Music In The Church

Are many churches out of tune
with what their members really need
and want? I believe they are. This article
may seem a little controversial to
some, but I ask you to think carefully
about this topic.

A Bird’s Eye View of Music In The Church

With my position in the Answers in
Genesis ministry, I’ve traveled extensively
for over 40 years across many
parts of the world, including the US. I’ve
spoken in hundreds of churches from
many different denominations across
all 50 states. This opportunity has given
me a bird’s-eye view of the trends and
patterns in the Western church.

I’ve certainly heard many Christian
leaders bemoan the trend of losing the
younger generations from the church.
AiG conducted research and published
the eye-opening results in the popular
book Already Gone. This book has
influenced many Christian leaders to
totally change the way they teach and
conduct evangelism.

But I would have to say that another
consistent trend that stands out to me
is music. I personally believe one of
the reasons music has become such a dominant feature in the church is that
church leaders recognize they are losing
coming generations and that the
church is not impacting the culture as it
used to. So they think more music and
performance will attract these younger
generations back to church. But based
on my experience and the research
we’ve conducted, I believe the church
needs in-depth, relevant teaching on
topics such as creation and Bible apologetics
to answer skeptical questions
and equip people to defend the faith.

Now, don’t get me wrong! I love
music. In our younger years, my
wife, Mally, and I often played piano
and organ together in church. And
sometimes Steve Hess and Southern
Salvation—our resident singing group
at the Ark Encounter—talk me into
playing piano with them.

Ken Ham on Music In The Church

So I’m not against music! But I am alarmed by the consistent trends I’ve
observed in a majority of churches. I
recognize that what we like or dislike
regarding music can be very subjective.
But here is my personal philosophy
of church music, based on my
years of teaching in churches across
the world and talking to people and
listening to their feedback.

1. Mix the best of the old with a balance
   of the new. On rare occasions,
   when the worship leader sings a classic
   hymn, I notice that people really sing,
   though often the young musicians
   have a hard time playing along since
   they’re not used to such music. Many
   churches have a contemporary service
   and a traditional service. So that
   really divides the church with the older
   generations usually attending the traditional
   service and the younger generation
   attending the contemporary
   service. A blend of classic hymns with
   new worship songs could allow everyone
   to worship together.
2. Use songs suitable for congregational
   singing. I’ve noticed that praise
   and worship teams, in most instances,
   have become performance oriented with
   flashing lights and a nightclub atmosphere.
   Many of the songs they sing
   aren’t really suitable for congregational
   singing. Often while the team performs
   on stage, hardly anyone around me is
   singing. Performance songs (either from
   a group, solo, or choir) can be great, but
   worship leaders should recognize when
   a song is meant for performance.
3. Whether in classic hymns or more
   contemporary songs, check the lyrics
   against God’s Word to make sure
   they’re theologically correct—and make
   sure people will know what the words
   of the song mean. If you analyze many
   of the songs sung in churches today, you
   will find one or a combination of these
   problems: they’re shallow, theologically
   incorrect, or unclear in what message
   they’re supposedly conveying.
4. Be sensitive to the fact that not all
   people can stand for long periods of
   time—let people know they don’t have
   to stand. I have a chronic back problem,
   so for me (and others like me) standing
   for long periods in one place is difficult.
   Many elderly people also cannot stand
   for long periods. It’s hard to focus on the
   teaching when your body is aching from
   standing so long during the song service.

The bottom line is this:
in all we do, we must
make sure we are
glorifying God, not man.

5. Have at least equal time between
   the music and the teaching of the
   Word. Actually, I believe the teaching
   of the Word should be seen as the priority.
   As I’ve talked to people, I find
   (and surveys have confirmed) that
   people mainly want good teaching to
   nurture and equip them. Music has
   become the dominant part of church
   services to the detriment of in-depth
   Bible teaching. What many churches
   call their praise and worship time
   becomes the main part of the service,
   often lasting for 45 minutes to an hour,
   with only 20–30 minutes of teaching.

The bottom line is this: in all we do,
we must make sure we are glorifying
God, not man. Our church services
should edify believers so they will be
equipped in the Word to defend the
Christian faith and be powerful witnesses
for the Lord Jesus Christ. Don’t
be out of tune!

Let the word of Christ dwell in you
richly, teaching and admonishing
one another in all wisdom, singing
psalms and hymns and spiritual
songs, with thankfulness in your
hearts to God. Colossians 3:16

SourceThis article originally appeared on answersingenesis.org

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