Worship In Song Part 2
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Introduction
Introduction
Greetings...
Over the last several weeks now we have been studying the theme: “Fundamentals.”
The basic, milk or foundational topics we all must know and understand before we can “move on” to the solid food.
Our focus, in the beginning here, has been on worship and it’s great importance.
Last week we examine the importance of “Worship In Song” and what God desires from us in such.
To worship in song in spirit and truth means...
To yearn to sing with the understanding ().
To yearn to sing according to the divine pattern (; ).
Today I want us to now focus on that which has plagued the church since the early 1900’s and in fact was the reason for the great split.
Today, we are facing the same attack the church faced over 100 years ago and that is the great push for mechanical instruments in the worship of song to God.
Let’s dive right in to our lesson this morning.
Justifications Given For The Use Of Mechanical Instruments
Justifications Given For The Use Of Mechanical Instruments
The Bible doesn’t say I can’t use them.
The Bible doesn’t say I can’t use them.
This argument based on silence from God is not a new argument at all.
Tertullian (160-220), exposed this theology and doctrine when he said it had been taught...
Tertullian (16-220) wrote, “the thing which is not forbidden is freely permitted
the thing which is not forbidden is freely permitted
Tertullian (160-220) - was telling the argument given to him.
Martin Luther actually taught...
Tertullian, “The Chaplet, or De Corona,” in Latin Christianity: Its Founder, Tertullian, ed. Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson, and A. Cleveland Coxe, vol. 3, The Ante-Nicene Fathers (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Company, 1885), 94.
what is not against Scripture is for Scripture and Scripture is for it
Men have been using this to teach all sorts of false doctrine for years.
The Psalms were meant to be sang with mechanical instruments.
The Psalms were meant to be sang with mechanical instruments.
They will go to such sources as “Strong’s Lexicon” and quote it...
a set piece of music, i.e. a sacred ode (accompanied with the voice, harp or other instrument; a “psalm”)
song of praise, psalm 1 Sm 16,18; music made with an instrument Am 5,23
They will then look at examples of such like .
1 Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens! 2 Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness! 3 Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp! 4 Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! 5 Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals! 6 Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!
The word “ψάλλω” means with mechanical instruments.
The word “ψάλλω” means with mechanical instruments.
Once again “Strong’s Lexicon” and other like it are given to try and “prove” this point.
Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon 5567 ψάλλω
to pluck off, pull out. 2 to cause to vibrate by touching, to twang. 2A to touch or strike the chord, to twang the strings of a musical instrument so that they gently vibrate. 2B to play on a stringed instrument, to play, the harp, etc. 2C to sing to the music of the harp.
Danny Corbitt, in his book “Missing More Than Music”, he writes...
"Put another way, no lexicon teaches what Exclusion [those who argue for exclusively a cappella singing] commonly asserts, that psallo had completely changed its meaning in the first century. The closest that selected lexicons come is to say that the meaning in the New Testament might not demand accompaniment.” (http://bit.ly/2pdx0b8)
Summery
Summery
These three arguments are the most common and now we will examine them, in light of Scripture, now.
Examining The Arguments
Examining The Arguments
The Bible doesn’t say I can’t argument.
The Bible doesn’t say I can’t argument.
Before I even begin to prove how utterly illogical this argument is I want to first examine how God has dealt with people, in His Word, who have tried the same argument.
The infamous Nadab & Abihu must have thought the same thing many do today, “God didn’t tell us we couldn’t use a different fire.”
1 And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not. 2 And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.
1 Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. 2 And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord.
Now, even David must have thought to himself, “God didn’t say I can’t travel with the Ark of the Covenant in a cart, I’ll make a “new cart” to carry it in.
7 And they carried the ark of God on a new cart, from the house of Abinadab, and Uzzah and Ahio were driving the cart. 8 And David and all Israel were celebrating before God with all their might, with song and lyres and harps and tambourines and cymbals and trumpets. 9 And when they came to the threshing floor of Chidon, Uzzah put out his hand to take hold of the ark, for the oxen stumbled. 10 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he put out his hand to the ark, and he died there before God.
Now these illustrations alone should warn everyone that, that which is “unauthorized” is that which is sin.
Look again at but in the ESV this time.
1 Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. 2 And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord.
Now to drive this point home let everyone her be assured, God has spoke on the matter and has told us that “His silence does not authorize anything.”
In we read the writer’s argument that Jesus is to not only be priest but High Priest. However, we all know Jesus is from the tribe of Judah and only the Levites could be priests under the Old Law.
2 And with you bring your brothers also, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, that they may join you and minister to you while you and your sons with you are before the tent of the testimony.
The Hebrew writer’s point in is that Jesus is High Priest but not on earth because it’s impossible for Him to be such since He is from the tribe of Judah.
14 For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests.
The argument being made by God here is called “The Law of Silence.”
In other words God didn’t say the tribe of Judah could be priests therefore they could not.
To say God authorizes from that which He is silent in, is utterly false and will shows a complete lack of understanding of how to study the Bible or care for God’s precious Word.
The psalms were meant to be sung with mechanical instruments argument.
The psalms were meant to be sung with mechanical instruments argument.
Remember the argument is based on the Greek lexicons, such as Strong’s, that state as much.
Remember the quote from Strong’s...
a set piece of music, i.e. a sacred ode (accompanied with the voice, harp or other instrument; a “psalm”)
Now, there is no doubt that the “psalms of the O.T.” were meant to be sung with mechanical instruments.
We can clearly see that in the “introductions” to the psalms.
In we read, “TO THE CHOIRMASTER: WITH STRINGED INSTRUMENTS. A PSALM OF DAVID.”
In we read, “TO THE CHOIRMASTER: FOR THE FLUTES.”
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016), .
There is also no doubt that God commanded the use of mechanical instruments in the Old Testament in general.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016), .
25 And he stationed the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals, harps, and lyres, according to the commandment of David and of Gad the king’s seer and of Nathan the prophet, for the commandment was from the Lord through his prophets.
This changed under the Law of Christ.
If you examine the concordances closely you will find this all changed during the church era.
The Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Abridged in One Volume ὕμνος, ὑμνέω, ψάλλω, ψαλμός
psállō occurs some 50 times for “to play a stringed instrument” (mostly in Psalms
The Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Abridged in One Volume ὕμνος, ὑμνέω, ψάλλω, ψαλμός
psállontes does not now denote literally playing on a stringed instrument
sing praises, make music with voice
spec. a striking the chords of a musical instrument [(Pind., Aeschyl., a].)]; hence a pious song, a psalm, (Sept. chiefly for מִזְמֹור), Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16; the phrase ἔχειν ψαλμόν is used of one who has it in his heart to sing or recite a song of the sort
Words change meaning, this is not new, and over and over Greek lexicons demonstrate this.
Just because the Psalms were meant to be sung with mechanical instruments in the O.T. doesn’t require they are in the N.T. as the lexicons point out.
The word “ψάλλω” means with mechanical instruments argument.
The word “ψάλλω” means with mechanical instruments argument.
Once again this is an appeal to a word “make melody” in with the hope that one ignores facts and listens to non-sense.
to sing songs of praise, with the possible implication of instrumental accompaniment (in the NT often related to the singing of OT psalms)—‘to sing, to sing a psalm, to sing a song of praise, to sing praises.’ τῷ ὀνόματί σου ψαλῶ ‘I will sing praises to your name’ or ‘I will sing praises to you’ Ro 15:9.
primarily “to twitch, twang,” then, “to play a stringed instrument with the fingers,” and hence, in the Sept., “to sing with a harp, sing psalms,” denotes, in the NT, “to sing a hymn, sing praise”
Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon 5567 ψάλλω
to pluck off, pull out. 2 to cause to vibrate by touching, to twang. 2A to touch or strike the chord, to twang the strings of a musical instrument so that they gently vibrate. 2B to play on a stringed instrument, to play, the harp, etc. 2C to sing to the music of the harp. 2D in the NT to sing a hymn, to celebrate the praises of God in song.
The point is this, everyone knows that the Greek word “psalo” translated “make melody” in means to sing and that is why the four other times it is found in the N.T. it always is translated “sing” instead of “pluck instrument.”
9 and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, “Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.”
15 What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.
13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms.
Not only that but if the word did mean “pluck the string” that would change nothing because the instrument to be used isn’t a mechanical one but an emotional one the “heart.”
19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart,
Now the other, common sense, thing to note is that if this word “psalo” means with mechanical instruments, like it did in the O.T. then we all would be required to use them and we would be in sin if we didn’t for the word means as much.
Summery
Summery
The point is there are no “new arguments” under the sun and those that have been presented are based on an inability to understand HOW TO STUDY THE BIBLE.
Conclusion
Conclusion
These continued attempts are falling by the wayside by the denominations as they no longer strive to try and defend their beliefs, the push for mechanical instruments comes from our own brethren it can only be stopped by removing our ignorance on the subject.
As Jude wrote we must be willing to “contend earnestly for the faith” ().
Invitation
1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; 2 but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.
6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.