English
Português
Español
Français
Answer
In all the instances of believers gathering for worship in the New Testament, there is no clear example of musical instruments being used. While many churches today incorporate various musical instruments, some opt for a cappella singing. The absence of a biblical precedent for using musical instruments in worship has led some to advocate for exclusive a cappella singing in church.
Although the concept of the church originates from the New Testament, it is essential to consider the historical use of musical instruments by God’s people in the Old Testament. Musical instruments were indeed a part of worship in the Old Testament and were even mandated in certain passages: “Start the music, strike the timbrel, play the melodious harp and lyre” (Psalm 81:2;cf: 98:5;150:4). Several psalms were meant to be accompanied “with stringed instruments” (e:g:, Psalm 4:1; Psalm 55:1; Psalm 67:1;76:1), including the song of Habakkuk «The LORD God is my strength, And he will make my feet like hinds’ feet, And he will make me to walk upon mine high places. To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.», (Habakkuk 3:19). The use of instrumental musical accompaniment was a common practice in worship. David instructed the Levite leaders “to appoint their fellow Levites as musicians to make a joyful sound with musical instruments: lyres, harps, and cymbals” «And David spake to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brethren to be the singers with instruments of musick, psalteries and harps and cymbals, sounding, by lifting up the voice with joy. », (1 Chronicles 15:16); in fact, four thousand Levites were set apart for playing musical instruments «Moreover, four thousand were porters; and four thousand praised the LORD with the instruments which I made, said David, to praise therewith. », (1 Chronicles 23:5).
Christians who believe that musical instruments should not be used in church acknowledge the Old Testament use of musical instruments, but they rightly assert that Old Testament examples do not set New Testament church practices. They assert that, under the New Covenant, the believers’ “instrument” is the human voice. Just as the Old Testament temple has given way to the “living temple” of the human body «What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? », (1 Corinthians 6:19), so the old “mechanical” instruments of temple music have given way to the “living,” Spirit-filled instrument of the human voice.
So, are churches that utilize musical instruments working outside the will of God? In answering this, we should remember a few important things: first, our guide for church practice should be Scripture alone, not church tradition, not the writings of church fathers, and not modern culture.
Second, absent a direct teaching in Scripture, we should exercise grace and tolerance. There may not be any example of a New Testament church using musical instruments, but, by the same token, the New Testament nowhere condemns musical instruments in the church. It’s natural to come up with rules that are not in the Bible, but we should be very slow to require what Scripture does not require or to forbid what Scripture does not forbid.
Third, the fact that there is no example in Scripture of a church using musical instruments is not a prohibition.
nts does not imply a command not to have musical instruments. Arguments from silence are notoriously flawed. Stating that the New Testament does not authorize the church to use mechanical instruments of music is not the same as saying the use of such instruments is incorrect. The New Testament also does not authorize the church to pass offering plates or install stained glass windows, yet few would say that those things are “wrong.” A lack of direct scriptural “authorization” of a certain practice is not an automatic prohibition.
In short, the Bible neither forbids nor commands the use of musical instruments in church. A church has the freedom to use musical instruments in worship, and a church has the freedom not to. Whatever a church decides to do concerning the use of musical instruments, other churches should accept it as that church’s way of praising the Lord. With or without musical instruments, we should “do it all for the glory of God” «Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. », (1 Corinthians 10:31).
