I know you’ve heard it…. “Worship is not music.”
I understand why it is said. I have said it. I say it.
The reason we say it is because, if we are not careful, we can begin to compartmentalize our gathered times of corporate worship from the rest of our lives. We are prone to be religious instead of seeing all of our lives as a living sacrifice to be lived for God’s glory (Romans 12:1, Colossians 3:23). In that sense, we need to know that biblical worship is a lifestyle, not just an activity (thanks to folks Louie Giglio and Matt Redman for reinforcing these truths in our generation).
However, just because worship is not music does not mean that music is not worship. When the Bible wants to stir our hearts to respond to God it does not say to do the dishes or watch TV or go for a walk, even though all those activities could be done for God’s glory as an act of worship, in a sense.
Throughout the Scriptures, the most common response to God’s activity, His word (Colossians 3:16) and His Spirit (Ephesians 5:18-19) seems to be to strike up a band and lift up your voice.
Shout your praises to God, everybody!
Psalm 98:4-6 (The Message paraphrase)
Let loose and sing! Strike up the band!
Round up an orchestra to play for God,
Add on a hundred-voice choir.
Feature trumpets and big trombones,
Fill the air with praises to King God.
It is hard to read passages like Isaiah 42 or Revelation 5 and still say “worship is not just music” as if music should be on the same level of importance as any other activity in our lives or church communities. The truth is that music and singing is a unique, sacred and ideal form of praise & worship. You can not honestly read the Scriptures and fully separate the ideas of music and worship.
The Bible talks about singing over 200 times, and many of those instances are commands for God’s people to sing to Him. While worship can be understood more broadly than music, it is clear that music is the foremost expression of praise in the Bible. It should hold a sacred space in our individual lives and in the liturgy of our church communities. We should be careful not to underestimate its power – both for good and for evil.
It is not “just” music. It is connected to our brains, our spirits and our soul in a unique way. It teaches us things more deeply than we can understand consciously. It connects us to rhythms, science, math and patterns that are built into creation, literally on a microscopic level, that we do not totally comprehend. But we feel the power of it when we listen to, play or sing music, do we not? We know it is sacred. It is a heavenly force.
What does it mean when God himself designs His heavenly throne room with musical instruments (Revelation 5:8)? Or that God himself sings (Zephaniah 3:17)? What does it mean that the stars “sang” at creation (Job 38:7)? How did David drive away demons with his harp (I Samuel 16:23)? Why did Elisha invite a minstrel before he would prophesy (2 Kings 3:15)? What does it mean that David taught his musicians to “prophesy” with their instruments (I Chronicles 25:1)? Can instruments speak (I Corinthians 14:7)? What was it about Samuel’s band that made king Saul turn “into another man” (I Samuel 10:5-6)? What were the timbrels/tambourines in the garden of Eden (Ezekiel 28:13)? Were they part of Lucifer? Part of Adam? Or did God maybe give people/angels instruments at the beginning of creation? Why did God create design people (and some animals) to be able to makes musical notes and tones with their bodies? What exactly happens inside our brains when we combine language with melody? Why do kids learn better if you teach them with songs?
Throughout the Bible the emergence of God’s kingdom purposes on the earth are preceded by and punctuated with singing. At times, it is hard to know where the cause ends and the effect begins. It is as if God is enthroned in praises, and the songs themselves bring forth deliverance.
Music is worship. It is uniquely worship. Worship is not limited to music, but it is uniquely and powerfully expressed by it.
I am not saying that talented musicians and singers can worship better than others. I am saying that even if you do not consider yourself to be a musical person, you have no choice but to sing. God has given each of us the instrument of our voice specifically to sing praises to Him. It is like opening a doorway into spiritual encounter, fresh life and joy.
And perhaps musical artists do hold a unique – perhaps even a spiritual – role in our communities to help us connect to the Creator. Not that artists are more important than anyone else, but perhaps the Church could learn to value the spirituality of music and art itself. Maybe we need to take the risk of allowing true creativity and artistic expression. But that is another topic for another day.