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The Chief Minister of Music

Does your congregation have a minister of music on staff? How about a worship or praise leader? If yours is a larger church congregation with an ample budget, the answer to these questions may be in the affirmative. For the vast majority of evangelical churches, which do well to provide for the pastor and pay the bills, the desire for a full-time staff member with training and expertise in sacred music is a longing that will go largely unfulfilled.

Many pastors, especially those in rural communities, find themselves performing double duty every Sunday as both song leader and preacher. The lack of a so-called “strong music program” sometimes becomes a source of discouragement for these pastors when they see apparently good prospects for church membership gravitate to other churches (the critical point of the decision being the music program, and what the other church offered in terms of music). The problem with such a pragmatic approach to the ministry of music in the church is that it fails to recognize that every congregation of Christian brethren, without regard for the size of its membership, has a Minister of Music present at every scheduled meeting.

The Bible teaches us a supernatural unity (oneness) exists between the One Who sanctifies believers and those whom He is sanctifying (Hebrews 2:11). For this cause, the Sanctifier is not ashamed to call them brethren. The writer of Hebrews proceeds to quote the prophetic words of the Sanctifier as recorded in Psalm 22:22, saying: “I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee” (2:12). These are the words of the Lord Jesus Christ to the Father, both His and ours! He is resolved both to declare and to sing in the midst of the church. Let the theologians and theoreticians debate exactly how He does this. Personally, I take this to mean that Jesus actually preaches with the preacher during his pulpit declarations, and sings along with the singers of praise, whether congregational or special.

In 2 Cor. 5:20, the apostle Paul expressed the same spirit of collaboration (i.e., laboring together toward a goal) in the phrases “as though God did beseech you by us” and “we pray you in Christ’s stead.” In a very real sense, Jesus is present at every scheduled church service as both Preacher and Minister of Praise Songs! With this truth in mind, how shall we account for dull church services that lack fervency in the preaching and praising? Could it be a lack of collaboration? That is, could Jesus be working toward one goal and the congregation another?

The Lord Jesus made His objectives perfectly clear regarding the church services where He would be in attendance. His primary goal for the preaching is to impact the brethren with God-centered truth! His primary goal for the singing is to impact the God of heaven with praise! The degree to which we collaborate with Him in these two areas will determine (to a great extent) the degree to which our ministries are pleasing and effective in His sight!

I have noticed that the Classified-Help Wanted sections of many denominational publications frequently carry ads from churches for ministers of music. Sometimes potential applicants are made aware that the church desires a blend of traditional and contemporary music styles. In others, the preferred style is strictly contemporary (i.e., advocates of traditional worship music need not apply). What do ads that distinguish between traditional and contemporary music reveal about a church? They disclose that someone or something other than the God of heaven has become the primary focus of the music! In other words, the worship has become man-centered rather than God-centered!

The one principle that should govern our congregational music choices is whether or not the Lord Jesus, the chief Minister of Music, could offer it to the Father as appropriate praise! Why would the brethren want to engage in that which the Lord Jesus cannot endorse? Does this mean that contemporary music is inappropriate? Absolutely not! What it does mean is that a music program that is governed by its anticipated effect upon the worshipper (whether traditional and contemporary) does not conform to the expressed will of Christ!

Brethren, our primary concern for all church music should be its anticipated impact upon the Father, and upon His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ! Every other consideration is secondary in nature, and virtually meaningless if the first order of business is obscured. The aforementioned double-duty pastor should take comfort in the fact that he has the collaboration of Christ in both the song leading and the preaching!

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