the Scriptures
with a cavalier attitude and make
changes to suit themselves.
Such changes are clearly forbidden.
The Christians of the first century under the teaching of
the apostles sang a cappella.
Christians continued to respected this practice for several hundred years. This is an undisputed historical fact. Even
historians who worship with musical instruments agree that in the
beginning of Christianity musical instruments were not used. Musical instruments were available to the
Christians of the first century, yet musical instruments were not used. ( I encourage you to verify the historical
facts for yourself by referring to Shaff’s History of Christianity, or the
Americana Encyclopedia, or the Encyclopedia of Britannica, or any other
historical material available to you through your local library. )
The argument that God does not care is a careless
and dangerous argument. It directly
contradicts the Bible. It provides
absolutely no Biblical basis for the use of musical instruments.
But It Doesn’t Say That You Can’t
It is
true that the New Testament does not specifically state Thou shall not play
musical instruments in thy worship to God.
But, the New Testament does specifically state
that we are not to add to or take away from the Word (Rev. 22:18,19). It does specifically state that
we are to stand fast and hold the traditions just as we were taught “whether
by word or our epistle” ( II Thess. 2:15).
The absence of a specific prohibition against musical instruments does
not automatically authorize musical instruments. God has told us what He desires. Our duty is to respect His will without assuming that
He also desires something else in addition to what He said.
Those people who insist that a specific
prohibition must be given before
something is wrong, would turn the Bible into an impossible monstrosity.
Can you imagine how many volumes it would take to specifically list everything that is not
allowed? The depth of detailed required to assure that someone did not
presume to find a loophole would be mind boggling. Fortunately, God did not pursue such an
overwhelming course. He simply told us
what He wanted and then told us to, “stand fast and hold the traditions
which you were taught, whether by word or epistle” (II Thessalonians 2:15).
If everything that is not specifically
forbidden is allowable, then II
Thessalonians 2:15 is essentially meaningless.
Consider the Lord’s Supper. It is
observed using unleavened bread and grape juice. This is our Christian tradition as taught in
Matthew 26:26-30. There is never a
specific statement in the Bible that say we can’t use something else in the
Lord’s Supper. There is not a
prohibition against using cookies and soda pop in the Lord’s Supper. According to the But It Doesn’t Say That
You Can’t argument we must conclude that cookies and soda pop are acceptable because
there is no specific prohibition against cookies and soda pop. Once this way of thinking is accepted, then
the door is open to absolutely any change that men desire, and II Thessalonians
2:15 means nothing. Most people will
reject the But It Doesn’t Say That You Can’t argument in connection with the Lord’s Supper, but gladly receive it as
their authority for using musical instruments.
Let’s approach it from another angle. Imagine that you are taking a sewing class
and the teacher gives you a shirt pattern.
Your assignment is to make a shirt according to that pattern. Let’s suppose that along the way you decide
that two pockets on the shirt would be much better than just the one pocket
that the pattern calls for, and so you add another pocket.
Will the teacher be pleased? That
depends on the teacher. Some teachers
might give you extra credit for being creative.
Some teachers will take away points because you did not follow the
pattern. In Christianity the New
Testament is our pattern. God has
clearly told us how He will judge anyone who makes changes in His pattern (Rev.
22:18,19; II John 9-11; Gal. 1:6-9;
3:15). We are not at liberty to change
the pattern that God has provided.
Perhaps you are thinking that if we had a
direct statement forbidding musical instruments, then the matter would be
easier to settle. Actually, a direct
statement would not settled the matter.
If the New Testament specifically said, Thou shall not use musical
instruments in worship, we would still have to deal with this issue. The problem is that people ignore the direct statements of the
Bible. The Bible directly states that baptism
doth also now save thee (I Peter 3:21), and yet many deny this truth. The Bible directly states that homosexuality
is wrong ( I Cor. 6:9), and yet more and more religious people are denying this
truth. The Bible directly states that women are not to
teach over men (II Tim. 2:12) and yet many deny this truth. So, if we had a direct statement forbidding
musical instruments, we would still have to study and defend the a cappella tradition.
The fact is that musical instruments are
not in the New Testament pattern. A specific prohibition is not required to
exclude musical instruments from the pattern. For over six hundred years this
aspect of the pattern was respected even though the Bible did not specifically
forbid musical instruments during this time.
The leaders of the restoration movement realized that musical
instruments were an unauthorized addition.
They also knew that it did not matter how long ago man had made this
change, musical instruments had to be removed if the Biblical pattern was to be
truly respected.
Greek Scholars Say It’s OK
Chances
are that you are not a Greek scholar.
Chances are that you are not even a student of the Greek language. If you were, it still would not resolve the
instrumental music question. There are
Greek scholars and students on both sides of the debate. So, what do we do? Let’s do what the restorations leaders
suggested, let’s use Bible words in Bible ways.
This will provide us with a solid and irrefutable answer that not even a
Greek scholar can argue against.
The apostles and first century Christians
are the absolute best experts on
the New Testament Greek. They spoke and
wrote the language. It was a part of their daily life. So, when they heard or read,
Speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing
and making melody in your heart to the
Lord (Ephesians 5:19).
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).
What
did they do when they heard these verses?
Did they gather musical instruments to play in worship? Or, did they worship God without musical
instruments? The people who spoke,
wrote, and lived in the language of the
New Testament listened to the apostle’s teaching and then sang without musical
instruments. The Greek can be just this
easy to understand if we will let it.
When we ask, what did they do? The answers are usually fairly easy to
find. But when we ask, what will we do? That is when the arguing and debating
begins. To answer the question, what
will we do? I simply suggest that we, “stand
fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or
epistle” (II Thessalonians 2:15).
It’s Just an Aid
An true aid would not change the original a
cappella singing into something else.
For example, whether you sing from memory or use the aid of a song book,
you still sing a cappella.
Whether you pitch a song from memory or from a pitch pipe, you still sing
a cappella. An aid does not add
to or change God’s pattern. It is
obvious that a piano is not merely an aid like a song book or pitch pipe. When musical instruments are played, then
something has been added to the worship and the
original a cappella style of singing is changed.
Let’s look at what the Bible says about
musical instruments in
worship. Let’s see if the Bible
say instruments are just an aid or a part of the worship. We will start with Psalms 150.
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise God in His sanctuary;
Praise God in His mighty
firmament!
2 Praise Him for His mighty acts;
Praise Him according to His
excellent greatness!
3 Praise Him with the sound of the
trumpet;
Praise Him with the lute and
harp!
4 Praise Him with the timbrel and
dance;
Praise Him with stringed
instruments and flutes!
5 Praise Him with loud cymbals;
Praise Him with clashing
cymbals!
6 Let everything that has breath
praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord!
In
this Psalm we see that musical instruments are not merely aids, but rather a
part of the worship.
Next, let’s consider II Chronicles
29:25-28,
And he stationed the Levites
in the house of the Lord with
cymbals, with stringed instruments,
and with harps, according
to the commandment of David, of Gad
the king’s seer, and of
Nathan the prophet; for thus was
the commandment of the
Lord by his prophets. The Levites stood with the instruments
of David, and the priests with the
trumpets. 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 assembly worshiped, the singers
sang, and the trumpeters sounded;
all this continued until the
burnt offering was finished.
In this passage we see that all the
assembly worshiped. The musical
instruments were not merely an optional aid, but were actually part of the Old
Testament worship for thus was the commandment of the Lord by his
prophets.
In the eyes of God musical instruments are
not just an insignificant detail. When
God desired instrumental music He made His desire clearly known. We believe that if He wanted to carry that
Old Testament practice over into New Testament worship, He would have likewise
make His desire clearly known. We dare
not presume to add musical instruments based upon our own wisdom and authority.
The Jewish converts of the first century
knew better than to just assume that God would accept musical instruments in
their worship. They had the example of
Nadab and Abihu as a warning to those who would dare make changes in God’s
pattern. The account of Nadab and Abihu
is as follows,
Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it,
and offered profane fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. So fire went out from the Lord and devoured
them, and they died before the Lord (Leviticus 10:1,2).
The
thing that Nadab and Abihu thought was just a small matter that they could take
some liberty with, cost them their life.
For over six hundred years Christians
respected the New Testament pattern and sang without using musical instruments. They simply offered God the melody of their hearts
(Eph. 5:19) and the fruit of their lips (Hebrews 13:15). We believe this same New Testament practice
should still be respected today.
But the Angels have Harps
In Revelations 14:2 John records, “...And
I heard the voice of harpists playing their harps.” If there are musical instruments in heaven,
then that is fine. There were musical
instruments in the Old Testament, and so if God puts them in heaven, we will
certainly not oppose Him, but we are not currently in heaven.
If everything that is in the book of
Revelation is suppose to be a part of our Christian worship, then things are
really going to change. According to
this logic Christians should add writing the Father’s name on their foreheads
to their worship ( Rev. 14:1). We should
add an altar to our worship (Rev. 6:9).
There should be fire on the altar (Rev. 8:5). We should have a golden censer (Rev. 8:3).
And, we should have incense (Rev. 8:4).
If the mention of harps in Revelation 14:2 proves that God wants us to
musical instruments, then the mention of these other things proves God wants us
to use them also. Obviously, we must be
careful about conclusions we draw from the book of Revelation. We must also ask, why didn’t the apostles and
first century Christians understand from Revelation 14:2 that God wanted them
to use musical instruments?
What Will We Do?
This issue is not an unsolvable mystery.
Understanding the New Testament pattern is actually rather easy to
do. When we ask, what did they do? The answers are fairly simply to find. In fact, there is complete agreement among
scholars that Christianity began a cappella and remained a cappella for several
hundred years. Controversy doesn’t get
stirred up until we ask, what will we do?
That is when people start getting defensive and creating arguments to
defend their man-made tradition. The
Bible answer to the question, what will we do? is found in II Thess. 2:15 where
Paul wrote, Stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught,
whether by word or our epistle.
These simple facts stand undisputed
The church of Christ began a cappella.
It remained a cappella for over six hundred years.
We are clearly taught not to add to or take away from God’s word
(Revelation 22:18,19).
When musical instruments are played
something is added to the worship and
the original a cappella style of singing is changed.
YOU
ARE INVITED
Come visit with us, look us over, and ask any questions
that you have about the
Sunday
9:00 A.M. Bible Study
Sunday
Wednesday 7:00 P.M. Bible Study
If
you prefer, you may write or call, and ask us any question that
you have. Mail your questions to:
7115 West 65th Street
Little Rock Arkansas 72219-0062
E-Mail—donmcclain@sbcglobal.net
Call—(501) - 568-1062
Web-Site— http://www.w65stchurchofchrist.org/My_Homepage.html
—————————————————–
Elders Deacons Evangelist
George
Rumker Glen Gray Don
McClain
Louis
Sharp Brady
Speer
Bill
Wharton Bennie
Stephens
Karl
Vandevender
Kevin
Webb