Music | A People for His Name

Harold Best on “satanic music”

June 23, 2023

In his work, “Music Through the Eyes of Faith,” Harold M. Best asserts the following:

When people say that rhythms, chords, or textures cause sexual license, violence, or drug abuse; whenever anybody—missionary or tribal person—says that certain kinds of music or rhythmic types are satanic, they are caught up in the same dilemma that Isaiah speaks of (chapter 44). There is really no difference between someone carving a god out of what otherwise is a piece of firewood and someone else who happens upon or makes a certain kind of music, expecting it to govern the actions of those hearing and using it.

—Harold M. Best, Music Through the Eyes of Faith, 48-49

I believe that Best is profoundly mistaken in what he says about “satanic music” through these statements. As a finite human, he has no capability to legitimately declare what he does concerning satanic music.

See my post Resources That Provide Answers to Key Issues Concerning CCM for much more biblical information about issues concerning what music God accepts in corporate worship.

In CCM, Christian Books, Music, Quotes

“Humans Can Hear Some Supernatural Musical Sounds”

June 13, 2023

Scripture reveals that humans can hear some supernatural musical sounds and correctly know that they are musical sounds, as the following two points show that I wrote elsewhere some time ago:

1. At Sinai, no humans were allowed to come near the mount, but trumpet sounds proceeded out from Sinai that were humanly heard and recognized to be trumpet sounds:

There shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live: when the trumpet soundeth long, they shall come up to the mount. (Exod. 19:13)

And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. (Exod. 19:16)

And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice. (Exod. 19:19)

And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. (Exod. 20:18)

2. John heard the sound of harpers harping with their harps in heaven:

And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps: (Rev. 14:2)

In Interpretation, Music

Why Single Musical Tones Are Intrinsically Moral

June 3, 2023

A little over four years ago, in an online discussion, I wrote the following in a comment entitled, “Single Musical Tones Were Not Humanly Created.” These points teach us why single musical tones are intrinsically moral:

First Cor. 14:7-8 teaches us that for a musical instrument to be used properly in corporate worship, it must produce a distinction in tones such that what is played is humanly knowable. Based on that teaching, we are justified in holding that single musical tones do not have any intrinsic musical meanings that are humanly knowable.

Furthermore. we know that heavenly beings play musical instruments in producing moral instrumental music in corporate worship of God. That instrumental music is made up of single tones combined in whatever ways the supernatural musicians combine them in their worship. All of those single tones used in heavenly worship are intrinsically moral because they are sounds that were created by God when He ordered His universe to make sound and its intrinsic properties. None of those intrinsic properties of single musical tones were humanly created.

Beyond that, we have explicit Scripture that relates to us that God assigned the use of certain musical instruments to His people (trumpets) to produce sounds that had assigned musical meanings to them that were divinely assigned (Num. 10:1-10 and other passages). God’s use of the single tones in whatever ways they were combined in this divinely commanded use of musical instruments teaches us that the single tones comprising what was played on those instruments were intrinsically moral.

Because single musical tones are basic sounds that were not humanly created, we are justified in holding that they are intrinsically moral.

In Interpretation, Music

Six Times through the Psalms in 2023!

May 31, 2023

One of my goals for 2023 is to read the book of Psalms twelve times this year. If I am able to do so, I will have read the book of Psalms through 100 times in my life, and 75 times since 2012, when God first directed me to start intensely studying what the Bible teaches about music.

Tonight, I finished reading the Psalms for the sixth time this year!

Psalm 146:1 Praise ye the LORD. Praise the LORD, O my soul. 2 While I live will I praise the LORD: I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being.

In Bible reading, Music, Testimony

Book Update 5.26.23

May 26, 2023

God has directed me to study what the Bible teaches about music for more than 12 years now. He has also led me for several years to work on writing my book The Battle for Kingdom Music: A Call to Worldwide Consecration.

I have taken this week off from work so that I can do at least 30 hours of work on my book and read the Psalms through for my sixth time this year.

After doing 16 1/2 hours since May 22, I may now be 95% finished with my first draft! I have also read Psalms 1-50 in the last three days.

Psalm 35:27 Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: yea, let them say continually, Let the LORD be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant.

In CCM, Christian Books, Music

Sing Aloud to the God of Our Mercy!

May 14, 2023

Psalm 59:16 But I will sing of thy power; yea, I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning: for thou hast been my defence and refuge in the day of my trouble. 17 Unto thee, O my strength, will I sing: for God is my defence, and the God of my mercy.

David ends this Psalm with three exclamations of his resolve to sing to God: “I will sing . . . I will sing aloud . . . will I sing . . .”

Like him, we must resolve to sing *aloud* of God’s power and mercy because He has been our defense, refuge, and strength in the days of our troubles.

We must sing *aloud* to the God of our mercy!

In Exhortation, Music

In Gratitude for the FBFI Resolution on Music

May 5, 2023

Praise God that He directed brethren in the FBFI to speak out in resolve concerning music that is acceptable to God!

97.10 Regarding a Commitment to Godly, Christ-honoring Music:

The FBF rejects the notion that music is not a matter of separation. Clearly, we would separate from a pastor or church that used rock music either to attract a crowd or-God forbid-in worship. Therefore, we recognize that it is a separation issue. The encroachment of “CCM” or Contemporary Christian Music as a musical genre has been ignored too long. It is wrong to judge motives subjectively, but it is essential to discern the implications of methods, particularly in music. Fundamentalists should be able to agree that we must be committed to Godly,
Christ-honoring music. With sufficient prayerful discussion with Fundamentalist musicians, and necessary study of the subject by our preachers we will be able to move toward a consensus of what is meant by ‘Christ-honoring’ music in practice. We call for Fundamentalists to cease defending tastes in music as a matter of “preference” and begin to expound the principles whereby those who need guidance on this issue can be truly helped. We assert that those who boast of their “balance’ and ‘objectivity” while rejecting the teaching of biblical principles concerning music are compromising the means whereby this issue can be resolved. Neither tradition nor taste are the issue. The Bible communicates principles of music that is acceptable to God that can and should be known and taught.

This resolution is from the PDF “Past FBFI Resolutions: 1946—Present” available at the bottom of this page: https://fbfi.org/positions/

In CCM, Ministry, Music

“Come, O Thou Prophet of the Lord”

April 29, 2023

“Come, O Thou Prophet of the Lord” by Charles Wesley is a wonderful hymn that I discovered this week in my church’s hymnal, “Hymns of Grace and Glory.”

Come, O Thou prophet of the Lord,
Thou great interpreter divine,
Explain Thine own transmitted Word,
To teach and to inspire is Thine;
Thou only canst Thy self reveal,
Open the book and loose the seal.

Whate’er the ancient prophets spoke
Concerning Thee, O Christ, make known;
Chief subject of the sacred book,
Thou fillest all, and Thou alone;
Yet there our Lord we cannot see
Unless Thy Spirit lend the key.

Now, Jesus, now the veil remove,
The folly of our darkened heart;
Unfold the wonders of Thy love,
The knowledge of Thyself impart:
Our ear, our inmost soul, we bow,
Speak, Lord, Thy servants hearken now.

In Music

Are All Kinds of Percussion Acceptable to God for Use in Corporate Worship?

April 18, 2023

Are all kinds of percussion acceptable to God for use in corporate worship? I believe that the following diagram treats and applies Scripture properly to provide a clear answer to that question.

In brief, Scripture teaches that even for all things that are lawful, not all of them are expedient and not all of them edify. Because that is true, both all things that are expedient and all things that edify are subsets of the set of all things that are lawful.

Only those things that are lawful and expedient and edifying are acceptable to God for use in corporate worship. If something is lawful but it either is not expedient or it does not edify or both, it is unacceptable to God for use in corporate worship.

Concerning all kinds of percussion, some hold that all kinds of percussion are lawful because they believe that there are no prohibitions in Scripture against any kinds of percussion. Even if that were a correct basis for concluding that all kinds of percussion are lawful, it would not be sufficient for establishing that they are all also expedient and edifying because there simply is no Scripture that teaches that all kinds of percussion are lawful, expedient, and edifying.

In fact, as the diagram sets forth, 1 Corinthians 13:1 implies that there are ways to sound certain percussion instruments that are not expedient and edifying. Because that is true, there is no biblical basis to hold that all kinds of percussion are acceptable to God for use in corporate worship.

If one disagrees and asserts that all kinds of percussion are in fact acceptable to God for use in corporate worship, he has the burden of proving from Scripture that all kinds of percussion are lawful, expedient, and edifying.

In Interpretation, Music, Theology

A Biblical Response to Robert Bakss on Percussion Instruments in Psalm 150

March 6, 2023

In his book, “Worship Wars: What the Bible Says about Worship Music,” Robert Bakss discusses the role of drums in worship music. He writes,

Most of the musical instruments in Psalm 150 are percussion instruments. This shows that beat is acceptable in worship music.

— p. 67

Are these statements correct?

Musical Instruments Mentioned in Psalm 150

Three verses in Psalm 150 mention multiple musical instruments:

Psalm 150:3 Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. 4 Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. 5 Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals.

Psalm 150 mentions 8 musical instruments or groups of musical instruments:

1. trumpet
2. psaltery
3. harp
4. timbrel
5. stringed instruments
6. organs
7. loud cymbals
8. high sounding cymbals

Three of the 8 instruments or groups are percussion instruments: timbrel, loud cymbals, and high sounding cymbals. Three out of 8 means that most of the musical instruments in Psalm 150 are not percussion instruments.

Conclusion

A careful examination of Robert Bakss’ statements about Psalm 150 shows that his first statement is factually wrong and therefore does not support his second statement. It is not true that Psalm 150 “shows that beat is acceptable in worship music” because “most of the musical instruments in Psalm 150 are percussion instruments.”

Brethren who seek to support that view need to provide factually correct information from Scripture to support their belief that beat is acceptable in worship music.

In CCM, Exposition, Interpretation, Music

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Musical Instruments Mentioned in Psalm 150

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