Christians and Music

       Music is a big topic in the church these days. There is a constant debate as to whether we should sing Contemporary or Traditional songs, how much we should keep up with the modern trends, and how to keep everyone happy while doing whatever it is we decide to do. Because it is so controversial, music has even divided the church into several distinct camps that are each sure they are right and are not willing to compromise. While I know that all sides of the issue have valid points and that it is nearly impossible to give the right answer in this situation, I would like to suggest that the problem of what music we sing in our churches goes deeper than whether or not we like drums. I believe that it starts with a philosophy of life that will change our perspective on why we use music in the first place. The fact the we are created in the image of God.
      Genesis 1:27 say that "God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them" (English Standard Vers.). Being made in the image of God means that we have similar attributes, character, and desires as him on a finite scale. We are supposed to be able to represent God in every way. The Fall of Man in Genesis three made us imperfect representations of him. Now all those areas where we were like God have been twisted and perverted because of sin. But, when a person accepts Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord they are given a new heart and the ability to be like Christ, the second figure in the god head. It is therefore our responsibility as Christians to seek to accurately represent God in every part of his character.
      Now, you are probably wondering what this has to do with music. God is a creative god. When he made the world he infused it with colors and sounds, scents and textures, all different and all beautiful. When he made us in his image he intended for us to be a creative people. We can use every area of life to bring honor and glory to God from going to church to painting a picture. This includes music. God created music and meant  for it to be used for worship of him through both the text and the accompaniment. The beauty and harmony of "The Four Season" by Vivaldi can bring just as much glory to God as the hymn "Great is Thy Faithfulness." The only requirement is that it be done with an attitude of humility and service with a recognition of our complete dependence on God.
      To apply this to our modern situation, I think a misunderstanding of this principle has made Christians in the past reluctant to enter the field of music apart from writing specifically "Christian" songs. Because of this, the secular world has been the only influence on new developments in the world of music. New styles and genres were introduced my non-Christians and were therefore thought of as "worldly", when in fact, they were only different. The word of God commands us to sing a new song to the Lord and to not endlessly repeat the same thing in our communication with God. This is not to say that we can never sing the same song twice, but we need to be careful not to do the same thing all the time our of tradition. Christians should be in the very front of discovery and development of music because as reflections of a great God our creativity should know no bounds in this regards.
       To clarify, I want to say that while a song does not have to have Christian lyrics to glorify God, if the words of a song are against the teaching of God's word then there should be no place for it in our lives. Music can be corrupted by sin so we still need to have discernment when deciding what influences to let into our lives.
       This video by Jeff Bethke speaks to the same topic and would be well worth your time to watch.

      In conclusion I would just like to say that Christ desires unity in his church. He gave his blood to unite a people for himself to serve and worship him through all eternity, so when we use music as an issue of division in our lives we have put it on the level of an idol. We are all going to have to give up our own desires in this as we humbly seek after the truth, but if we seek, above all else, to honor God with what we are doing we cannot go far wrong.