Ty sent in this question:

A lot of people at our church like the song “Your Grace Is Enough” which I think was co-written by Matt Maher and Chris Tomlin. I did some research on Matt Maher and found that he is a well-know Catholic artist. There are some who would say that since the song was written by somebody who is Catholic that it shouldn’t be sung. How should we think through something like this?

Before I share my thoughts, I wanted to address the question, “Is it possible to be a genuine Christian and a Roman Catholic at the same time?” I think so, despite numerous doctrines of the Catholic church that conflict with Scripture, such as purgatory, indulgences, and salvation by faith plus works. I know Catholics who have placed their trust completely in the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ for the forgiveness of their sins. To my knowledge, they’re truly born again.

But that doesn’t answer the question. How do we think through using songs written by people who hold beliefs contrary to what we believe the Bible teaches? I don’t think there are hard and fast rules in this area. But here are some thoughts.

Immediate content matters most. Knowing WHO wrote a song shouldn’t make it better or worse. I should first evaluate a song’s merits on the lyrics all by themselves, without any explanation, because that’s the way most people will sing and hear them.

Associations are important. Even though lyrical content is most important, we don’t always sing songs in a vacuum. I want to be careful about introducing a song that might be good in itself, but might lead to people getting exposed to a ministry, artist, or church that I wouldn’t otherwise be enthused about. Since “Your Grace is Enough” is more well known because of Chris Tomlin, it wouldn’t be a problem for me.

Associations can change over time. Churches sing songs today that were penned by Roman Catholics, Unitarian Universalists, and others who held to theological convictions we might not agree with. But because the song is disconnected from its origins, no one knows.

Composers often reveal their theological biases. If I know a song has been writen by someone whose orthodoxy I have a question about, I should exercise more care in examining the content. Songs by Catholics sometimes present a view of grace that’s unclear, or heavy on the result of grace and light on justification by faith. I find that often the problem is what the song leaves out, rather than what it actually says. For instance, It Came Upon a Midnight Clear was written by Edmund Sears, a Unitarian minister of the 19th century. While it’s been set to a beautiful tune, and can carry powerful connotations, it isn’t very clear on the meaning of Christ’s birth.

Bottom line, if I think singing a song is going to expose my church to an unhelpful influence, I’ll skip it. I if I don’t think that’s going to happen, and the lyrics are solid, I’ll sing it.

18 Comments »

1. Hi Bob et. al,

   Helpful framework. Looks like one of your paragraphs was inadvertently trimmed? “Some of the hymns…”

   I don’t think you can overemphasize the idea that content is king, literally and figuratively. If it doesn’t point us to God, it doesn’t serve us. Likewise, if it does point us to God and a right understanding of Him and our relationship with Him, then it is not right to exclude its possible use simply because of its author.

   Just as an example, let’s look at the other author who got a free pass from you :). Bob, you and Chris may run in the same circles and have had conversations about your own theological views. You may have formed your views about Chris’s theology from hearing him talk or reading material written by him. The bottom line for me though is that it, for the most part, doesn’t matter. When I choose to do a song by Chris Tomlin, I’m not endorsing Chris Tomlin. I’m endorsing the song.

   I personally have no idea whether Chris Tomlin is wacked out theologically or not. I personally have no idea if Chris Tomlin is a CHRISTIAN or not. I have no relationship w/ the man other than, if he is a Christian, through Christ. We’ve never met. We may never meet this side of heaven. Even if we did, I can’t peer into his heart. So for me to determine whether I use a song based off of whether the guy (or gal) who wrote it passes my own personal litmus test of “is he Christian enough” kind of falls flat on over 90% of the songs I use every Sunday.

   I do not say this to excuse us from researching the people who wrote the songs. That exercise can be helpful in numerous ways. I just don’t believe determining a song’s appropriateness for use is one of them. I’ve more often seen this working to spread disunity and denominationalism because one’s opinion operates under the guise of theological astuteness.

   Bottom line: we don’t need gatekeepers telling us who the approved songwriters for Jesus are because they’re better Christians or even Christians at all. We need shepherds who care about what words we sing and why we sing them because they can literally change our lives, regardless of who wrote them. If God can redeem a wretch like me, can he not certainly redeem the context of any song that points to his glory, majesty and grace? As songwriters, let us all echo the prayer of John the Baptist that we might decrease so that He may increase. For what it’s worth - (Buffalo Springfield)

   -eee

   Comment by Eric Barnhart — February 23, 2008 @ 12:10 am

2. Eric,

   Thanks for your helpful thoughts. I think we’re in the same general area on this issue. I just don’t think you can completely rule out the associations people make or might make with songs. But as you say, content is king.

   Thanks for the word on the sentence fragment. I took it out.

   Comment by Bob Kauflin — February 23, 2008 @ 6:57 am

3. Hi Bob,
   Thanks for bringing this to the table, and clarifying some things. I did the same research after getting requests for the song. On YouTube there’s an interview with both Chris and Matt where Matt basically says, “I thought that if I said it enough (Your Grace is Enough) it might actually be true” and expresses some doubt. I thought it was good for him to be honest. We know better, thank God. I’d like to think it’s a song that reinforces a grace-oriented perspective in songwriting, but it’s not really, aside from the title. God wrestling with the sinner’s heart? The verses are a bit confusing and don’t really tie well to the title, my opinion. There’s so much better out there, and many songs of complete and perfect salvation in Christ yet to be written!
   Grateful for what you’re doing,
   Tom

   Comment by Tom Townsend — February 23, 2008 @ 10:04 pm

4. We need to understand that the songs people write is their fruits. The lyrics may be sound doctrinally. That is great but the pharises knew the scriptures. Most importantly is the spirit of the song.

   The main issue I have is, is the artist living in sin, this is not always easy. As a church we will not do songs if we know if the artist is living in sin. that is why we don’t sing any songs from alot of the mainstream churches as they are preaching a gospel of relevance and not the Gospel at all.

   Comment by Dale — February 24, 2008 @ 2:25 am

5. Dale, I am not sure of your defintion of “living in sin”, but if sin is the criteria, would that prevent you from using Psalms?

   Comment by Chip — February 24, 2008 @ 8:52 am

6. I love your stuff. You are going to find more and more Catholics who are living a Christian life of salvation and that is b/c the Church is in serious renewal now which is awesome. Let me encourage you to not dismiss the teachings of the Catholic Church because of the many Catholics who are ignorant of them and not living them. There are many Catholics who are not Christians just as there are many of every other denominations that are Christian in name only. The teachings of the Catholic Church, when truly understood are probably a whole lot closer to what you believe than you know. Investigate the Catechism of the Catholic Church for example, which defines Catholic belief and you will see that every teaching is based on scripture and the teachings of the Church Fathers (how the church taught before Scripture was around.) Many Catholics still have no understanding of scripture but no that the Catholic Church not only uses and values scripture immeasurably, but they also gave us the “Bible” that we use today. There were hundreds and hundreds of books and letters before the Catholic Church ratified the Canon which we now call the Bible. Remarkably today people try to disprove the authenticity and authority of the Catholic Church by using the book that is valid only b/c we accepted their authenticity and authority. The very Church Fathers who pushed the 27 books of the new testament for example that were then ratified at the Council of Carthage also were Catholic and wrote many, many writings on the Catholic Church’s teachings. The fact is that the Holy Spirit guided the Catholic Church over time to recognize and determine the canon of the New and Old Testaments in the year 382 at the synod of Rome, under Pope Damasus I. This decision was ratified again at the councils of Hippo (393) and Carthage (397 and 419). For more information if you are open go to http://www.catholic.com/library/What_Your_Authority.asp

   also…
   I think what Matt is saying in the video by that comment is that God’s grace is so amazing that it is hard to believe, He is not saying he doesn’t believe it.

   Comment by John — February 24, 2008 @ 10:53 am

7. I am very familiar with Matt Maher’s music and have been greatly moved by his deep reverence for God and the Scriptural content of his lyrics. While I agree with you on the theological and soteriological problems with Catholicism, I have found (at least as evidenced through his music) that Matt Maher is an encouraging example of how the work of the Holy Spirit cannot be contained in a denominational box, and that He does reserve a remnant for Himself within the Catholic Church.

   Comment by Brendan Beale — February 24, 2008 @ 3:56 pm

8. Hi Bob,
   Thanks for another helpful post.
   On page 1 of his preface to “Our Own Hymnbook”, Spurgeon wrote, ‘Whatever may be thought of our taste we have used it without prejudice, and a good hymn has not been rejected because of the character of its author, or the heresies of the church in whose hymnal it first occurred; so long as the language and the spirit commended the hymn to our heart we included it, and believe that we have enriched our collection thereby.’
   However, as I understand it he was only referring to one or two such hymns, and as the subsequent downgrade cotroversy showed, Spurgeon took the issue of association seriously with respect to sound doctrine.

   Comment by Kevin — February 24, 2008 @ 10:01 pm

9. Hey Bob,
   Thank you for your thoughtful and scripturally based words of wisodm on this subject. A dear friend of mine sent me a link to this timely article since we were just discussing this very issue. A slightly different slant that was on our hearts and minds regarding this matter was this: what to do with ‘good’ lyrics that may carry a variant ‘intended’ meaning than that which we would ascribe. The example with which we were wrestling was the lyrics by Phillips, Craig, & Dean. Though their songs don’t generally communicate errant theology overtly, it seems they themselves do. Should their theology that’s wrapped up in their use of the names of Jesus, God, or Lord, affect my ability to embrace that same song with my different meanings attached to the same names? This may be ’splitting hairs’ to some… but I just wanted some wiser insight. Thanks!
   In Christ,
   Tim

   Comment by Tim Bolognone — February 25, 2008 @ 10:29 pm

10. Kevin, thanks for the Spurgeon quote. It kind of sums up my view on this subject as well.

    The Hymn “Faith of Our Fathers” was written by a Catholic priest at a time when Catholics were being persecuted, but the song is a great song to sing in times of trouble and persecution for the Protestant as well. In fact, I chose this song on Reformation Sunday! But the congregation didn’t think, “Well, let’s not sing this Catholic hymn on a day when we recognize the Protestant Reformation” because the words of the hymn transend the fact that a Catholic wrote it and can be applied to the rest of the Body.

    Bob, this is not the first time I heard about “It Came upon a midnight clear.” A few years back I actually gave a bit of history about some of the well known Christmas Carols. I found this one interesting and felt that once the congregation knew then some might be hesitent, so as I gave the history of the song I told them I thought it would be a shame if we never sang this again so to fix that problem I added a verse:

    He came down from His heav’nly throne
    into a world of death
    And with His perfect sacrifice
    the sinner now is blest
    Though as a Child in manger lay
    He still is Christ the King
    “All glory be to God on high!”
    The saints and angels sing

    The congregation was very appriciative for the information and came away with a greater and deeper understanding of what it means to sing about Christ.

    Great post!
    Rich

    Comment by Rich Tuttle — February 26, 2008 @ 8:43 am

11. Amendment to my previous post:
    “I just don’t believe determining a song’s appropriateness for use is USUALLY one of them.” Certain contexts may make a song inappropriate for a season even if the content itself is fine, but i find these contexts to be far rarer than some agenda-setters think.

    Comment by Eric Barnhart — February 29, 2008 @ 11:27 am

12. amendment to my previous amendment: that wasn’t a backhanded way of me saying you (or anyone else here) is trying to set an agenda! oops… i think i’ll stop typing now

    Comment by Eric Barnhart — February 29, 2008 @ 11:29 am

13. Bob,

    Thank you for your ministry to me personally. Your wisdom and insight on the questions you deal with on your post are very helpful and timely.

    My concern (which I pray to present humbly) with your post has nothing to do with Catholic songwriters or songs, but rather with your 2nd paragraph addressing the Catholics as Christians question. You stated that one of the Catholic doctrines that differs from Scripture is “salvation by faith plus works.” To be sure, that is not a different doctrine, it is a different gospel.

    I know this wasn’t the main point of your post, but to me it confused doctrine with gospel. “Salvation by faith plus works” in not a doctrine to be discussed like the doctrine of the church or one’s view on the millennium. On this truth the gospel of Jesus stands or falls: salvation is by faith alone.

    I believe you reference this when you say that “Catholics who placed their trust completely…” Thank you for including the “completely,” and feel free to capitalize, underline, or bold that word next time! It is as Spurgeon said, the gospel really is “ALL of grace,” or as the Sovereign Grace song declares, “ONLY Jesus, ONLY Jesus, give us Jesus, we cry!”

    Desiring to lift up God, Christ, grace, and faith with you,

    Kent

    Comment by Kent — February 29, 2008 @ 3:17 pm

14. Thank you so much for the postings that continually make us better worshippers. We were having a conversation with my husband about songs and writers and i referred back to something you had shared with us while i was there that is is sometimes easy to judge a song by the person who writes it instead of whom the song is about. There are many professing believers who have written questionable lyrics but the Word of God is the beacon to guide us. If it is not aligned to the truth of the gospel even if one of the most renowned gospel singers wrote it it does not glorify God. Thank you so much for shedding light on this topic. God bless you.

    Comment by Angel Mahehu — March 7, 2008 @ 3:10 am

15. Do you go to heretics like Papists or Unitarians (or Pelagians, or Arminians) for your theology? Then why will you let them teach you how to worship God… or give you the very words with which you will praise God? What assurance do you have that God will accept such words in His praise? especially when we have perfect assurance that He will accept the Psalms, since they are His own words being sung back to Him?

    Comment by Sean McDonald — March 8, 2008 @ 2:07 am

16. Sean,

    Thanks for stopping by.

    A few thoughts. Charles Wesley, an Arminian, wrote many songs that contain clear, biblical truth. Error doesn’t affect every word we say or every sentence we write. Otherwise no one could pray or preach.

    Singing a song that someone has written doesn’t mean you’re embracing their entire theological framework. But as I mentioned, we need to be more discerning when we sing songs by those we disagree with theologically.

    Finally, and I think this is most important, the only assurance I have that God will accept any of my words is that they are in agreement with his Word and I am offering them in faith through the substitutionary sacrifice of the Savior. That would include hymns, praise choruses, or the various metrical versions of the Psalms.

    Hope that’s helpful.

    Comment by Bob Kauflin — March 8, 2008 @ 7:16 pm

17. This is a very helpful post, and about a question that I never thought of! I assume that writers reveal their biases, so this question never occurred to me. Thanks!

    Comment by Michael Clary — March 10, 2008 @ 3:41 pm

18. We need to take note of

    “the prophetic nature and function of song in congregational worship. Deut. 32Deuteronomy 32
    [32:1]"Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak,
    and let the earth hear the words of my mouth.
    [2]May my teaching drop as the rain,
    my speech distill as the dew,
    like gentle rain upon the tender grass,
    and like showers upon the herb.
    [3]For I will proclaim the name of the LORD;
    ascribe greatness to our God!
    [4]"The Rock, his work is perfect,
    for all his ways are justice.
    A God of faithfulness and without iniquity,
    just and upright is he.
    [5]They have dealt corruptly with him;
    they are no longer his children because they are
    blemished;
    they are a crooked and twisted generation.
    [6]Do you thus repay the LORD,
    you foolish and senseless people?
    Is not he your father, who created you,
    who made you and established you?
    [7]Remember the days of old;
    consider the years of many generations;
    ask your father, and he will show you,
    your elders, and they will tell you.
    [8]When the Most High gave to the nations their
    inheritance,
    when he divided mankind,
    he fixed the borders of the peoples
    according to the number of the sons of God.
    [9]But the LORD's portion is his people,
    Jacob his allotted heritage.
    [10]"He found him in a desert land,
    and in the howling waste of the wilderness;
    he encircled him, he cared for him,
    he kept him as the apple of his eye.
    [11]Like an eagle that stirs up its nest,
    that flutters over its young,
    spreading out its wings, catching them,
    bearing them on its pinions,
    [12]the LORD alone guided him,
    no foreign god was with him.
    [13]He made him ride on the high places of the land,
    and he ate the produce of the field,
    and he suckled him with honey out of the rock,
    and oil out of the flinty rock.
    [14]Curds from the herd, and milk from the flock,
    with fat of lambs,
    rams of Bashan and goats,
    with the very finest of the wheat--
    and you drank foaming wine made from the blood of the
    grape.
    [15]"But Jeshurun grew fat, and kicked;
    you grew fat, stout, and sleek;
    then he forsook God who made him
    and scoffed at the Rock of his salvation.
    [16]They stirred him to jealousy with strange gods;
    with abominations they provoked him to anger.
    [17]They sacrificed to demons that were no gods,
    to gods they had never known,
    to new gods that had come recently,
    whom your fathers had never dreaded.
    [18]You were unmindful of the Rock that bore you,
    and you forgot the God who gave you birth.
    [19]"The LORD saw it and spurned them,
    because of the provocation of his sons and his
    daughters.
    [20]And he said, 'I will hide my face from them;
    I will see what their end will be,
    For they are a perverse generation,
    children in whom is no faithfulness.
    [21]They have made me jealous with what is no god;
    they have provoked me to anger with their idols.
    So I will make them jealous with those who are no people;
    I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.
    [22]For a fire is kindled by my anger,
    and it burns to the depths of Sheol,
    devours the earth and its increase,
    and sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.
    [23]"'And I will heap disasters upon them;
    I will spend my arrows on them;
    [24]they shall be wasted with hunger,
    and devoured by plague
    and poisonous pestilence;
    I will send the teeth of beasts against them,
    with the venom of things that crawl in the dust.
    [25]Outdoors the sword shall bereave,
    and indoors terror,
    for young man and woman alike,
    the nursing child with the man of gray hairs.
    [26]I would have said, "I will cut them to pieces;
    I will wipe them from human memory,"
    [27]had I not feared provocation by the enemy,
    lest their adversaries should misunderstand,
    lest they should say, "Our hand is triumphant,
    it was not the LORD who did all this."'
    [28]"For they are a nation void of counsel,
    and there is no understanding in them.
    [29]If they were wise, they would understand this;
    they would discern their latter end!
    [30]How could one have chased a thousand,
    and two have put ten thousand to flight,
    unless their Rock had sold them,
    and the LORD had given them up?
    [31]For their rock is not as our Rock;
    our enemies are by themselves.
    [32]For their vine comes from the vine of Sodom
    and from the fields of Gomorrah;
    their grapes are grapes of poison;
    their clusters are bitter;
    [33]their wine is the poison of serpents
    and the cruel venom of asps.
    [34]"'Is not this laid up in store with me,
    sealed up in my treasuries?
    [35]Vengeance is mine, and recompense,
    for the time when their foot shall slip;
    for the day of their calamity is at hand,
    and their doom comes swiftly.'
    [36]For the LORD will vindicate his people
    and have compassion on his servants,
    when he sees that their power is gone
    and there is none remaining, bond or free.
    [37]Then he will say, 'Where are their gods,
    the rock in which they took refuge,
    [38]who ate the fat of their sacrifices
    and drank the wine of their drink offering?
    Let them rise up and help you;
    let them be your protection!
    [39]"'See now that I, even I, am he,
    and there is no god beside me;
    I kill and I make alive;
    I wound and I heal;
    and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.
    [40]For I lift up my hand to heaven
    and swear, As I live forever,
    [41]if I sharpen my flashing sword
    and my hand takes hold on judgment,
    I will take vengeance on my adversaries
    and will repay those who hate me.
    [42]I will make my arrows drunk with blood,
    and my sword shall devour flesh--
    with the blood of the slain and the captives,
    from the long-haired heads of the enemy.'
    [43]"Rejoice with him, O heavens;
    bow down to him, all gods,
    for he avenges the blood of his children
    and takes vengeance on his adversaries.
    He repays those who hate him
    and cleanses his people's land."
    [44]Moses came and recited all the words of this song in
    the hearing of the people, he and Joshua the son of Nun.
    [45]And when Moses had finished speaking all these words to
    all Israel, [46]he said to them, "Take to heart all the
    words by which I am warning you today, that you may command
    them to your children, that they may be careful to do all
    the words of this law. [47]For it is no empty word for you,
    but your very life, and by this word you shall live long in
    the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess."
    [48]That very day the LORD spoke to Moses, [49]"Go up
    this mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the
    land of Moab, opposite Jericho, and view the land of
    Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel for a
    possession. [50]And die on the mountain which you go up,
    and be gathered to your people, as Aaron your brother died
    in Mount Hor and was gathered to his people, [51]because
    you broke faith with me in the midst of the people of
    Israel at the waters of Meribah-kadesh, in the wilderness
    of Zin, and because you did not treat me as holy in the
    midst of the people of Israel. [52]For you shall see the
    land before you, but you shall not go there, into the land
    that I am giving to the people of Israel." (ESV)

    This text is from the ESV Bible. Visit www.esv.org to learn about the ESV.

    records the song that Moses the prophet spoke in the ears of all the congregation of Israel. Judges 5Judges 5
    [5:1]Then sang Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam on
    that day:
    [2]"That the leaders took the lead in Israel,
    that the people offered themselves willingly,
    bless the LORD!
    [3]"Hear, O kings; give ear, O princes;
    to the LORD I will sing;
    I will make melody to the LORD, the God of Israel.
    [4]"LORD, when you went out from Seir,
    when you marched from the region of Edom,
    the earth trembled
    and the heavens dropped,
    yes, the clouds dropped water.
    [5]The mountains quaked before the LORD,
    even Sinai before the LORD, the God of Israel.
    [6]"In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath,
    in the days of Jael, the highways were abandoned,
    and travelers kept to the byways.
    [7]The villagers ceased in Israel;
    they ceased to be until I arose;
    I, Deborah, arose as a mother in Israel.
    [8]When new gods were chosen,
    then war was in the gates.
    Was shield or spear to be seen
    among forty thousand in Israel?
    [9]My heart goes out to the commanders of Israel
    who offered themselves willingly among the people.
    Bless the LORD.
    [10]"Tell of it, you who ride on white donkeys,
    you who sit on rich carpets
    and you who walk by the way.
    [11]To the sound of musicians at the watering places,
    there they repeat the righteous triumphs of the LORD,
    the righteous triumphs of his villagers in Israel.
    "Then down to the gates marched the people of the LORD.
    [12]"Awake, awake, Deborah!
    Awake, awake, break out in a song!
    Arise, Barak, lead away your captives,
    O son of Abinoam.
    [13]Then down marched the remnant of the noble;
    the people of the LORD marched down for me against the
    mighty.
    [14]From Ephraim their root they marched down into the
    valley,
    following you, Benjamin, with your kinsmen;
    from Machir marched down the commanders,
    and from Zebulun those who bear the lieutenant's staff;
    [15]the princes of Issachar came with Deborah,
    and Issachar faithful to Barak;
    into the valley they rushed at his heels.
    Among the clans of Reuben
    there were great searchings of heart.
    [16]Why did you sit still among the sheepfolds,
    to hear the whistling for the flocks?
    Among the clans of Reuben
    there were great searchings of heart.
    [17]Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan;
    and Dan, why did he stay with the ships?
    Asher sat still at the coast of the sea,
    staying by his landings.
    [18]Zebulun is a people who risked their lives to the
    death;
    Naphtali, too, on the heights of the field.
    [19]"The kings came, they fought;
    then fought the kings of Canaan,
    at Taanach, by the waters of Megiddo;
    they got no spoils of silver.
    [20]From heaven the stars fought,
    from their courses they fought against Sisera.
    [21]The torrent Kishon swept them away,
    the ancient torrent, the torrent Kishon.
    March on, my soul, with might!
    [22]"Then loud beat the horses' hoofs
    with the galloping, galloping of his steeds.
    [23]"Curse Meroz, says the angel of the LORD,
    curse its inhabitants thoroughly,
    because they did not come to the help of the LORD,
    to the help of the LORD against the mighty.
    [24]"Most blessed of women be Jael,
    the wife of Heber the Kenite,
    of tent-dwelling women most blessed.
    [25]He asked water and she gave him milk;
    she brought him curds in a noble's bowl.
    [26]She sent her hand to the tent peg
    and her right hand to the workmen's mallet;
    she struck Sisera;
    she crushed his head;
    she shattered and pierced his temple.
    [27]Between her feet
    he sank, he fell, he lay still;
    between her feet
    he sank, he fell;
    where he sank,
    there he fell--dead.
    [28]"Out of the window she peered,
    the mother of Sisera wailed through the lattice:
    'Why is his chariot so long in coming?
    Why tarry the hoofbeats of his chariots?'
    [29]Her wisest princesses answer,
    indeed, she answers herself,
    [30]'Have they not found and divided the spoil?--
    A womb or two for every man;
    spoil of dyed materials for Sisera,
    spoil of dyed materials embroidered,
    two pieces of dyed work embroidered for the neck as
    spoil?'
    [31]"So may all your enemies perish, O LORD!
    But your friends be like the sun as he rises in his
    might."
    And the land had rest for forty years. (ESV)

    This text is from the ESV Bible. Visit www.esv.org to learn about the ESV.

    contains the song of Deborah, the prophetess. Mention is made of musical instruments in association with the company of the prophets in 1 Sam. 101 Samuel 10
    [10:1]Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on
    his head and kissed him and said, "Has not the LORD
    anointed you to be prince over his people Israel? And you
    shall reign over the people of the LORD and you will save
    them from the hand of their surrounding enemies. And this
    shall be the sign to you that the LORD has anointed you to
    be prince over his heritage. [2]When you depart from me
    today, you will meet two men by Rachel's tomb in the
    territory of Benjamin at Zelzah, and they will say to you,
    'The donkeys that you went to seek are found, and now your
    father has ceased to care about the donkeys and is anxious
    about you, saying, "What shall I do about my son?"' [3]Then
    you shall go on from there farther and come to the oak of
    Tabor. Three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you
    there, one carrying three young goats, another carrying
    three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine.
    [4]And they will greet you and give you two loaves of
    bread, which you shall accept from their hand. [5]After
    that you shall come to Gibeath-elohim, where there is a
    garrison of the Philistines. And there, as soon as you come
    to the city, you will meet a group of prophets coming down
    from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre
    before them, prophesying. [6]Then the Spirit of the LORD
    will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be
    turned into another man. [7]Now when these signs meet you,
    do what your hand finds to do, for God is with you. [8]Then
    go down before me to Gilgal. And behold, I am coming to you
    to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice peace offerings.
    Seven days you shall wait, until I come to you and show you
    what you shall do."
    [9]When he turned his back to leave Samuel, God gave him
    another heart. And all these signs came to pass that day.
    [10]When they came to Gibeah, behold, a group of prophets
    met him, and the Spirit of God rushed upon him, and he
    prophesied among them. [11]And when all who knew him
    previously saw how he prophesied with the prophets, the
    people said to one another, "What has come over the son of
    Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?" [12]And a man of
    the place answered, "And who is their father?" Therefore it
    became a proverb, "Is Saul also among the prophets?"
    [13]When he had finished prophesying, he came to the high
    place.
    [14]Saul's uncle said to him and to his servant, "Where
    did you go?" And he said, "To seek the donkeys. And when we
    saw they were not to be found, we went to Samuel." [15]And
    Saul's uncle said, "Please tell me what Samuel said to
    you." [16]And Saul said to his uncle, "He told us plainly
    that the donkeys had been found." But about the matter of
    the kingdom, of which Samuel had spoken, he did not tell
    him anything.
    [17]Now Samuel called the people together to the LORD at
    Mizpah. [18]And he said to the people of Israel, "Thus says
    the LORD, the God of Israel, 'I brought up Israel out of
    Egypt, and I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians
    and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing
    you.' [19]But today you have rejected your God, who saves
    you from all your calamities and your distresses, and you
    have said to him, 'Set a king over us.' Now therefore
    present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and by
    your thousands."
    [20]Then Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near,
    and the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot. [21]He brought
    the tribe of Benjamin near by its clans, and the clan of
    the Matrites was taken by lot; and Saul the son of Kish was
    taken by lot. But when they sought him, he could not be
    found. [22]So they inquired again of the LORD, "Is there a
    man still to come?" and the LORD said, "Behold, he has
    hidden himself among the baggage." [23]Then they ran and
    took him from there. And when he stood among the people, he
    was taller than any of the people from his shoulders
    upward. [24]And Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see
    him whom the LORD has chosen? There is none like him among
    all the people." And all the people shouted, "Long live the
    king!"
    [25]Then Samuel told the people the rights and duties of
    the kingship, and he wrote them in a book and laid it up
    before the LORD. Then Samuel sent all the people away, each
    one to his home. [26]Saul also went to his home at Gibeah,
    and with him went men of valor whose hearts God had
    touched. [27]But some worthless fellows said, "How can this
    man save us?" And they despised him and brought him no
    present. But he held his peace. (ESV)

    This text is from the ESV Bible. Visit www.esv.org to learn about the ESV.

    . David, the sweet psalmist of Israel, had the words of the Holy Ghost upon his tongue, 2 Sam. 23:22 Samuel 23:2
    [2]"The Spirit of the LORD speaks by me;
    his word is on my tongue.

    This text is from the ESV Bible. Visit www.esv.org to learn about the ESV.

    . Then, when David made preparations for the worship which was to be performed in the temple, he committed the song into the hands of Heman, “the king’s seer in the words of God,” 1 Chron. 25:5, 61 Chronicles 25:5
    [5]All these were the sons of Heman the king's seer,
    according to the promise of God to exalt him, for God had
    given Heman fourteen sons and three daughters. (ESV)

    This text is from the ESV Bible. Visit www.esv.org to learn about the ESV.

    .

    In the New Testament, Paul gives instructions concerning singing “with the spirit” and the bringing forward of “a psalm” ( 1 Cor. 14:15, 261 Corinthians 14:15
    [15]What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I
    will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my
    spirit, but I will sing with my mind also. (ESV)

    This text is from the ESV Bible. Visit www.esv.org to learn about the ESV.

    ) in the context of regulating the use of the prophetic gift. In the disputed passages, Eph. 5:19Ephesians 5:19
    [19]addressing one another in psalms and hymns and
    spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with
    your heart, (ESV)

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    , Col. 3:16Colossians 3:16
    [16]Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching
    and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms
    and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your
    hearts to God. (ESV)

    This text is from the ESV Bible. Visit www.esv.org to learn about the ESV.

    , the saints are to speak to themselves, to teach and admonish one another, in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. Again, a prophetic function. Finally, in the Apocalypse, the songs of the redeemed and of the heavenly host are prophetic, either foretelling God’s judgements to come, or revealing the nature of those judgements when they do come. Here, then, is the biblical criterion for examining the quality of a song which is to be used in congregational worship. Is it prophetic? If not, the composition does not come up to the standard of worship-song as revealed in the holy Scriptures. In both the Old and New Testaments the church was blessed with a prophetic hymnody. The church of subsequent ages should not settle for anything less! And as uninspired men cannot produce prophetic compositions, the church ought not to settle for their substandard songs.” (Winzer, “Singing the Lord’s Song in a Strange Land”)

    Comment by Richard — March 11, 2008 @ 5:33 pm

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