Worship in Song

A Biblical Philosophy of Music and Worship

Scott Aniol

• Publisher: BMH Books
• Year: 2009
• ISBN:
  9780884692867
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Rituals & Practice

"Few books have been written that carefully distinguish between secular music that we listen to every day, and sacred music, " Scott Aniol says. "After discussing some foundational matters, the first section considers how to make God-pleasing choices regarding the secular music we listen to, and the second deals more narrowly with sacred music."

Contending that much of the confusion about the music issue is primarily a theological misunderstanding, Aniol discusses such issues as what does Sola Scriptura really mean?, the nature of biblical affections, the essence of biblical worship, and the purpose of music in the church. Cultural issues discussed include meaning in music, the nature of pop culture, and different kinds of emotion.

Each chapter concludes with aids for discussion so that the book may be used in small groups and classrooms. Further resources are available at worshipinsongbook.com or at the website for Aniol's music and consulting ministry, religiousaffections.org.

SECTION III

Music in Assembled Worship

CHAPTER TEN

Worshiping God in the Assembly

In section 2 we discussed music and worship in general but did not narrow the topic to congregational worship specifically. From this point on, however, the focus of this book will be precisely that—congregational worship.

Three Biblical “Styles” of Worship

There is a lot of discussion by Christians about different “worship styles” and whether they please the Lord. Terms such as “conservative,” “traditional,” “contemporary,” and “blended” are used to describe differing philosophies of worship style. Scripture reveals three definite biblical worship styles.

Lifestyle Worship

The first style of worship was considered in chapter 2: All of life should be worship. Every decision a person makes should be a response to truth. That is best expressed in passages such as 1 Corinthians 10:31 and Romans 12:1:

Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31).

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service (Rom. 12:1).

All of a believer’s life should be for God’s glory. That is the essence of worship. As we continually present our lives to God, we are worshiping Him. Progressively becoming like Christ is one of the best ways of magnifying His unique excellence. In this sense, all of life is designed to be worship. When we understand those attributes unique to God and seek to magnify them through our actions, we are worshiping God with our response to truth. We were created to worship God in that way. We should also note that the “therefore” in Romans 12:1 indicates this response of worship flows from the truth about God expressed in the first eleven chapters of Romans. So even in “lifestyle worship,” both truth about God and the believer’s response must be present.

As a Christian progresses in his sanctification, he learns more truth from God’s Word. He should respond to that truth by changing anything that does not conform to Scripture and rejoicing in the rich truths he has learned. That, of course, necessitates his diligent study of the Bible and being under sound preaching. That also necessitates striving to understand truth.

Private Worship

A more narrowed style of worship is private worship—when a Christian spends dedicated personal time with the Lord in His Word and in prayer. As a believer studies the Word of God, the Holy Spirit will illumine him as to the significance of that Scripture to his life, and he should respond accordingly. Private worship is a very individual, intimate form of worship, and the worshiper’s responses will reflect this intimacy. Here the truth about God is very personal; it is directed to a specific individual. The believer’s response will also be very personal and unique to his situation. There are several examples in Scripture of those who set apart specific and definite times to worship God.

David said, “My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD; In the morning I will direct it to You, And I will look up” (Ps. 5:3) and later, “Seven times a day I praise You, Because of Your righteous judgments” (Ps. 119:164).

Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went home. And in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days (Dan. 6:10).

Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, [Jesus] went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed (Mark 1:35).

Private worship is a vital and necessary part of every believer’s life. No Christian can please God without it. Believers must diligently study God’s Word and then respond to the truth through heartfelt prayer, confession, and affection for God.

Congregational Worship

The third style of worship is congregational worship—the gathering of the people of God to worship Him corporately. Scripture clearly commands and exemplifies this form of worship:

Praise the LORD! I will praise the LORD with my whole heart, In the assembly of the upright and in the congregation (Ps. 111:1).

Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, And His praise in the assembly of saints (Ps. 149:1).

In these passages, the psalmist exhorts the believer to praise Jehovah and to do so in the assembly of believers. Old Testament believers recognized the importance of worshiping congregationally, and the practice carried over into the New Testament church as well. The Bible commands New Testament believers to gather together on a regular basis. First Corinthians 14:23 speaks of the whole church gathering together. Acts 2:46 tells of the early church attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes. Hebrews 10:25 commands believers not to neglect meeting together. Although there is no explicit statement that the purpose for these meetings was congregational worship, there are several reasons we can be sure that worship did occur.

First, early Christian gatherings naturally included many Jewish worship practices. Andrew Hill, an Old Testament scholar, argues, “It is only natural . . . that we seek the origins of early Christian worship in Jewish temple and synagogue worship.”¹

Second, it is clear from New Testament narratives that what took place at gatherings of the church included acts of congregational worship:

And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved (Acts 2:42-47).

Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord and fasted… (Acts 13:1-2).

Also, the New Testament describes gatherings of believers as the temple of God. The Elizabethan English of the King James Version of the Bible readily reveals the plural pronouns used when Old Testament Temple language is used to describe the Church:

Now therefore ye [plural pronoun, “you all” as a local church congregation] are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple [naos, same word used for the Holy Place in the Temple] in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit (Eph. 2:19-22 KJV, emphasis added).

For we are labourers together with God: ye [plural pronoun] are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building [oikos, “dwelling”] (1 Cor. 3:9 KJV, emphasis added).

Know ye [plural pronoun] not that ye are the temple [naos] of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you [plural]? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye [plural] are (1 Cor. 3:16-17 KJV emphasis added).

Ye [plural pronoun] also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house [oikos], an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light (1 Peter 2:5, 9 KJV emphasis added).

Both Old Testament command and New Testament example demonstrate that God desires that believers lift His praises together. He wants His children to gather for the purpose of honoring Him. This worship is still an individual, heartfelt response toward God, but it is expressed publicly in the presence of other believers. That brings God even more glory than if it were done privately.

For instance, a person receives more honor when he is praised in the presence of many people than if he were praised by one person privately. The great honor that comes with winning an Olympic gold medal is because thousands of people are watching the event. A solo violin can be beautiful, but when it is combined with other instruments in a symphony, the glory of the music is even more spectacular. The same is true when God is praised publicly in the presence of others. C. H. Spurgeon said, “Personal praise is sweet unto God, but congregational praise has a multiplicity of sweetnesses in it.”²

Therefore, congregational worship could be defined as a unified chorus of spiritual responses toward God expressed publicly to God, as a result of understanding biblical truth about God.

Though the three styles of worship are distinct, they are interrelated. They must all be present in a believer’s life. Without private and congregational worship, a believer will not worship God with his lifestyle. If believers do not worship God throughout the week privately and with their lives, congregational worship will be dead and meaningless. If a Christian isn’t consistently faithful in congregational worship, he will not worship the Lord in other areas.

Another important factor is that with each different style of worship, both the content of the worship and the response toward God will be slightly different. With lifestyle worship, the content is a person’s experiences of what God has done, interpreted through his understanding of biblical truth, and the response will be obedience and Christ-likeness. With private worship, the content will be the Word of God as it is applied to a person’s life individually, and the response will be very personal and intimate. With congregational worship, the content will be God’s revelation given to the whole congregation, and the response will be unified and corporate.

Congregational Worship Music: Narrowed by Purpose

It is often easy to blend and confuse the issues of sacred music and secular music (whether pop or classical) when discussing general music philosophy. It is sometimes unclear whether someone who is attempting to establish a biblical philosophy of music is discussing general principles applicable to all music or specific principles that address sacred music alone.

It is important to make clear distinctions between lifestyle worship and congregational worship. In chapter 2 we saw that all of life is worship. Principles set forth in sections 1 and 2 will help us make music decisions as lifestyle worship decisions. Section 3 narrows our discussion to congregational worship, and it is necessary to do so with regard to music as well. Just as the criteria for congregational worship are more narrowed than for lifestyle wors...