What role does music play in christanity?

[kat8585]

Music is a big part of worship for me. Both from the hymn book and the contemporary Christian songs we sing. They are prayers that I sing. The words have deep meaning. They describe what I'm feeling and saying inside. Sometimes they are what has "gotten me thru".

[Iryssa]

*grin* Great summary...but you should know that Musicology is already a dictionary term. It's a really neat area of study actually.

mu-si-col-o-gy [myoo-zi-kol-uh-jee]

[irishcowboy]

Just curious as to everyones answer...

What role does music play in christanity (or any religion)? and this is only in terms of praise/worship/religious music. I was discussing this with a friend and thought I'd post the question here. Basically this is pretty general, so I'm hopeing the answers will all be quite different.

make a joyful noise, our job is to glorify God, with music, with song, with words, with praise, with worship with our entire being.

music is just one of many.....

David even had people playing instruments to keep the music going for the others that he had as singers...

Music is (should be ) uplifting to the heart......

Praise and Worship and Singing and Music and Tithes and Offering and such is our portion we give to the Lord.......

the Sermon is God giving to us...............

it is a shame that we are ready to stop singing after only one or two songs, and really have no clue as to how to raise Gods Name above all others, we Praise Him, but how many really Worship God????

most music we sing is not singing to God but singing about God, actually not even Praise Music, more what I would call "Witness" music.... good for witnessing, but not really praising Him, singing praises about Him, but not To Him...

ie: my God is an Awesome God..... singing about Him....

Lord I lift Your Name on High, ..... singing to Him....

satan hates us when we actually get in and Praise the Lord, for that was his job, until he got big headed about his status, and began perverting his station..... we have taken (suppose to have) over the job of Praising.

mike

[Guest Bravida]

Just curious as to everyones answer...

satan hates us when we actually get in and Praise the Lord, for that was his job, until he got big headed about his status, and began perverting his station..... we have taken (suppose to have) over the job of Praising.

mike

I would like to comment to this. As stated here and as is also my understanding is that the Evil one had the job as musican in heaven. Now think about it. If I have a profession, and are asked to quit my job will I take my knowledge, skills and maybe tools with me? Oh yea indeed I would. Therefore music is a most delicate subject to talk about and its full influence on human beings are not fully known.

I for one love music, but as I came from the disco world and became an christian I said goodbye to that type of music.

I sorry to say but if you use the Evils way of influencing people through music, dont for one moment think that you are wicer than him and that you can use his music to praise God. It is not possible. The wording you see and hear, but music is much more complex than this.

Sometime ago, there was a man joining a youth group in the church I was in. They was playing christian rock live, during the sermon. You know this guy was previously a satanist.. he recognised the music playing.

I was into disco music and I loved music, but there was something evil in it. It was somthing behind and I could sence it, its like the precense of something evil. If we continue to implement christian rock in the churches I am seriously conserned that we will be manipulated by the evil.

I have heard, read about people falling in transe in church during music playing. This fenomen is the same fenomen seen in Africa, South America and other countries. But then it is called by another name. Be very, very careful with which music to be played in church and think seriously about the influence all of you are upon others here.

Sister in Christ

[nebula]

But I have had a big problem within the church the last 20 years or so. (No problem in the 70's) It's just that church services are starting to seem more like a concert than church. I remember in the 70's when I loved praise music in church, but now I can't stand it!

Yeah, there's a lot of debate about whether the Christian music industry is good or bad.

But that's a whole other thread. . . .

I would like to comment to this. As stated here and as is also my understanding is that the Evil one had the job as musican in heaven. Now think about it. If I have a profession, and are asked to quit my job will I take my knowledge, skills and maybe tools with me? Oh yea indeed I would. Therefore music is a most delicate subject to talk about and its full influence on human beings are not fully known. . . .

Hello, Bravida -

Welcome to Worthy!

The way I see it, the Lord created music first. Although Satan has a way of corrupting those things God has created, that doesn't give him exclusive rights to any of it.

I have a sensitivity when it comes to music. Particularly, I am sensitive to the spirit of worship that flows through a song. I have heard praise and worship songs that don't have that spirit of worship in them, and conversely I have heard Chrisitan songs that aren't praise/worship focued but have that worship spirit in them.

It is not the style of the music that makes it good or evil. The heart of the person singing and those playing the insturments make the difference.

You are correct that music is complex and has profound influences on us. I do not believe though that any beat or way of playing any instrument is going to lead us to either God or Satan. For instance, I know of a Native American minister who writes and performs praise andworship music using his own native style of music - drums, flutes and all. And it is worship! He composed one of the most powerful songs on forgiveness I have heard.

The direction music leads you comes from the heart of the one performing/singing. If he (or she) is worshipping, the song will be a worship song. If he is performing, even with worship lyrics it will be harder to draw into worship through the song.

You can tell the difference when different artist record the same song. Even the best worship songs recorded by some come out so flat. But then you will note that their whole album comes out flat. It can be any style of music that this happens to. Conversely there have been Christian songs that haven't been too inspiring, but in the hands of a true worshiper the song becomes incredibly inspirational!

This is what I have learned with music.

(Hope it makes sense, even if you don't agree with it.)

[heartofstone]

Just curious as to everyones answer...

What role does music play in christanity (or any religion)? and this is only in terms of praise/worship/religious music. I was discussing this with a friend and thought I'd post the question here. Basically this is pretty general, so I'm hopeing the answers will all be quite different.

Praise and worship.

Worth doing a study on these and realising the difference between them, this will in itself answer your question when you know the difference.

As to praise and worship being good for depression it may not be so good to understand the reason why this is so.

Saul, when an evil spirit from the Lord came to torment him had the lad David play his harp. The evil spirit was calmed.

Saul should have sought the Lord instead of therapeutic praise and worship music, his soul was in jeopardy and he took the advice of foolish men.

Music does nothing for the soul, it calms evil spirits which torment the soul but for the good of our soul we need another Spirit.

Blessings, H.

^ I don't know that I've ever heard the story of Saul interpreted or told to me in that way, I guess it's usually just been the re-telling of the story without such an interpretation as that. It's cool. And makes so much sense. It seems that I could apply how I understand it to the example that in our day even, if one is tormented inwardly or outwardly by an evil spirit, worship/praise music only makes the spirits more unsettled, angry even, and in the end I think it only makes the person dealing with the spirit(s) feel worse. I have read/heard that some people though, who have the Holy Spirit in them, but feel the presence of demons and the like, will put on praise music or just read the Word of God aloud so as to drive the spirits off. I guess then the music playing would work in that way, 'cause it's not like the one hearing it is oppressed or possessed.

It's interesting to read the other posts, and the ones with the more simple answer for the purpose of music in praise and worship, but I have to wonder too about the sort of thing that was being said about the nature of the music... if it still had something to do with the tunes or just how it's played, maybe even the instruments and how it doesn't matter if the words are changed to those which offer praise, kind of like what Bravida might have been saying? I mean, you can recognize the music (wihout lyrics) from a famous and very particular song even in secular genres, right? and so if someone else were to take a tune (I am not musically inclined so I have no idead of what other words to say, lol) from a well-known rock song but added different words to it, even worshipful ones, wouldn't some of us be able to realize what song the tune/thing originated from? So, what if a satanist or someone involved with demons (even if he didn't know it) had coined a tune like that and put the music out there and it was reused by others, wouldn't it still be as bad as if the bad lyrics had been left in?

But then again, I see what nebula's saying with how it has to do with the singer and if he's really coming from that background, really is worshiping God or not... dunno, it's confusing, lol, at least to me.

On the simple matter, I really miss the hymns that I used to hear when I was a kid, but so many churches that tend to be made up of young adult parishoners mostly nowadays will only play contemporary music and new songs. Most of the time I don't think they're the same as the old hymns... it's like some of it only tries to be too upbeat and give the one-sided message of Jesus Christ's ministry and purpose, just my warped opinion though...

[Guest man]

Music does nothing for the soul, it calms evil spirits which torment the soul but for the good of our soul we need another Spirit.

2 Chronicles 5:13-14 ...indeed it came to pass, when the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord, and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the Lord saying, "For He is good, For His mercy endures forever", that the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God.

That would've been something to see.

1 Chronicles 13:8 Then David and all Israel played music before God with all their might, with singing, with harps, on stringed instruments, on tambourines, on cymbals, and with trumpets.

I wonder what evil spirits David was trying to calm there?

[53Christian]

The Holy Spirit inhabits the praises of his people. He is present for healings, deliverance and any other need the person may have. Worship/Praise is a form of warfare against the enemy. Praise/Worship is also good for depression. It is an important aspect to a relationship with God.

Exactly! I could have not said it better.

[Iryssa]

Just curious as to everyones answer...

What role does music play in christanity (or any religion)? and this is only in terms of praise/worship/religious music. I was discussing this with a friend and thought I'd post the question here. Basically this is pretty general, so I'm hopeing the answers will all be quite different.

Praise and worship.

Worth doing a study on these and realising the difference between them, this will in itself answer your question when you know the difference.

As to praise and worship being good for depression it may not be so good to understand the reason why this is so.

Saul, when an evil spirit from the Lord came to torment him had the lad David play his harp. The evil spirit was calmed.

Saul should have sought the Lord instead of therapeutic praise and worship music, his soul was in jeopardy and he took the advice of foolish men.

Music does nothing for the soul, it calms evil spirits which torment the soul but for the good of our soul we need another Spirit.

Blessings, H.

...

It's interesting to read the other posts, and the ones with the more simple answer for the purpose of music in praise and worship, but I have to wonder too about the sort of thing that was being said about the nature of the music... if it still had something to do with the tunes or just how it's played, maybe even the instruments and how it doesn't matter if the words are changed to those which offer praise, kind of like what Bravida might have been saying? I mean, you can recognize the music (wihout lyrics) from a famous and very particular song even in secular genres, right? and so if someone else were to take a tune (I am not musically inclined so I have no idead of what other words to say, lol) from a well-known rock song but added different words to it, even worshipful ones, wouldn't some of us be able to realize what song the tune/thing originated from? So, what if a satanist or someone involved with demons (even if he didn't know it) had coined a tune like that and put the music out there and it was reused by others, wouldn't it still be as bad as if the bad lyrics had been left in?

But then again, I see what nebula's saying with how it has to do with the singer and if he's really coming from that background, really is worshiping God or not... dunno, it's confusing, lol, at least to me.

I have heard people do that, actually, changing a popular rock tune and putting Christian lyrics to it. I agree that it's more about the heart of the singer than the tune itself! I was there for some very meaningful worship sessions where those songs were used, and you could totally feel the Spirit move! I don't believe that a tune can be inherently evil.

On the simple matter, I really miss the hymns that I used to hear when I was a kid, but so many churches that tend to be made up of young adult parishoners mostly nowadays will only play contemporary music and new songs. Most of the time I don't think they're the same as the old hymns... it's like some of it only tries to be too upbeat and give the one-sided message of Jesus Christ's ministry and purpose, just my warped opinion though...

I've been to churches where that's the case, too. As I said before, though, there are still churches that use the ol' hymnals, and use them well! Hey, I found one

[Guest Harrison_Jeff]

I said before i really like Michael w smith. I read that he was on a songs of praise christmas special?

Has anyone seen this?