The Holy Spirit and Music Ministry-Part 8

 The Work of the Holy Spirit in Music Ministry-Part 8

They do not have power for service.  So what do they do?  In the flesh they reach out continuously for something new; something to excite; something to satisfy; something to draw a crowd; something to hold the crowd’s attention, and something that will put them at rest with themselves and their own musical ministry.  They are totally unaware that Jesus is saying to them (John 6:63):

It is the Spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are Spirit, and they are life.

In their state of bondage to self, to their peers, and to the ecclesiastical hierarchy they cannot hear the blessed Savior say (Matthew 11:28-30):

v.  28       Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

v.  29       Take my yoke upon you and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

v.  30       For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

God wants to break the yoke of bondage that plagues your musical ministry.  He is pleading with you to establish a life in the Spirit.  He is promising that it is the Holy Ghost that quickens your musical ministry.  It is the anointing of the Holy Spirit that gives enduement for service – that divine influence upon the heart and ministry – that anointing that enables one to see the miraculous accomplished.  

            At this point you might ask, “What kind of burden should the church musician bear?”  I call this a positive burden, not a negative one.  Here is a biblical example of this positive burden: I Chronicles 15:22

And Chenaniah, chief of the Levites, was for song: he instructed about the song, because he was skillful.

Wolf’s amplified version goes like this:  “And Chenaniah, whose name means Jah has planted, was an accomplished musician.  And it came to pass that he became a head person or steward of the Levite musicians and was burdened or had (massa 4853) for song.  He corrected or instructed about the burden (massa 4853) of song in as much as he could perceive and could separate or distinguish mentally.  Two things appear here, first, he had a burden for song and second, he taught others to carry a burden for song.  In the musical discourse mentioned above, the Bible places emphasis on spiritual discernment and musical skills.  I want to stress in this discussion that Chenaniah had a burden for music.  Isaiah 13:1, Nahum 1:1, and Habakkuk 1:1 all mention massa or the burden of prophesy.  W. E. Vine says, “The word “burden” (Hebrew massa 4853, a burden of mental desire) is used, for example in Nahum 1:1, signifying the burden of prophecy which was borne in upon the prophet when he received it from the Lord.