Thought for the Day

Thought for the Day

Although I developed the charts in today’s blog years ago, I still get blessed when I study  Levite administration and organization utilized in the Ancient Temple in Israel.

Levite Administration in the Bible-part 4

 Levite Administration in the Bible-part 4

                      THE MUSICIANS' ADMINISTRATIVE CHAIN OF COMMAND

            Not only were the Levite musicians of the First Temple set in order by lofty authority, they were also placed in a categories according to rank which was called musicians of the first and second degree.  I Chronicles 15:16-24 gives this organization as follows in Table A.

                                                                      TABLE A

                                                 First and Second Degree Musicians

I.	Musicians of the First Degree 1.  Heman --- his brethren 2.  Asaph --- his brethren 3.  Ethan (Jeduthun) --- his brethren
II.	Musicians of the Second Degree 1.  Zechariah         8.  Benaiah 2.  Ben               9.  Maaseiah 3.  Jaaziel          10.  Mattitihiah 4.  Shemiramoth      11.  Eliphelah 5.  Jehiel           12.  Mikneiah 6.  Unni             13.  Obededom 7.  Ellab            14.  Jaiel

Not only were the various musicians given a rank in the chain of command, but they were also given a function and appointment as shown in Table B below.

                                                                        TABLE B

                                              Job Descriptions of the Levite Musicians

I.	Singers or conductors - to sound (shama - to call together carefully) with cymbals  (metseleth - double tinklers) of brass (nechosneth - brass or bronze).  Note:  These singers were used as "conductors" of music.  Idelsohn says that the cymbals were not employed in the music proper, but rather to mark (beginnings) pauses and intermissions.2
II.	Psaltery players - (nebel - a harp-like instrument with a resonant body)  players on alamoth (soprano part-hence an octave higher). a.  Zechariah         e.  Unni b.  Aziel             f.  Eliab c.  Shemiramoth       g.  Maaseiah d.  Jehiel            h.  Benaiah
III.	Harp players - (kinnor - a small lyre) players on Sheminith (eighth or octave)  to excel (to glitter, i.e. for brilliance). a.  Mattithiah        d.  Obededom b.  Elipeiah          e.  Jeiel c.  Mikneiah          f.  Azaaiah
IV.	Song Instructors - Chenaniah was chief of Levites.  I Chronicles 15:22 could read:  And Chenaniah accomplished and became a head person or steward of the Levites (and) was burdened or (had) mental desire for song, the burden of song in as much as he accomplished to perceive (or) distinguish mentally.
V.	Porters and Doorkeepers - (doorkeepers or porters) vs. 23 Berechiah, the father of Asaph and Elkanah;  vs. 24 Obededom, a musician of the second degree; and Hehiah.  Also porters however, some of 1, 2, and 3 above were players.
VI.	Signaling priests - vs. 24 priests who sounded the chatsotserah - the silver trumpet.  Those priests were not musicians and the chatsotserah was a sounding instrument, not a melodic musical instrument.

Thought for the Day

Thought for the Day

One thing keeps surfacing when one studies Levite music administration on the Bible—ancient Levite musicians did not seem to have trouble taking orders from their superiors.

 

Levite Administration in the Bible-part 3

Levite Administration in the Bible-part 3

            The Levite ministering musicians of the First Temple were under appointment. It appears that these chief Levite musicians were chosen by a committee including musicians and non-musicians much like ministers of music are chosen today.  However, the chief Levite musicians were "set" (amad 5975) or chosen by a very authoritative "committee."  II Chronicles 29:25 states, "And he set Levites in the house of the LORD with cymbals, with psalteries, and with harps, according to the commandment (mitzvah 4687) of David, and of Gad the king's seer, and Nathan the prophet:  for so was the commandment of the LORD by his prophets.  Note that the A.V. margin says, "By the hand of the LORD, by the hand of his prophets."  So, the appointment of these chief musicians was so important that they were selected by:    

            1.         David who was God's anointed King.

            2.         Gad the king's seer (melek 4428) who was a beholder of visions of God.

            3.         Nathan who was a naba (5030)  or inspired prophet.

            4.         The hand of Jehovah the self-existent eternal God.

Perhaps this august "committee" was necessary since these Levite musicians were separated to be naba or prophets who would prophesy with music.

 

 

Thought for the Day

Thought for the Day

Although we do not understand the significance of all the organization that surrounding music making in the ancient Jewish Temple, one thing is certain: their musicing was highly organized and the musicians could and did work as a ministering team.

 

Levite Administration in the Bible-part 2

Levite Administration in the Bible-part 2

            Although we do not know all the significance of the order and organization imposed on the Levite musicians, we do know from Scripture that they were accustomed to a high degree of organization.  I Chronicles 6:32-48 tells us of some of that organization when it states in verse thirty-two, "And they ministered before the dwelling place of the tabernacle of the congregation with singing, until Solomon had built the house of the LORD in Jerusalem:  and they waited on their office according to their order (misphat 4941)."  Misphat means a formal decree giving this statement the import that their placement was of importance to the program of organization.

            Verses thirty-three to forty-four tell us that Heman the singer stood in the middle and Asaph stood on his right side and Ethan on his left.  Evidently they stood in their respective positions with their sons or brethren (vs. 33 and 44).  We are not informed as to why they stood in this order, but it was important enough for the chronicler to record.         I Chronicles 16:5 also gives a list of the order and chain of command of the Levite musicians.  "Asaph the chief (ro’sh7218), and next (mishneh 4932) to him Zechariah, Jeiel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Mattithiah, and Eliab, and Benaiah, and Obededom:  and Jeiel with psalteries and with harps; but Asaph made a sound with cymbals."  This example shows their rank.  Asaph was chief and the rest were "next" or mishneh which means of the second rank.  Note that this organization specified that the Levites of second rank would play melodic musical instruments (nebel, 5035 and kinnowr, 3658) and that Asaph the conductor would sound (shama 8085) or direct (mark beginnings and pauses) with the cymbals (metseleth 4700).

 

 

Thought for the Day

Thought for the Day

I am surprised that so many parents are upset with the music that their children like and perform when they took them to the “Philistines” to receive their musical training.

 

Levite Administration in the Bible-part 1

Levite Administration in the Bible-part 1

            Without doubt the most impressive part of ancient Levite music administration in the First Temple was the Levite teacher-scholar relationship recorded in I Chronicles 25:1-31.  As we can see from the Biblical Record in the twenty-fifth chapter of First Chronicles these Levites were separated into three groups under Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman.  Under Asaph were four lots, each having eleven scholars under each teacher.  Jeduthun was responsible for six lots each having a teacher responsible for eleven scholars.  Finally Heman had placed under him fourteen lots each consisting of a teacher and eleven students.  So, Asaph's four lots accounted for forty-eight musicians, Jeduthun's six lots accounted for seventy-two musicians, and Heman's fourteen lots accounted for one hundred sixty-eight musicians making a total of 288 teachers and scholars as recorded in I Chronicles 25:7.

            It should be pointed out that the Israelites accepted the responsibility of training their own church musicians.  The Chief Levites and their sons were not only performers and ministers, but they were also teachers and they passed their art along to others.  The Bible example is very clear that the church is responsible to educate its own musicians.  The ancient Hebrews would never have even thought of sending their sons to the Philistines, the Egyptians, the Sumerians, or the Akkadians.  They accepted the responsibility to personally prepare each succeeding generation of Israelite musicians.  Under this developed system of music education, music in the Temple reached a very high level of excellence.

 

Thought for the Day-part 4

Thought for the Day-part 4 

Part of the changes that the new birth spiritually will bring about in our lives will be some changes in our musicing.  Is there anything about the music that you listen to and perform that would hinder your spiritual life? As we mentioned yesterday, on this Easter Sunday we should all seek to remove any music that is not compatible with a whole-life philosophy that is Christocentric.  

 

The New Song-part 4

The New Song-part 4

      Today is Easter Sunday, the day that we celebrate Christ's resurrection.  Because He paid the price for the sins of the whole world, you and I are able to be a new creature in Christ Jesus and ipso facto can truly have a new song to sing. When we study new song in the Bible we learn that the words "new song" do not refer to a new composition but rather to a song of a higher or renovated character.  Psalm 40:1-3 identifies what the term new song means.  It states, "I waited patiently for the Lord, and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.  He brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.  And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it and fear, and shall trust in the LORD." There are several observations of this Scripture passage to be made that will influence our philosophical beliefs about the "new song" of the Bible...

        First, note that the word even is in italics in the A.V. which means that it is not found in the Hebrew text.  So, we learn that the chadash (2319) shiyr (7892) is without doubt tehilah (8416) Elohiym (430) i.e. "a new song of praise to God".  The song of the "new man" is different than the song of the "old man" who was dead in trespasses and sins.  The Christian musician who is a new creature in Christ Jesus has a new song which is of a renovated character.  The psalmist's new life brought about a song of praise to God.  He performed music in a "new key", so to speak.  When he passed from death to life spiritually had a new song, a new theme, a new "tune" and a new purpose in his musicing.  Why?  Because his music philosophy had changed since he became different on the inside.  (In our dispensation the new man is truly "born again".)

        Second, it appears that the psalmist David was writing of the time when God brought him out of the pit of sin (or noise) and established him musically and spiritually.  The Cambridge scholars put the words "a pit of noise" in the margin. Note that Elohiym the supreme God had to lift the musician out of a pit of noise before he could establish (kuwn 3559) the musician's goings (ashur 838). Also  note that the God  had to remove the uproar or noise that surrounded the musician ( yaven -3121 tiyt -2916) with dregs that swept him away i.e. hindered or held him down spiritually.  I believe that the sense and import of this statement is that he had to change the psalmists' music before he could establish him spiritually.

Thought for the Day--part 3

Thought for the Day--part 3

Have you ever considered why some Christian musicians cling so desperately to music styles that represents the "old life" of undegenerated man?  One of the best ways to break away from the "old life" of sin is to sing a new song!  Tomorrow is Easter Sunday. It is the day that represents Christ's victory over sin.  It is a day of re-beginning.  Why not establish a re-beginning of your music listening habits if they have a tendency to defeat you spiritually.  

 

The New Song-part 3

The New Song-part 3

           It matters how a Christian presents the "New song" which is mentioned in the Bible. What many Christian musicians have forgotten is that direction determines destiny.  If you start west on I 70 from Indianapolis Indiana in the USA, you will not arrive in Columbus, Ohio, no matter how much you desire to go there because you are going the wrong direction.  Getting a crowd’s attention by emphasizing the flesh will by no means draw them to Christ.  If a performer maximizes the physical, by doing so he or she minimizes the spiritual.  If a performer sings religious music and at the same time draws attention to the flesh, he or she will get a message across to the audience, but it will not be the "new song" of the gospel.  The reason one cannot successfully sell sacred things with the sensual is that it just won’t work. Galatians 6:6-9 states:  Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption: but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.  And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

      God’s ways are higher than the ways of the world. The "new song" of the Bible always takes the high road.  The world uses man’s depraved nature and man’s natural sexual appetite to sell its music.  Why can’t Christians take advantage of man’s depraved nature and his natural sexual appetite for that matter to present the good news of the gospel?

      One of the reasons is that as Galatians 5:17 explains, “For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.”  The Galatian writer makes it very clear that the flesh and the spirit are contrary one to the other.  Therefore it is deceitful to gain people's attention with sexual innuendos and then present the "new song" which is the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ.

      The Bible teaches that the flesh and the spirit are not compatible.  It is a mystery to me that so many Christian musicians are determined to try to present the "New song" and the lust of the flesh side by side as a team of horses.  Placing the flesh and the spirit side by side is like placing a lion and a lamb in the same harness.  If one does, there is no doubt about it, the lion will eat the lamb.

Thought for the Day-part 2

Thought for the Day-part 2

Is there any difference between the music you listened too and performed before you were born again and the music you have in your life today.

  

The New Song--part 2

The New Song--part 2

            The concept of “new song” in the Bible connotes music making that is of a higher or renovated character that always renders praise to God--not man.  II Corinthians 5:17 states, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away: and behold all things are become new.”  A part of the old things that pass away is the “old song” and the old self-aggrandizement and worldly musical performance practice.

            If the essence of a musician’s music making is the presentation of self, then God cannot receive the preeminence.  The new man, singing "new song", in a new way, seeks to exalt Christ not self.  As we know, in the new song of the Bible, God receives all the praise all the time.  If our performance practice results in the lifting up of self and the performer’s talents, then the musician’s performance becomes merely religious music rather than sacred music.  Remember, in the beginning God created music for His honor and His glory.

            Earlier we discussed ownership of music and were drawn to the conclusion that we do not own it.  Why?  Because music is God's creation, he holds the deed to its ownership.  So, since we are singing and playing HIS SONG, we relinquish the sense of ownership. When we were dead in trespasses and sins, as musicians, we thought we owned OUR music.  We were autonomous when it came to OUR music praxis.  At least we acted like we were a law to ourselves when we performed OUR music.  We sang OUR own song which was what I call "old song".  There is something wonderful about singing HIS song in HIS sanctuary for HIS glory. 

Thought for the Day- part 1

Thought for the Day- part 1

It should be no mystery that after a Christian's" new birth" spiritually he or she will have a "new song” because this person has a new heart and is a "new creature in Christ Jesus".   

 

The New Song-part 1

The New Song-part 1

          The words "new song" are mentioned in the Bible nine times.  In the Old Testament they are recorded six times in the Book Of Psalms (33:3, 40:3, 96:1, 98:1, 144:9, and 149:1) and once in Isaiah 42:10.  In the New Testament, new song is found only in the Book of Revelation 5:9 and 14:2.  Philosophers have not said much about the biblical principle of new song and I have never read after any music philosopher who even mentioned it.      Writers on church music most often misunderstand these references and use them as proof texts to support the idea of contemporary Christian music.  Others suppose them to mean that we are commanded to compose new musical compositions.  Often in my music of the Bible class students have queried, "Are we required to write and perform new songs?"                 There certainly is a continuing need for new music literature to meet the needs of the church today.  It is also a fact that if Christian musicians do not perform this new music, it will not get performed.  I am convinced that God is pleased when his "chief musicians" compose and arrange new music that follows Bible principles of musicing.   However I am convinced that these Bible references To "New Song" do not connote musical compositions that are "new" in relation to time.  These verses in the Bible have a different meaning and we will be discussing this meaning in the next few blog posts.

Thought for the Day

Thought for the Day 

Christian music educators often tend to forget that they are not the lone source of knowledge and training of the elementary music students in their classes.

 

Music Education and the “Big Picture”.

Music Education and the “Big Picture”.

            Charles Hoffer once stated, “Music teachers are never completely alone in their work, even though they may be the only teacher of music in a particular school.”  Introduction to Music Education, Charles Hoffer, Wadsworth Pub. Co., 1993, p.54.  This is certainly true of the music educator in a Christian school.  I have often reminded music education students in my classes that the Christian music teacher must become a part of the “Big Picture” of a Christin school.  Not only should we have allied arts but also allied education at large in the Christian school curriculum.

            The music educator should look for ways to connect music content to the other areas of academics.  Francis Schaeffer believed that, “We tend to study all our disciplines in unrelated parallel lines.”  Escape From Reason, InterVarsity Press, Francis Schaeffer, 1968, p. 12.  Music teachers have a tendency to isolate themselves from the educational process going on all the way round them.  Probably the wisest choice that new music educators can make is to endear themselves to the other staff and faculty members of the Christian school.  The new music teacher will soon find out that there is comfort and strength in the comradery of community.

Thought for the Day

Thought for the Day

Quality elementary music education should not be modeled after Senior High and College performing groups.

Thought for the Day

Thought for the Day

I am simply amazed when I think about the fact that I grew up on an eighty acre farm in Eastern Kansas and was the most unlikely person to have had the wonderful opportunities to share my music ministry with thousands of people in ninety seven different countries.  Praise God! 

 

Quality Christian Elementary Music Education

Quality Christian Elementary Music Education

            One of the problems that will often confront the elementary music educator who is new on the job is the fact that a Christian schools totally public relations oriented to the detriment of quality music education.  I am not saying that a performance driven music program is a completely incorrect praxis.  However, if public relations programs are the tail that constantly wags the dog, quality music education will suffer.  

            One way to evaluate the situation is to find out if October, November, and December are completely taken up with producing a Christmas program and if February, March, and April are totally consumed with producing an Easter program.  No quality music education curriculum will be able to survive six month of the nine month school year being swallowed with two music programs.  Elementary music performance is important, but there is much more involved in educating children musically than music and dramatic musical performances.

How I Began This Philosophical Journey

How I Began This Philosophical Journey 

              In July of the summer of 1967 I attended the Eastern Kansas Camp with my mother Anna Mayme Wolf who has now gone to heaven. The evangelist was Dr. C.E. Cowen who preached a very powerful lucid gospel message. Dr. John I. Page came to me and invited me to step forward and give my heart to the Lord. I came forward that night and bowed at an old wooden alter in that open air tabernacle. I was tired of trying to control my life.  I confessed my sins with much godly sorrow; gave my heart to the Lord Jesus Christ and, and by faith in the merits of Christ, received the Lord Jesus Christ as my personal Savior.
             I later graduated from Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg Kansas and accepted a teaching position at Kansas City College and Bible School in Overland Park Kansas. I believe it was during my first year of teaching that I attended a music seminar by Dr. Frank Garlock which took place at Kansas City Christian School in Merriam Kansas.
             It was during Dr. Garlock’s seminar that the Lord impressed upon my heart to engage in serious study of music found in the Bible and to develop a coherent and congruent Christ centered music philosophy. I will forever be grateful to Dr. Garlock for his faithfulness to the Lord during that seminar. Without his faithfulness to deliver the message of Christ centered musicing I might not have started on this marvelous musical journey.

Thought for the Day

Thought for the Day

The music scales of the Bible and the music scale of Ugarit findings have all proven to be much more like the scales of music of our modern church music than many church musicians have been led to believe.

 

 

 

Ancient Precise Musical Notation

Ancient Precise Musical Notation

            If you would like to locate the ancient Canaanite city called Ugarit it is easy to find on a Bible map. If you will look at the eastern tip of Cyprus it is pointing toward Ugarit. This ancient city found in northern Syria, which is now called Ras Shamra, is of importance for those who study music in the Old Testament. The music which has been discovered on clay tablets in that ancient city has helped musicologists to understand the construction and meaning of ancient music around the 12th century BC.  This music which was written in cuneiform symbols on clay tablets has been valuable to musicologists in making a connection to ancient Syrian music with the music of the Bible.

            Why would a student of music in the Bible care about a connection or likeness of the music of the Old Testament i.e. the psalmodic and prosodic musical scale systems and the Ugaritic cuneiform notation system?  Although a thorough discussion of the likenesses of the three ancient scale systems is too involved for this tiny blog post it deserves mention.  Although none of these ancient scale systems function like the tonal music of the Occident, they were basically heptatonic, diatonic scales.  The Ugaritic scale proved to be a seven note diatonic scale with half-steps between the third and fourth degrees and the seventh and eighth degrees.  Some of the Ugaritic music also contained a harmony part.

Thought for the Day

Thought for the Day

It seems strange to me that so many of the scholarly teams who translated the Bible in the twentieth century failed to include a qualified musicologist.

TERMS IN THE PSALMS—part 2

TERMS IN THE PSALMS—part 2

            After reading scores of author’s opinions on the technical terms in the Psalms, it has become apparent that many of them failed to support their arguments with significant word study, historical fact, linguistic considerations, or even ancient extra-Biblical literature.  Many of the commentators appeared to be non-musicians who were determined to give each word in the psalm headings a significant musical definition.  After studying the inscriptions at length and after using the various word study helps available today, it has become clear that not every term should be understood in a musical sense.

            Throughout the last two hundred years, it has been customary to believe that the obscure sayings in the psalm headings were the words or tune names of popular secular songs of the ancient Hebrew culture.  Also, the various writers have tended to believe that the chief musicians used tunes of secular ditties, love songs, and folk ballads, etc. to sing the psalms.  As has been discussed in this blog and in my book Music of the Bible in Christian Perspective, Susanne Haik-Vantoura's deciphering of the melodies of the Psalms from the te'amim has now produced evidence that all of the Psalms had their own melodies which were composed by the various psalmists.  Therefore, there was no reason for the chief musician to have used the melodies of the popular songs of the day, and furthermore, this notion is completely without factual or scholarly basis.

            Furthermore, it has been found after careful study that a logical explanation for several of the obscure sayings in the psalm headings may be found in the content of the psalms in which they appear--an observation that all too few writers have made.  Many of the terms are engulfed in a plethora of confusion created by a multitude of conjectures of hundreds of authors over the last two hundred years.  In my writings on the Book of Psalms I have purposely tried to spare the reader the hassle of reading through these often strange and exotic conjectures of authors. 

Thought for the Day

Thought for the Day

Many Christian musicians do not study the technical terms used Book of Psalms because they are only interested in spiritual meanings.  However, they fail to realize that many times an understanding of these terms will shed much light on the meaning of the Psalm in question.

TERMS IN THE PSALMS—part 1

TERMS IN THE PSALMS—part 1

              I believe that it is valuable to study the technical terms mentioned in the Book of Psalms.  Although exhaustive lists of the technical terms used in the psalter may not be of much help to those who read the Psalms, an understanding of what these terms mean is very valuable to all who read and study the Psalms.  Students of the Palms should understand that these words can only be defined and discussed in reference to the various author's opinions concerning their meaning in Scripture.  

              Presentations of where these terms appear in the Psalter have little significance except that it a logical approach to their presentation since most of the words have no interconnection with each other.  If the student of the Book of Psalms would like to study these terms in an exhaustive manner, The New Englishman's Hebrew Chaldee Concordance will be most helpful in such an endeavor.  Also, I would like to point out that there are literally hundreds of works written on the psalms, many of which cover the same material.  The following works were helpful to me in developing the definitions of terms in the psalms found in this chapter.  They are:

1.         Theological Word Book of the Old Testament.

2.         Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament.

3.         The New Brown-Driver-Briggs-Gesenius Hebrew-English Lexicon.

4.         An Expository Dictionary of Old Testament words.

5.         Analytical Hebrew and Chaldee Lexicon of the Old Testament.

6.         The New Englishman's Hebrew and Chaldee Concordance.

7.         Gesenius' Hebrew and Chaldee Lexicon. 

 

Thought for the Day-worship part 13

Thought for the Day-worship part 13  

When Moses and Joshua were returning from Mt. Sinai, they observed, "...the noise of them that sing do I Hear." (Exodus 32: 18b)  We need to make sure that today, as God hears our musicing in Sunday morning worship, he doesn't have to say, "The noise of them that sing do I hear."

 

The Role of Music in Worship-part 13

The Role of Music in Worship-part 13 

       We all know that we are commanded many times in the Bible to praise the Lord.  That is sufficient reason to engage in praise as we music unto God.  Robert Weber gives three benefits of praising God. “First, praise is always associated with the presence of God.”  “Second, praise testifies.”  “Third, praise has the power to deliver us.” (Robert Weber, Enter His Courts With Praise.  Hendrickson Books, 1997, pp. 22-23).   As we mentioned in an earlier post, we do not worship God for what we get out of worship.  We don’t sing unto God for some kind of spiritual high.  However, since God inhabits our musical praise [see Psalm 22:3], we do often receive as we give our musical offering.

       Earlier in our music worship posts we mentioned that the musician has to resist the urge to worship music rather than actually worshiping God as we music.  Michael Marshall stated, “The instinct to worship, as surely as any other instinct in our lives, needs to be directed if it is not to become corrupted.”  (Michael Marshall, Renewal In Worship. Marshall, Morgan & Scott, U.K., 1982. P. 3.) 

         The 32nd chapter of Exodus is a prime O.T. example of misdirected worship. The children of Israel were worshiping in a manner somewhat like their neighboring nations worshiped.  This new form of worship seemed, to these misguided worshipers, to be the thing to do.  They sang, but that wasn’t exotic enough, so they danced.  In their misguided worship, the worship leader Aaron added a third dimension that was even more exotic—he decided that they should dance naked as they sang their noise based music (see vss. 18 & 25).

        Oh yes, I forgot to mention that he also added a golden calf as the object of their exotic worship music!  Remember that they were only musicing in worship the way their worldly neighbors worshiped.  They hadn’t invented anything new that had not already been done by the heathen nations that surrounded them.  The ancient Hebrews were merely musicing in the same manner that others worshipers musiced.  They were simply utilizing the “fine art” of dance in their worship like many of the other nations that surrounded them danced to a plethora of gods.  I think you get the point, and if you don’t, a few more paragraphs probably wouldn’t help much. 

       So, out of all the previous discussion, learn to guard your heart, your worship motives, and your time honored forms of musical worship that were given to you by your forefathers. Do not become discouraged or embarrassed because your church does not worship with trendy noise based styles of music or hire some dancers to make public worship look current or trendy.  Furthermore, be thankful that your fellowship of believers sings an occasional (meaningful) gospel song or even a hymn or two.  Remember that the Bible instructs believers that although we are in the kosmos (2889) we do not have to become part of the aion (165).

Thought for the Day-worship part 12

Thought for the Day-worship part 12 

Psalm 22:3 states, "But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel."  The word inhabitest is translated from the Hebrew word yashab (3437) which means to sit down with or to dwell among those who praise God.  So, it is no joke that God will "attend" our worship services if we truly worship Him.

The Role of Music in Worship-part 12

The Role of Music in Worship-part 12 

       One of the many questions about worship is whether or not meeting together to is really an ancient landmark of worshiping God. Did God ever say that people need a place to worship and commune with him? In Exodus 25:8 it is recorded that Jehovah commanded Moses, "And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them." Then Jehovah proceeded to outline in detail the particulars of the construction of the Tabernacle of worship. God also instructed Moses, in verse 22 of the same chapter, "And there I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel." The Tabernacle was what I call a "beginning place" for the worship of Jehovah.  Worship there was for an esoteric few and not for everyone. We know that in the Tabernacle only a selected few were permitted to perform the acts of worship in representation of the people. Later the Temple was much more open to a type of public worship.  Now everyone can attend.

        We know of a surety that God desired to commune with ancient Israel, but does He still desires for Christians in this dispensation to come together to commune with him? Since we are God's temple isn't it better to sing and pray by one's self? In Hebrews 10:24-25 we get a clear picture of the importance of public worship. "And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another; and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching." So the writer of the Epistle of Hebrews very carefully explains the virtues of meeting together to worship God and build each other up in our holy faith.

       We are aware that each Christian is to privately worship God. Therefore, some do not see the importance of public corporate worship. Those who discount the necessity of public worship often quote Acts 7:48 and 17: 24 as proof texts that God doesn't dwell in "temples made with hands". Although God lives in our hearts rather than in church buildings, there is nothing about these verses that would suggest that God does not meet with Christians when they come to His house to worship Him.

       Now you may legitimately ask what on earth does all this has to do with music in worship? Good question! First, one of the ways that the Holy Spirit was able to convict me of the awfulness of my sin that separated me from God was watching a camp meeting choir at the Eastern Kansas Camp praise the Lord. God uses the musicing of His people, to cause those who do not know him to desire to have fellowship with God. Second, music is an excellent vehicle to exhort believers to draw closer to our Heavenly father. Third, the emotions and effusions of a worshiping heart can be expressed more clearly with music than with “words alone". As Mike Avery, president of God's Bible College often states, "Words break down and squeak" when we try to explain our response to our loving Savior Jesus Christ. Musicing unto the blessed Trinity often fills the gap when taking the journey from the natural to the supernatural in our worship experiences.

Thought for the Day-worship part 11

Thought for the Day-worship part 11 

Many Christians find it much easier to present God their life as a dead sacrifice rather than a living one.  A dead sacrifice is not capable of service in God's kingdom (see Romans 12:1).