Results 1 - 2 of 2
|
|
|||||
Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Logic: The Means to Rightly Divide | 2 Tim 2:15 | Hank | 143308 | ||
One man's cacophony is another's harmony; one culture's dulcet melody is another's grating noise. Beyond the general command of "teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs (see Col. 3:16 and Eph. 5:19), Scripture has laid down no pat rules of hymnody, and it is just as well that it hasn't, for it would doubtlessly present interpretative challenges of gigantic proportions: How would Christians round the world ever form a consensus of what music is "right" for worship and what isn't? There is no absolute measuring rod that I know of. Accordingly, it is a trifle foolish in my view to debate what music is "sacred" and what isn't; it's more of a matter of breeding, culture, and personal taste than it is anything else. A "psalm, hymn, or spiritual song" is defined chiefly by the words, I believe, and not by the music itself to which the words are sung. If the young like a vibrant, pulsating, fast tempo to accompany their songs of praise, I see no earthly reason why we old fogies should condemn them for that and insist on imposing our more sedate musical tastes on the youth. Because I, nearing 70, cannot abide the din and cadence of some modern forms of music, doesn't at all mean that I should presume that young people are being blasphemous when they sing praises to God in a tempo that gets on my old nerves and gives me hives! Now, if the the words themselves are out of kilter with the Scriptures, that's quite a different matter and constitutes grounds for disapproval and censure, no matter how "sacred" the music it is sung to. ........ Music does not have to be "classical" to be good; some modern music is better than some of the classical music. And a hymn does not have to have whiskers on it to be worthy to be sung to the glory of God. There is no reason why the modern Christian cannot worship God in the same ambience in which he lives his daily life, i.e., in the contemporary world of which he is a part. The venerable hymns of two centuries ago were modern, contemporary hymns to those people who lived two centuries ago. The venerable King James Bible was a fresh (some thought it brash) modern translation to those who lived in 1611. The people who sang the fresh, contemporary hymns of two centuries ago or read the King James Bible in 1611 were not necessarily any more pious or devout or dedicated Christians than are the young Christians of our time who sing their hymns to an accelerated tempo and read their Bibles in a modern version that is translated into contemporary English that they can understand. How easy it is to lose sight of the truism that the message is vastly more important than the medium. And how tempting to classify the sacredness of music -- or the superiority and commanding authority of a Bible translation -- according to our own personal tastes, with nothing else to back it up! --Hank | ||||||
2 | Logic: The Means to Rightly Divide | 2 Tim 2:15 | DocTrinsograce | 143316 | ||
Hi, brother Hank. Thank you for your venerable comments! :-) Pushing 70? I look forward to knowing my savior for that length of time. He is so precious now, I cannot imagine what it will be like then! We appreciate the contribution you make to the forum! The issue at stake for me was not to confirm a set of musical preferences, nor to deny someone else their own. I simply have experienced music that is edifying and music that is not. So, the question arises, "What does God think of music?" I do not believe that God is neutral on any aspect of life. However, we do not have -- nor could we possibly have -- an exhaustive set of His position. What we do have, however, covers a lot of ground both explicitly and implicitly. Since I have such a strong desire to please my Lord, I want to examine and re-examine every aspect of my life in that light. If I can discern any thing that pleases Him, I want that implemented in my life. Those objectives -- though they may differ for others -- are the only things that drive me to make such inquiries. So the question is not what pleases people, but what pleases God. Hence, the only personal tastes I am interested in, are those of my Lord Jesus. If I look foolish to the whole world in that pursuit, what care I? :-) In Him, Doc |
||||||