Few things are as controversial in the Christian world as music—though I believe Halloween might give it a run for its money—and I will fully admit that I am a music snob. I grew up in a musical family, and both of my kids have inherited that same affinity. In college, I minored in church music. And, until recently, I have always been part of a praise team, choir, or singing specials at church. Music is in my blood.

As I have grown in discernment and increased my biblical worldview, I have had to reevaluate the types of music I will play in our home. I vividly recall listening to secular music when Mark and I were first married. I started paying attention to my mood and my expectations of people when I would listen to Christian music instead, and the results were very interesting. Music does affect us! It helps us memorize the good and the bad. It sets the tone for our environment. It can even attach itself to pleasant or hurtful memories. And often, we are unaware of the sway it has over us.

In the last few years, our family has visited many different churches, and one of the things we have noticed is the variety of song services during the churches’ worship services. We participated in services where the music was acapella. Others only sang Psalms. Others sang songs that came straight from Scripture and were unfamiliar to us. Most used the song service to “set a mood” for the upcoming sermon. One in particular seemed to just put on a show, singing songs with little to no substance and a ridiculous amount of phrase repetition. It was obvious which churches placed a high importance on the songs they sang and which ones only wanted to entertain, paying little heed to the words they were singing.

Gone are the days when we could simply trust a “Christian” label on a song. With so many false teachers infiltrating the ranks of Christianity and so much worldliness taking over the Christian music scene, it is important that we know how to evaluate music. It is easy to get caught up in the melody, the sticky lyrics, or the good “vibes” we get from the song and not recognize that we are not worshipping God at all.

Christian Music and Worship

First, it is imperative that we understand music is not evil. All throughout Scripture, we are told to worship God with Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. The longest book in the Bible, Psalms, is a book of worship songs the Jews sang as they set themselves apart from the world. David, a man after God’s own heart, was a gifted musician, called upon to soothe Saul’s spirit when he was out of sorts. And instruments are also not evil; the Bible mentions all kinds of musical instruments by name that were common during that time, lending to the assertion that we can use instruments common in our time. The Israelites were encouraged to use their instruments and their musical talents, even dancing, when they worshipped. While music and instruments can absolutely be used to draw people away from God, they can absolutely be used to draw people towards God, too. And there is nothing inherently more spiritual about an organ over a guitar. Both can be used to worship evil, and both can be used to worship God.

Besides worshipping God, there is another purpose to the song service: spiritual instruction. Our worship of God becomes deeper and more meaningful when we learn more about Him. As I mentioned earlier, music helps us memorize. That is why a song we heard on Sunday can stay with us all throughout the week. Therefore, we should be using the time during the music service to help in the spiritual growth of the congregation. This is why it is more important for a song to have doctrinal substance than a catchy tune.

Music is not the only way to worship. For some reason in our society, the “song service” and the “worship service” have become synonymous, but the song service is only a part of the worship service. The prayer, the sermon, the invitation, even the offering are ways we can worship God during the church service. And our worship is not limited to our time in church. Everything we do throughout every day of the week can be an act of worship. We can change diapers, make meals, do laundry, go to our jobs, drive down the road, play games, and sleep to the glory of God.

The Object of Our Worship

As with everything man gets his hands on, worship can be perverted. We need to evaluate the object of our worship. The music portion of the worship service in our churches is meant as a time to worship God. Unfortunately, many modern songs twist this purpose and worship “me,” “I,” and “myself” instead of worshipping God. If the song is about who I am, how God makes me feel, how I define God, or what God can do for me, then it is not worshipping God, it is worshipping me.

Not only can a song be twisted to worship self, but also it can be manipulated to simply elicit an emotional response. There are many songs that make us feel something. Maybe the music builds in a certain way as to increase our feelings of worship, causing us to close our eyes, stand spontaneously, or raise our hands. Maybe the lyrics strike a chord with us based on a particular circumstance in our lives at that time. Maybe the song lends itself to dramatic outbursts or added musical trills and runs. But, friend, we must keep our eyes on the intended object of worship! Emotional responses are fickle. Our emotions should follow our knowledge of who God is, not a fabricated, momentary feeling.

Christian Music for the Congregation

We should also consider what makes a good congregational song. If the goal of the song service is to lead the congregation to worship in unity, then the songs we choose to sing as a congregation should lend themselves to congregational singing. When there is a solo or the music leader strays from the melody, this causes confusion rather than unity in the assembly. One of the reasons hymns have been so popular throughout the years is because most of them are predictable. Even if you have never heard a particular hymn before, the melody often follows common musical patterns, so it is easy to pick up. Unlike most modern worship songs, hymns are repetitive in melody but not in lyrics. This makes them easy to learn, too. Contemporary worship songs often have difficult transitions, bridges, or vocal ranges making them more of a distraction and less conducive to congregational worship. Please don’t misunderstand me, not all hymns are good and not all contemporary choruses are bad. Each song should be evaluated independently before we choose to sing it in our churches.

The Origin of the Music

Finally, we must consider the origin of the song. Who wrote it? What affiliation do the songwriters have? What other kinds of songs do they write? The importance of these questions is two-fold. There is a practical, financial side to consider, and there is a spiritual-health-of-the-congregation side to consider.

Let’s start with the practical side. We live in a time when we value private ownership not only of property, but also of ideas. Being accused of plagiarism is no small thing, and using someone’s intellectual property without their permission is stealing. As a result, there have been checks and balances set up to ensure an artist is financially compensated when his song is played—as he should be.

Christian Music and Stewardship

We are called to be good stewards of the money God provides us, both on a individual level and as a church body. I don’t want to get into the weeds on this, but churches purchase a license to use an artists songs, and as individuals, we either purchase the song or listen to it on a membership platform like Spotify or Apple Music, all of which we pay to use. This is a way to ensure the artists are compensated each time we play or use the song. So when we play a song on one of these platforms or we sing a song in church, we are financially supporting that artist and should consider if that is good stewardship of the money God has provided.

Each church should make this decision prayerfully, but I will share my position on this. An individual artist or band who is not affiliated with a larger organization can learn and grow during a musical career, so picking and choosing individual songs that are doctrinally sound from those artists whose lifestyle and teaching align with Scripture is acceptable. Of course, if you find that they have made a statement that goes against Scripture, supporting their ministry should end until such time as they repent.

A band that is affiliated with a larger organization or ministry should be regarded with more scrutiny. When we financially support a band that is part of a church or ministry, our money may not stay simply as a support of the music portion of that organization but may be used to finance other endeavors. For example, Bethel Music is part of Bethel Church, which includes a ministry training facility. When I support Bethel Music, my money may well be used to fund the training facility. What does that organization teach? Does it align with Scripture? Would we invite that pastor to preach behind the pulpit of our church? If not, we should not be supporting that ministry with our dollars.

When we consider adding a song to our church’s music service that comes from one of these bands, we also need to look at their entire repertoire of music, not just the one song in isolation. When we look at the entirety of their work, do they only sing about those attributes of God that make us feel good, like His love, mercy, and goodness? Or do they also sing about His justice, holiness, and righteousness? Do they ever mention His wrath or His power? Just like a lie of omission (telling only part of the story) is a sin, singing only about the parts of God we like paints only half of the picture.

Christian Music and the Assembly

Perhaps we think we can still pick and choose songs that don’t meet this sniff test because that one song is just so good and the lyrics are spot on. Let’s consider the effect that could have on the spiritual well-being of the members in the assembly. One of the church members absolutely loves the song and looks it up online to find the artist. As soon as she find it, she adds it to her Spotify playlist and begins listening to it on repeat. She loves the song so much that she downloads the entire album, she goes to YouTube and searches the artist, and then she begins listening to sermons preached by the pastors in that organization. Suddenly, you have a member of your congregation falling into false beliefs which cause her to deconstruct her faith.

The music we encourage our church members to listen to is no light issue, friend! The song service should be just as concerned about the spiritual growth of the assembly as the sermon portion of the service. The music pastor should be more pastor than musician, weighing everything he brings to the congregation against the teachings of Scripture.

Conclusion

I know this is a heavy and controversial topic, and if you have read this far, I commend you! I encourage you to do the research and come to your own conclusions about the music you choose to play in your home. You may have convictions about music that your pastor or music minister don’t share. Like I said at the beginning, I consider myself a music snob and have dealt with this situation repeatedly. Prayerfully consider which aspects can be covered in love, which aspects should be addressed, and which aspects are deal breakers for you.

Ultimately, God is sovereign, and He can redeem those things the enemy intends for evil. While this is not a salvation issue, we are told in James 4:17 that it is a sin to know the right thing to do and not do it. That applies in every area of our lives, including the music we listen to and sing.

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