Session 3, will take up questions such as What is the proper place of music in worship? Does the devil have all the good music? Contemporary or traditional music: who cares? Is one’s musical preference all that matters? Do our music choices indicate that we are worshiping Christ or ourselves?

The National Center for Family Integrated Churches welcomes Jeff Pollard with the following message entitled, How Does Music Affect the Worship of God? It is always a very great blessing and a privilege to be with you. I look forward to this meeting every year. I'm very thankful to Scott for having me back. Would you please open your Bibles with me to Revelation chapter 4, the apocalypse of John.

Revelation chapter 4, we're going to read verses 11 through 14. Now I know this is not likely to be possible for everybody, But if you can, would you stand with me as we read the Word of God? Revelation chapter 4, we're going to read verses 11 through 14. Let us give our attention to the Word of God. To receive glory and honor and power for thou has created all things and for thy pleasure they are and were created I gave you the wrong number you knew that is a sharp much let's try that again let's do verse 8 down to verse 11 There's a scribal error on my notes here.

All right, now the Word of God. And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him, and they were full of eyes within. And they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was and is and is to come. And when those beasts give glory and honor and thanks to him that sat on the throne who liveth forever and ever the four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne and worship him that liveth forever and ever and cast their crowns before the throne saying thou art worthy O Lord to receive glory and honor and power for thou has created all things and for Thy pleasure they are and were created. Amen.

May the Lord add His blessing to the reading of His Word. Let's unite our hearts in prayer. Righteous and holy Father, how we praise and thank Thee for the mercy that Thou has showered upon us today in Jesus Christ, our Lord. Oh, blessed God, triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, We praise Thee. We thank Thee, O Holy Father, that Thou hast loved us before the foundation of the world, that Thou hast sent Thy holy Son to save Thy people from their sins.

We thank Thee that Thou hast sent Thy blessed Spirit to draw us out of darkness into the glorious light of Jesus Christ. And we thank Thee that we can meet in His name. And now Lord, I pray that Thou would grant us further grace. Lord, come by Thy mighty Spirit and grant us much light. Give us understanding, clarity of mind.

O, rend the heavens and come down, Lord. Please, Thou dost Love thy sheep, feed them, build them up in the faith. If it would please thee, O righteous Lord, draw the loss to thee. We ask it in Christ's name. Amen.

Please be seated. The Apostle John, as it were, draws back the curtain of heaven to let us gaze upon the glory of God and of His Christ. Heaven rings, heaven is filled with glory and beauty. The beauty of the Lord Jesus. The Holy Spirit focuses the spotlight here upon the Lamb of God.

Now this weekend has been given to the glorious subject of the worship of God. And as I bring the three messages that I've been doing on music to a close, I want our hearts and minds fixed on this heavenly vision. This is a beautiful, glorious chapter filled with the worship of Christ. Now I'm not sure how many of you have been to the other sessions, so I purposed to do a review of the two previous sessions because this closes those two. Now, God commands us to worship Him with music.

That's the first thing we considered. This raised the question, how do we know what music pleases Him? And this brought our very first challenges. The Bible does not define music anywhere in the holy text. And the Lord does not promote or prohibit any particular style in the holy text.

So those are great challenges and they make this very controversy that they are. Now a proper understanding of the sufficiency of scripture will guide us carefully through this matter. When we try to work through any situation where we do not have clear and direct word from our God, we believe in the doctrine of sufficiency. And we go to the word as our sufficient authority for the subject of music. While we have to go outside the Scriptures to get certain information, we examine that information by the Word of God.

So, we then considered a brief overview of music in the Bible which made very clear that music can be a wonderful part of the believer, the believer's life. But Most especially when it comes to the matter of worship. Music and worship is the theme. I'm not moving off of that. There are a lot of questions that arise from this that have to do with music in general, but I've been trying to keep it as focused as possible to music in worship.

That was my assignment and that's what I've attempted to lay hold of. And as I mentioned in the last session, I'm not here to tell you what bands you can listen to and not listen to, or what music you can or can't. That isn't my purpose. Always glad to have discussions about what we think is appropriate, but I'm not here for that. Now this led us to two questions and the two questions are very simple.

What is worship and what is music? Worship is our spiritual response to God. It is empowered by the Holy Spirit and it is enlightened, it is informed by the Word of God. Music is sound or tones in time. Music is sound.

By that I mean tones and they are ordered in time. We then considered these things. Music is the product of creative intelligence. Number two, music is aesthetic. It is beautiful.

Number three, music is expressive. And finally, we considered that music affects us. It's a very great power in our lives. We learned that music does not control us. This is a very important point.

Music does not control us, but it does powerfully influence us. Music activates many areas of the brain and stimulates the system of the brain that makes us experience pleasure. However we are able to resist that influence. Now in our second session we asked the question is music a language and the answer is yes We discovered that music and language are similar in some ways Paul the Apostle Paul saw a similarity between music and language Thirdly music is not a propositional language. Rather, it is a language of emotions.

Now the next major question we took up was, how does music communicate emotions to us? And here we learned that music is the language of symbol. It represents feelings and moods by representing them with sounds. If music is a language, it is a language that communicates emotion to us and that brings us to another obvious question if that's the case is music neutral We discussed a better way of framing the question. Many of us have had the discussion that a particular style is neutral.

The only thing that has morality to it is the lyrics. We challenged that perspective, and we believe that there's a different question that must be asked. That different question must be, does music communicate in a way that stirs up sinful passions in its hearers? And the answer is yes, sometimes. Certainly not always, but it can, and it does.

We then ask, how are form and content related? We spent a good time discussing that, and then we concluded that form must be in harmony with lyrical content. Now, I make that especially pointed for worship. There may be places outside of worship where we might not hold to that rule, but we believe that that seriously should be considered as we worship our God in song. Our next question was, is all music good?

Is all music good? Because we are fallen and able to stir up sinful passions by musical expressions. We cannot say that all expressions of music are good. We then followed a brief survey of the sinful rebellious roots of rock and roll with some thoughts on loving the world. And that brings us now to our third and last session.

I know that was a lot of information to try to cover, but I hope it at least gives you a little look into what we've been doing and now where we're going to conclude. So we take up another question. It is this, what is the proper relationship between music and worship? I used to be in the music business. In concerts, it's not unusual to have what we call the warm-up act.

They're usually someone who is not well known yet. They come out, they work really hard, they try to get everybody's attention, they want someone to buy their album. They warm up for the big guys. And the big guys is what everybody is there for. We can't treat music that way.

We cannot treat the worship of our God in that way. Music is not just singing around the campfire. Music in the worship of Almighty God is indeed our participation in lifting up our voices in praise and adoration of Almighty God. It must never take backseat, but on the other hand, it must not be made the big player. We can fall into error both ways.

You go into some congregations and there's more music than preaching. Now, I would not begrudge that to someone, but I certainly would not recommend it. I do believe in the primacy of the preaching of God's Word. So, Having said that, music is a vital part of our worship of God. As we have seen, God commands us to worship Him with music.

Our sacred music then is something that brings Him glory and apparently brings Him pleasure. Zephaniah 3.17 declares, The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty. He will save, He will rejoice over thee with joy, He will rest in His love, He will joy over thee with singing. Now that's an astonishing thought. That the thrice holy God would be involved, even interested, in singing over the likes of us.

But he has loved us before the foundation of the world. He has drawn us to himself in Christ Jesus the Lord he loves us and He rejoices over us The holy God of heaven rejoices over his blood bought children with singing Now when we come together as the corporate body of Christ our hearts and souls should be focused on God and our music should reflect that. We're not there to fire up our flesh as such. We are there to offer up from our affections, from our hearts warmed in the love and truth of God to praise and magnify his name. As our thrice holy and sovereign God, he loved us before the foundation of the world.

He purposed to save his people from their sins. He appointed his eternal son to be their surety, their sin-bearing substitute. Christ agreed to be our mediator, our prophet, our priest, our king. The eternal son of God become flesh. And in his holy person and work he accomplished everything infinitely necessary to save and preserve his people for all eternity.

The Father and the Son sent the Holy Spirit into the world to supply the merits and to apply the merits of Christ's blood to His people. And He opens their hearts in regenerating grace, bringing them into eternal union with Jesus Christ, the crucified, the resurrected, the ascended, the interceding, Lord of glory. That Spirit works repentance and faith unto everlasting life in our souls. He sanctifies us. He bears the fruit of good works in our lives so that we love and obey Him.

It is all of grace. It is all of Christ. He makes us new creatures that we might worship Him. We wait patiently for the Lord Jesus to return for us in majesty and resplendent glory. We want to see the consummation of the kingdom.

That's what our worship is about. This should be in our hearts. God's eternal purpose to make us like Christ. Paul wrote about it to the Ephesians. He wrote of God's great love for them from eternity.

And he said that God saved them in Christ to the praise of the glory of his grace Wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved and there it is The glory of his grace the glory of his grace This is capture our hearts fill our minds with praise Thanksgiving Adoration And part of that adoration is music. We should have music that's a fit vessel to praise God for these holy and glorious eternal transforming truths. Now, this is the revelation of God's truth in Christ and our corporate worship is our response to God, to the revelation of God. We're not coming with just foggy minds, or we shouldn't. We should be coming knowing who it is that we are worshiping and what he has done for us in the Lord Jesus Christ that should always be burning in our hearts and sometimes words don't seem to carry it strongly enough it is one of the blessings in our great and good God giving us music That we have another way another way to lift up our hearts and to Unburden our souls to lift our souls to magnify our God for what he's done in Jesus Christ our Savior now the the purpose of our music in worship is twofold.

It is for the maturing of the children of God and he gave some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers For the perfecting of the Saints for the work of the ministry for the edifying of the body in Christ Till we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man under the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ this is our hope this is what God is working in us and that should come out of us in praise in song second part of that is to bring glory to God. Unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. Now our singing should reflect this glorious revelation. The revelation of our God, the revelation of the saving purpose of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And so with this in mind, Our worship music should have first a declaratory purpose. When we gather to worship Almighty God, there should be a declaratory purpose. Our music should first declare the glory and perfections of our God. We're not coming simply to sing about our experiences. The Psalms are filled with the proclamation of God's attributes and his perfections and it is a good thing to fill our hearts and minds with these great truths of our God glorious almighty all power all knowing in all places at all times gracious merciful loving we need the attributes the perfections the glory of our God in his great holiness ever in our hearts and upon our lips.

The Psalms are filled with his perfections. I will praise the Lord according to his righteousness. The Psalms direct us to the glorious character of our God. And we'll sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High. Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength.

So will we sing and praise thy power. We should be etching upon our hearts the glorious attributes of our God, singing them, singing them until they are a part of our thinking. Our worship music must be God focused, God exalting, because Our worship is a response to who he is and what he's done. Secondly, there needs to be a doxological purpose. A doxological purpose.

Our music should be filled with praise. Praise to God. Once again, the Psalms are filled with praise, adoration, thanksgiving. Our worship music must include Psalms and hymns that lead and instruct our hearts to praise our great God in His holiness. Goodness, righteousness, mercy, grace, love, infinity, eternity, wisdom.

Power. Praise Him. Praise Him, all ye people. There should be an instructive purpose in our music. It should be doctrinally sound.

Doctrinally sound. I tell you, it's one of the real problems today. You read a lot of the stuff that's out there and things don't have to be old to be heretical. Things don't have to be new to be heretical. You go back through a lot of the old hymn books that I've seen over the years and you see a lot of man-centeredness.

You see a lot of flesh in those pages. You see a lot of sentimentalism that very often we grow attached to because of music's great power upon us, and then we begin to think of God in ways that very often are utterly unworthy of his praise. We get tiny, tiny views of God sometimes because of tiny hymns. We need hymns that set before us the glory of our God and then teach us doctrinally. One of the greatest tragedies of contemporary music and there are some good things written out there.

It doesn't have to be written in the 1500s to be sound. One of the great tragedies of contemporary music is its lack of solid doctrinal instruction. And I see this in Reformed churches. I hear their children singing things that are not what their confession says, not what the Scriptures say. Listen, music is one of the ways we catechize ourselves.

What are you catechizing yourself with? Are you catechizing your heart and your soul with that which is eternal truth or simply sentimental thoughts for men? Many old hymn books and hymns are filled with Arminianism, Phineasism, and general man-centeredness. As with the Psalms, we should be singing the eternal truths of God, branding their glorious content upon our hearts. Ephesians 5 19 gives us a blessed picture of Christ's people instructing each other in holy music, speaking to yourselves, Psalms, hymns, spiritual songs.

We have an opportunity to teach and exhort one another in the glorious music that the Lord has given us if indeed it is glorious There is also a maturing purpose to our music. At least there should be, and we should be thinking in these terms. There's two thoughts here. First is that our music should help the saints to grow in Christ, not simply tickle our affections. I'm not anti-feeling.

I think it's wonderful when we are swept up in the glory of our God and our hearts are singing. I'm not anti-emotional. But I am anti-being-governed-my-emotion. And we should, with all of our hearts, seek to grow and mature in what we understand of our God a solid diet of grace centered, grace exalting doctrinally sound Psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, grows God's children in the faith. Their minds will become a treasure chest of exhortation, gracious promises and gospel comforts.

It will fill up the food for the soul to grow on, truth for the mind to expand on, grace for the heart to rest on, and Christ for the soul to hope on. Music is important. Secondly under this thought of maturing, our music should help the saints mature emotionally. Emotionally. I want to thank Scott Annual for his wonderful book, Worship in Song, for making me sit up straight at this particular moment.

I had never crossed my mind about the Saints maturing emotionally in their singing, And this is a glorious thought, and it's a solid one. Biblical sacred music should instruct God's people in fundamental emotions. Here's what I mean. Our culture has saturated us with false notions and distorted emotions, sentimentalism, the media manipulate human emotions in our culture and we are often perverse in understanding of how we should feel. God's people are confused about what they should or should not be feeling.

Part of it is because of the air we breathe that is so filled with, as Paul would say, we're listening to the hearts of those that are without natural affection. We do not love what God loves And we need to learn. We need to bless what God blesses. We need to joy over what God joys over. Good music can do that.

I know that that is so in my own life that was such an... When I read that portion in worshiping song it just knocked me over. I realize how obvious this is we think like the world when it comes to emotion. Solid, biblical, hymns, psalms, spiritual songs, whatever our convictions in those areas are, these help heal and teach us how to think emotionally in a way that's honoring to the Lord Jesus Christ. Our wicked deceitful hearts and our reprobate culture orients our emotions to the point that we've become confused, we are damaged, we're even stunted in our affections.

We need solid worship music that orients our emotions to God's will and God's purposes. Certainly not just our feel-goodism. We do not need insimped, sentimental, Jesus diddies. We need psalms, We need hymns, we need spiritual songs that will give us hope, fill us with assurance, strengthen our backbones, make us courageous, rebuke us of our sins, and cast us on Christ. That's good singing.

I hope you know it. It's wonderful. There's also an expressive purpose. Our music should satisfy our longing for expressing our love to God. It helps in that, not the only thing, but it is a wonderful wonderful avenue through which we express our love for God.

Our music music should satisfy a longing to manifest our love to God. It grieves me when I'm in a congregation, when I'm preaching somewhere and I see everyone is just their heads down, you see their lips barely moving. If we understood the doctrine of grace as well as we ought, We could not but come into God's presence and open our hearts and sing. Well, how can we express our joy that our sins are blotted out and our names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life more gloriously, more heartily than when we lift our voices in song to the Lord Jesus Christ. How can we praise our God enough for spilling the precious blood of his Son that our filthy sins might be washed away?

We need music to help us express from the bottom of our hearts our dependence upon God, our sorrow for our sins, our joy for eternal life, for hope, for hope of the consummation of Christ's great kingdom and of eternity with Him ruling and reigning in His splendor. Heaven isn't going to be a group of people with their heads down. It's going to be filled with the glorious praise of our Savior. We need to be doing that now the best we can. Our voices will not crack there.

We won't miss the note. And we will sing, I can't wait. I can't wait. Well, is preference all that matters? Is this just a matter of preference?

It is clear that we all have preferences. One prefers this psalm, this hymn, this spiritual song, this way, while another prefers something else. Even among the reformed there are exclusive somatists traditional hymnody and now even CCM is this all just a matter of preference Should we just live and let live? You may have your CCM, I will have my Psalm." Well, we pretty much have to live that way, but I think we ought to be praying that God would really teach us about this matter of the music we use to magnify Him. I did not come to pick a fight with anyone.

I wrestle with these issues. I cast myself before God and I plead with him to grant light. But I do know this, we need to be thinking in terms of Psalms, hymns and spiritual songs that in our hearts and minds we can say are in harmony with the glorious vision that was given to us in Revelation 4. Millions of angels magnifying the living God, shouting his praises. We add our voices to that.

It is hard to imagine some of the things we bring into his presence if we really understand that vision. We'll never perfect that here in this world, but we can get better. Well, Brethren, I've been pouring out a lot of information and I've got some more. And I want to try to set it before you in ways that you will find helpful. Now if we have understood the position that I have taken since the very first session, I can find little or no room for CCM in corporate worship, the corporate worship of God.

But let me be very clear. What I mean by that is certain styles of it, certainly not all of it. I can't imagine any of us not standing and singing heartily in Christ alone. What a glorious hymn. And I thank the Lord for that.

But there's a little difference between that and metal headbanging for Jesus. Many styles of CCM simply cannot be suitable vehicles for the purity, for the beauty of God's worship. Rock's raunchy sensuality, its volume, its aggression, and its arrogant rock posturings cannot carry the soul in humility to the throne of grace. But the styles are not the only problem. I do wish to raise a few problems, and I want to raise them for us to think about, to pray about.

I do not claim to have all the answers here, But I do see some things that I think are matters that we should consider very seriously. Number one, to say that no style of music can be inappropriate is to deny the effect of radical depravity on human beings and on human communication. Let me repeat that. To say that no style of music can be inappropriate is to deny the effect of radical depravity upon human communication. This denial arises from a heresy known as the view of Pelagianism.

Pelagius was a fifth century British monk who had no place in his theological system for the doctrines of grace. He had no place for the sovereignty of God. His man-centered theology denied original sin and human depravity, and it exalted human nature, especially free will. He actually believed that it was possible, though not probable, but possible for a human being to live a sinless life. This is serious error.

What we often hear today is that God gave us all forms of music, therefore All forms of music are good. I think this is a very important step. I believe that that is wrong thinking. We have confused the music with the gift God has given us to make music. We make the music.

We make music and we can make bad music. We can make music that expresses things that are not in harmony with the presence of God. It is true that way in almost any art. I talked about this a little bit in the last session. But we would not look at someone who took a piece of marble and carved an obscene statue and say and agree with him that this was good because God gave us the marble.

Right? We would say no that's obscene. You use the gift God gave to you for something that is not honoring to the Lord. I don't know why the notion has gotten around even in reformed circles that music somehow escapes human depravity. I don't believe that it does.

And I believe that we can hear it in the music. So, We're treading on very serious theological ground, saying that no style of music can be wicked, is to take a Pelagian view of men. I'm not saying that those who hold this view of music are all Pelagians in all points of their theology. I'm just saying here at this point. Because Scripture teaches us that we are radically depraved.

Musical expression of our hearts can be inappropriate and communicate sinful passions. Secondly, radical depravity is the state of all human beings. And I want to spend just a few moments here. To say that my taste and my preferences cannot be perverse is a distortion of a biblical truth of depravity. Yes, everything about me can be perverse.

Radical depravity does not mean that human beings are sinful in every aspect of their humanity. It does not mean that every human being is as sinful as he or she can possibly be. But it does mean that every faculty of every person is affected by the power and pollution of sin. Scripture is clear at this point. As the representative of all human beings, Adam sinned and passed on a sinful nature to all his descendants.

By one man's disobedience, many were made sinners. God plainly declares our dreadful condition. The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. Who can know it? Outside of Christ, we are dead in trespasses and sins and we live according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.

Human history has proved this true. God saw the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Continually. Sin has affected our minds. Human beings became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

Sinners are alienated and enemies in their minds by wicked works. Paul even describes us as living in the vanity of our mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them. Now wait a minute. Do you believe that? Do you believe that testimony?

Then what does it say about your preferences? They're corrupt. And your mind, your heart, your soul, your preferences need to be brought for cleansing. I fear sometimes that our preferences are simply our showing the stain of Satan's lie. Ye shall be his gods.

My beloved brethren, Paul goes on to show that our emotions have been damaged by sin. Who being past feeling, those are some of the most dreadful words in all of Scripture to me who being past Feeling have given themselves over until the civvies nous to work all cleanness with greediness Paul speaks of the flesh with the affections and Lusts and that those outside of Christ are lovers of their own selves without natural affection truth breakers false accusers incontinent fierce Despisers of those that are good traitors heavy high-minded lovers of pleasure, more than lovers of God. Oh, May our music never manifest that. But may it manifest our love for the Almighty, the God who saved us by His glorious grace. But those that are outside of Christ are under the power of Satan, and the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

The music composer who does not know Christ is alienated from God, an enemy of God with a deceitful heart, a foolish heart, a darkened heart, a blind heart, A wicked mind, a futile mind, a blinded mind, an ignorant mind, depraved emotions, and a slave of Satan. Who's catechizing you? What's shaping and fashioning your tastes for music? Those who are utter strangers to purity, righteousness, goodness, holiness? Oh, the lost man is fashioned and delivered a musical expression as a vehicle appropriate to the contents of his mind and of his lyrics.

Many CCM artists and other professing believers fill their minds and hearts with the music of the lost, God-hating rebels. And I was one. I can talk this way. This is not sound in either lyrical content or emotional content. I fear that those who constantly fill their minds with the music of this world are in violation of Philippians 4-8.

Finally, brethren, Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue and if there be any praise, think on these things. This is a command, not a suggestion. Is it not? When the Lord first started dealing with me, I encountered some of the early CCM musicians. I knew them.

I could have been there. And likely I'd still be there if I had gone. But as I began to understand Scripture more clearly, as I pleaded with the Lord to teach me, I realized that some of these men never let go of their idolatry of rock and roll. They never let it go. I'm not saying that about everybody.

This is not a blanket statement. I'm just saying that in my own life, I've seen it. Peter says, Wherefore, gird up the loins of your mind be sober and Hope to the end for the grace That is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ as obedient children listen carefully Not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance. That may not be the case for everyone, but I can say without any hesitation, For many of us, our music was among the many idols in our gallery of rebellion against God. What is fashioning you?

What is fashioning your musical taste? Next, to say that personal taste is all that matters is to embrace an atheistic perspective. Saying that the only thing that matters is my personal taste is to adopt the perspective that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I grew up hearing that statement. I used that statement.

I used that philosophy. But I've changed my mind, continued studying of the Word of God. And while I hear Christians say this all of the time, This is the view of an atheist. My taste and my opinion and what I like is all that matters. You can do what you want, but this is it.

But you are not your own. You were bought with a price. Those are Christ's ears. Those are Christ's eyes. Those are Christ's limbs.

You and I are His blood bought property. We're His. Our hearts and our minds should be yielded up to Him. Now again, please don't hear what I'm saying. There's a ban on everything done by lost people.

We'd all have to leave the world, right? And I'm not saying that. But I am saying Christ loved you and gave himself for you. He bought you with his blood. You are his.

What are you catechizing yourself with? What are you bringing into your life that is affecting your worship and primarily your worship in song. I am not saying that all those who believe in beauty in the eye of the beholder are card-carrying atheists. But I am saying that at that point they're saying the very same thing as the atheist. It is a man-centered worldview that has no ultimate standard of right or wrong.

So it cannot say that a music style is bad. In this worldview, no one can say, boy, that's really awful. Or they might privately, but they can't do it in the trades. Not without repercussions. This is a man-centered worldview.

One might say, oh, I prefer another music. But he can't say that this one is bad and this one is good. And the more recent books being written on music, especially from an evolutionary perspective, are just honking that horn. Because the evolutionary perspective cannot have ultimate and absolute truth. But in a universe where there's a sovereign God, There's right and wrong, good and bad, well done and poorly done.

And we can say that according to the Word of God with the right heart. Sin has corrupted every aspect of my life and yours we must have the Word of God teach us we must have our emotions healed by right and good music I understand that that's not gonna look the same for everybody I've already been asked who I listen to don't ask when I'm finished but my dear brethren we are listening to something and we're either building up our faith we are growing in the faith we are encouraging ourselves and we're actually involving ourselves with the the worship among God's people that builds up and encourages each other in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs or we're not and we need to be we need music that at least to the best of our feeble capacities in prayer and humbling ourselves before our God is at least somewhat consonant with the glory and beauty of the great and grand and holy and good God that we worship. Here's my last thought. Do we worship ourselves or Christ? Do we worship ourselves or Christ?

That's what it comes down to, really. Satan has many wicked tricks and deceptions and devices to keep God's children from biblically worshiping him. Having deceived Eve in the garden, He continues his foul deceptions, especially in the realm of worship and music. What we often fail to see is that we get strongly attached to certain feelings in worship. And we begin to think that if we do not have that feeling, that we have not worshiped.

And we must be very careful here. It is possible for us to attend the worship of God with no thought of worshiping Him, but coming for our feeling. And at that point we've become idolaters. We're not coming to worship ourselves. We are coming to offer ourselves up to Him who gave His only begotten Son that we might have life, who's given us an everlasting hope.

If we are not careful, and music is something to be careful with, we will end up worshiping ourselves and not the God of glory and sovereign grace. So now we're ready to answer the question. How do we know what music pleases our God in corporate worship? The content, the content, talking about the text, the lyrics, must be in harmony with God's Word. The music must be doctrinally sound.

It must exalt God's perfections. It must praise His character and work. It must mature God's children. It must instruct their souls. And it must let them express biblical affection to their God while there is latitude in certain styles of music.

The style must be in harmony with God's holy, righteous character. I'm convinced and I recognize that all will not be. But I am convinced that styles such as rock and roll and metal and punk and hip-hop are usually filled with aggression, harshness, sensuality, hypnotic rhythms that are utterly unworthy to carry our praises to God. You don't have to agree with me. I would just ask you to pray about it.

And earnestly seek the Word of God regarding these matters. The music that pleases God must instruct and mature our emotions. Does it teach us to fear God? Does it help us to sense the majesty of God? Does it provoke us to love God?

Does it humble us to repent before God? Does it speak with gentleness? Does it speak with strength? Does it speak with joy? Does it speak in godly sorrow?

This takes prayer, care, study, skill, and above all a desire to worship God in spirit and in truth. May the time that we have spent in these last days be glorifying to our great God. May we yearn with all our heart to grow in the worship of God. May we look to the Lord Jesus Christ by faith and live. Amen.

Oh Father, we want to worship Thee. I don't know how well I have worshiped Thee, but I want to offer Thee praise, glory, and honor and thanksgiving. I am so thankful that thou didst receive our weak and feeble worship through Jesus Christ our Lord. I am so grateful that he makes our worship lovely. We are thy people.

Teach us and help us to grow in the worship of our God. In Jesus' name, Amen. Ncfic.org