Singing A cappella Praises to God Be a Berean!! Study
Daily!!!
Using the New King James Version John 8:32, "And you shall know the truth, and
the truth shall make you free.” James 1:22 "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive
yourselves.
Do what it says".
BIBLICAL
1. There is no mention of instruments being used by the
church
the of New Testament although they had been available to man for almost
3000 years. David had put them in the Temple court, but not in the Holy
Place and he used a
harp to sing his psalms.
2. Jesus and his apostles sang hymns, Matthew 26:30. "And when they had sung a hymn, they went
out to the Mount of Olives".
So I would rather do what Jesus did,
not what David did.
3. A New Testament author was an advocate of singing being the
praise of our lips, Hebrews 13:15.
"Therefore by Him let us continually
offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name."
4. Nothing in the Old Testament applies today, for we have a
new
covenant on which we base our worship, Hebrews
8:13. " In that
He says, “A new covenant, ” He has made the first obsolete. Now what is
becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away." This
means the psalms have no direct impact on the church of the new
covenant. except for the fact that we may sing songs developed from the
psalms.
5. To say that the word psalms implies use of
instruments
because David used instruments
to sing
psalms, means everyone would have to be playing an instrument in the
assembly to edify each other. Ephesian
5:19"speaking to one another
in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in
your heart to the Lord" and Colossians
3:16, "Let the word of Christ
dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and
admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.".
6. Paul's admonition is to sing unto Thy name, And that the Gentiles might glorify God
for his mercy; as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee
among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name Romans 15:9
7. Psalm
150,
David names instruments of music to praise God. Yet the
early church under the guidance of the Apostles, having access to
those scriptures chose not use them to
worship God but just simply sang instead.
8. When God established the tabernacle, He did not include
instruments. Exodus 25-31 and 35-40. Before the flood it is
recored that there were instruments, Genesis
4:21. Instruments were again available in
the
land of Israel as early as Genesis
31:27, where Laban had suggested to
Jacob that he might have used timbrel and harp to celebrate the
departure of Jacob and his family. "Why did you flee away secretly, and steal
away from me, and not tell
me; for I might have sent you away with joy and songs, with timbrel and
harp?"
9. The Tabernacle is a shadow for the church today, Hebrews 8:5. "who serve the copy and shadow of the
heavenly things, as Moses was
divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He
said, “See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you
on the mountain"
10. The Holiest of Holies or Most Holy Place is a shadow of
Heaven
where Christ is
today, Hebrews 9:24. "For Christ has not entered the holy
places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven
itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us;" and
Hebrews 6:19-20 We have this hope as an anchor for
the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the
curtain, where
Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become a
high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.
11. The Holy Place is a shadow of the church with the candle
sticks representing congregations where we serve as "preists" today, Hebrews 9:2. "For a tabernacle was prepared: the first
part, in which was the lampstand, the table, and the showbread, which
is called the sanctuary;" Notice the New Testament writer
mentioned only three things in the Holy Place with no mention of
instruments.
12. Since ONLY priest could enter the Holy Place can we
assume the Court Yard must be a shadow of the world because it is
outside the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place? The players of
instruments and singers would have been in the court yard area could
have not been in the Holy Place which represents the church.
13. David introduced instruments in the Court Yard of the Temple,
not in the Holy Place, I Chronicles
15:16 "Then David spoke to the
leaders of the Levites to appoint their brethren to be
the singers accompanied by instruments of music, stringed instruments,
harps, and cymbals, by raising the voice with resounding joy."
14. When re-building the temple, the Word says, put in
instruments as “David prescribed,” Ezra
3:10"When the builders laid
the foundation of the temple of the LORD , the
priests
in their vestments and with trumpets, and the Levites (the sons of
Asaph)
with cymbals, took their places to praise the LORD , as prescribed by
David
king of Israel." and Nehemiah
12:36. "and hisbrethren,
Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani,
with the musical instruments of David the man of God. And Ezra the
scribe wentbefore them.."
15. There is no evidence that instruments were used in the Jewish
synagogues of the Old Testament. In fact, they did not have a
praise service. See: http://www.piney.com/Synagogue1.html
Their services were devoted to reading the old scriptures and prayer.
16. Isaiah speaks disparagingly about instruments, Isaiah 14:11. "Your pomp is brought down to Sheol, And
the sound of your stringed instruments; The maggot is spread under you,
And worms cover you.’"
17. Jonah attributes the instruments of David as
contributing to
the complacency of Israel, Amos 6:5.
" Who sing idly to the sound of
stringed instruments, And invent for yourselves musical instruments like David;"
18. The New Testament contains the record of "all that Jesus
began to do and teach" Acts 1:1The former account I made, O Theophilus, of
all that Jesus began both to do and teach,"and
he did not teach the use of instruments.
19. Paul and Silas say praises unto God while in prison, Acts 16:25 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and
sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.
20. In our singing we praise God in the assembly, Hebrews 2:12. "In
the midst of the assembly I will sing
praise to You;"
21. In our singing we give thanks to God, Ephesians5:19-20. "Speaking
to one another in psalms and hymns
and
spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;"
22. In our singing we teach and admonish one another, Colossians
3:16 "Let the word of
Christ dwell in you richly in
all
wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and
spiritual
songs, singing with grace in
your hearts to the Lord;"
23. James admonishes us to sing if we are happy. James 5:13Is any among you afflicted? let him pray.
Is any merry? let him sing psalms.
24. In our singing we confess our faith in Christ, Hebrews 13:15. "Therefore
by Him let us continually offer the
sacrifice of praise to God, that is the fruit of our lips, giving
thanks to
His name;"
25. In our singing we sing with the spirit and the
understanding,
I Corinthians 14:15 "I will sing
with the spirit, and I will
also
sing with the understanding;"
26. Our singing is part of our worship in spirit and truth, which
is what God is seeking, John 4:23-24.
"But the hour is coming, and
now is, when the true worshipers will
worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such
to worship Him. 24 God isSpirit, and those who worship Him
must worship in spirit and truth."
27. Using instruments makes void the word of God, Matthew 15:6 "then he need not honor his father or
mother. Thus you have made
the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition."
28. Using instruments is not in the doctrine of Christ, II John 1:9. "Anyone who runs ahead and does not
continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues
in the teaching has both the Father and the Son."
29. All things were reveiled to the Apostles, Matthew 28:18-20 "18 Then Jesus came to them and said, "All
authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit, 20 and
teaching them to obey everything I
have commanded you. And surely I am
with you always, to the very end of the age."
30 And it is not a part of the Apostles Doctrine in
which we are to abide, Acts 2:42. "They devoted themselves to the apostles'
teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer."
31. God has never
looked favorable on man adding to what he has authorized.
Teachers rose up among them, and these teachers wrote law-books, which
they called "traditions." These teachings were very strict; but
God was not pleased with them, for he had not commanded that they
should be written and obeyed. Christ recognized this and
called it vain worship in Matthew 15:9And in vain they
worship Me,
Teachingas doctrines the commandments of men.
32. See what God said in Hosea
4:6, “My people are destroyed
for lack of knowledge." 33. I Cor 6:12 All things are
lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful
for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any. I Cor
10:23 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all
things are lawful for me, but not all things edify. These
two verses are used by some that instruments are okay. However,
Paul is talking about individual, personal freedoms that have nothing
to do with the worship of the church or assembly.
34. We are warned about not adding to a covenant, Galatians 3:15 "Brothers, let me take an example from
everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant
that has been duly established," 35. Paul also warns about adding to what is written, 1 Corinthians 4:9 "Now, brothers, I have applied these things
to myself and Apollos for
your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying,
"Do not go beyond what is written." Then you will not take pride in one
man over against another."
36. And let's take heed to
what our Lord said, Matthew 21:23 “By what authority are
You doing these things, and who gave
You this authority?”
HISTORICAL
1. Reformation leaders spoke out against the use of
instruments
(Calvin, Wesley. & Luther)
2. More contemporary men spoke out against the use of instruments
(Clarke, Spurgeon, and Bingham)
3. After the apostacy began near the end of the first century,
there two religious orders that evolved. One we know became the
Catholic church. The other was the Greek Orthodox Church.
4. In the 7th Century a pope put an organ in a catherdral but
there was so much opposition that it was removed.
5. In the 8th century, instruments were introduced by men in
western Christian worship in the Catholic church but never in the Greek
Orthodox..
6. The Council of Trent in 1545 stated that instruments were the
invention of the Catholic church.
7. Instruments have never been used in the Greek
Orthodox church
to this day.
8. Early church fathers (2-4th
century) spoke out strongly against use of instruments (Augustine,
Chrysostom and Clement)
9. Today’s A cappella singing is tied to the Restoration
Movement and these great men of God and the restoration spoke against
the use of instruments.
(Clarke, Campbell, Franklin, Stone, McGarvey)
10. Alexander Campbell, 1783-1854, said " The church of
Christ upon earth is essentially, intentionally and contitutionally one
where the scripturaly speak, we speak, where the scriptures are silent,
we are silent."
11. None of the early protestant churches in America started out
using instruments until about the 1820-30s. They were introduced
by men again as in
the
8th century in the Catholic church. Is your congregation of the
Lord's church now using instruments? Why?
12. The Quakers do not use instruments in their worship services.
13. The Reformed Presbyterian churches removed organs from their
buildings and now sing acappella.
14. In the early centuries, organs and other instruments were
used in the Roman coliseums to dramatize the murder of Christians, just
like they are now used in sports stadiums. Today to use an instrument
is to go back to ancient ways that are not necessarily Christian.
COMMENTS
1. The Psalms are not a “worship manual” for New Testament
Worship, for
New Testament worship has it’s own design for music (Ephesians 5:19 and Hebrews
13:15) and it is aceppella music.
2. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all
people everywhere to repent. Acts17:30. It is interesting
to
look at scripture that points out that when men do not follow what God
expects, how it displeases Him when we don't do as he has
instructed. There are numerous examples: Cain
and offering grain; Aaron and the Golden Calf; Saul and not totally
destroying the Amalekites, Nadab and Abilu and the strange fire;
Moses and striking the rock and commandments of men. By contrast,
Noah did only what God
instructed in the wood to use and followed God’s instruction in
everything about the ark, Genesis 6:14.
"Make yourself an ark of gopherwood;
make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and outside with pitch" He did not tell Noah what he
could not use.
So this should tell us to
very carefully measure what we do. Jesus tells us the prophesy of
Isaiah was right, Mark 7:6-8.“They worship Me in vain, their teachings
are but
rules taught by men. You have let go the commands of God and are
holding to the traditions of men,”
Christ
spoke about vain worship, Matthew 15:9.
And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men. And
in Mark 7:7 " And in vain they worship Me,Teaching as doctrines the commandments
of men" Paul also warns us about
the traditions of men, in Colossians
2:8, “Beware lest any man
spoil
you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men,
after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.”
3. It is also interesting what the 3d century Augustine said, “If
you believe what you like in the gospel, and reject what you don't
like, it is not the gospel you believe, but yourself.”
4. The silence of the scriptures is compelling evidence that
singing to God is the fruit of our lips and we can rest assured that
such singing pleases God. Do we ask, “does this please God?”
5. We absolutely do not have any assurance that using some form
of accompaniment with mechanical instruments in our assembles pleases
God. For they were always been added by men, in the OT, and in the
centuries that have followed the establishment of the first century
church.
However, it is not a question of who will be saved, but what is or is
not authorized in the New Testament. Are we making decisions, no
longer fearing God??? Then are we failing to keep his commandments?
6. Instruments being introduced in the Catholic church but not
the Greek Orthodox church, makes the use of instruments a Catholic
addition to worship makes it a Catholic thing, same as infant baptism,
praying through Mary, etc. which are not scripture based.
7. Nor are we to have a chorus or a group to sing in the worship
assembly, for they
become performers and entertainers, for a praise team is just a
quartet. Because they have such good voices, it leads some
to listening to them and not singing. A song leader
attempts to direct the singing to better
enable all of us to encourage
each other with our singing as in Colossians
3:16-17. "Let the word of Christ dwell in you
richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as
you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your
hearts to God. And
whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the
Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." 8. A warning to those that use a chorus, praise
teams. or song
leaders that loudly project their voices, instead of blending in to the
singing of the congregation to allow saints to teach and admonish
each other is found in a quote by Henry Van Dyke. He
said, "Use what talent you possess -
the woods would be very silent if
no birds sang except those that sang the best."
9. Instruments in the worship are from the desires of men,
much
like the desires of men lead to a golden calf when the people of Israel
were
under the leadership of Aaron while Moses was on the mountain,
receiving the Ten Commandments.
10. In the New Testament,
the
Greek word for singing, psallo,
means singing without an instrument.
11. For more details of the source and comments by
early
church
fathers, see http://christianresources.itgo.com/singing.html
