IS
IT OKAY TO USE SECULAR MUSIC IN CORPORATE WORSHIP?
A
few years ago, a prominent church in the United States came under controversy
for beginning their weekly worship gathering with a secular song. The scrutiny
was not as much because the song was secular but because of its questionable
lyrics, which include, “Baby, you turn me on.” Like many of you, growing up, it
became clear to me that secular music should be used in the context of
corporate worship. I have laxed on that stance since then; yet, I still draw the
line at God’s glory. We should always remember that all we do is to be for the
glory of God. With that said, it is certainly possible to glorify God and
listen to or perform secular music. I would, however, like to focus on the
music we utilize in our corporate worship gatherings.
Is
it okay to use secular music in corporate worship? The underpinning question (I
think) is this: for whose glory is worship designed? Throughout church history,
there has existed a fine line between the use of secular and solely sacred
elements in music, e.g. secular tunes were often parodied and set in corporate
worship contexts in the Reformation and post-Reformation eras. In fact, many
hymns in our various denominational hymnals employ tunes that were once
considered secular. Many congregants likely do not know that now because the tunes
have been familiarized in sacred worship for so long. The church shares a rich
history of employing secular mediums in worship. Recently I recorded an entire
podcast on art in worship and discussed the fact that there is no sacred and
secular divide except what humanity has created, i.e. God created music and art
for his glory so any artform that does not glorify him has been distorted.
How
then do we, as worship leaders, approach the use of secular music in corporate
worship? Is it okay? Is it not okay? I would like to answer these questions as
best as possible by discussing three unique aspects to this conversation.
Thinking through these three imperatives will help us determine what is okay to
use in corporate worship.
Using Music from outside Ecclesiastical Contexts Is Not New
I
have already mentioned this: using music from outside sacred contexts is
nothing new. Even prior to the Reformation, composers parodied and paraphrased
other composers’ music. In fact, Renaissance composers often set entire mass
ordinary texts to unoriginal music. In the Reformation era, this trend
continued by setting hymn texts not only to original hymn tunes but also to
secular tunes that would have been familiar to the public.[1]
Moreover,
the Reformers employed secular tunes but not secular texts. If one chooses to
use the Reformation as a model for worship, it cannot be argued that secular texts
were the norm; they most certainly were not. Even the famed Lutheran composer,
J.S. Bach declared, “All music should have no other end and aim than the glory
of God and the soul’s refreshment; where this is not remembered there is no
real music but only a devilish hubbub.”[2] I believe there is a God-ordained
reason that only the texts of the Psalms remain rather than the music also: the
text is derived from God’s holy word while the music is not. Therefore, if one
were to ask me if employing secular music is okay, I would respond with a
twofold answer. Yes, music is okay; nevertheless, worship leaders should be
careful not to use text that does not point people to Jesus.
If Tunes Are Okay, What about Text?
The
gap exists not between secular and sacred music but rather between sacred and
secular texts. As already mentioned, God’s intent for all artforms is not a
sacred and secular divide, but humanity has distorted what was created to be
good. Practically then, there absolutely is a sacred and secular divide.
Therefore, I do not buy the argument that we live in a Utopian society where
absolute righteousness exists; in fact, Scripture is clear that we are evil by
nature. While music does not necessarily suggest a message, theology, or
thought, text certainly does. Not all secular texts are morally bad and can, in
fact, be used to glorify God. Nevertheless, some are, which is why worship
leaders should be careful to think about the music used in corporate worship.
If
the sole purpose of worship is the glory of God, why would we ever have a
desire to use anything that declares something else? I do not mean that you
cannot glorify God by listening to (or performing for musicians) secular music
(including text); yet, in corporate worship, there are absolutely elements that
never belong. I would even argue that patriotic elements do not belong in
weekly worship gatherings of the local church, though that is another issue.
Secular texts that do not point directly to the glory of God do not belong in
corporate worship. Furthermore, it should be apparent that songs which blatantly
go against God’s character do not belong in corporate worship, i.e. songs that
say, “Baby you turn me on,” but sadly, it seems that this is perhaps not as
apparent as it should be. Worship leaders should be more careful with text than
with music.
Worship Is Not for the Lost
My final thought on this issue is one that resonates
throughout my theology, belief, and teaching: worship is not designed for lost
people. To some, this statement may seem harsh; yet, a lost person has no
capability to worship God. Scripture is clear that they are dead in their sin
(Eph 2:1), as we all once were. I do not intend to veer off course here, but
should we even spend our time inviting lost people to our worship gatherings? Notice
I did not say church because the church is the people of God, not a place
people go. I suggest that we should not invite lost people to our weekly
worship gatherings as much as we do. I do not mean to never do it; the purpose
of corporate worship, however, is not reaching the lost. Certainly, there are
evangelistic aspects to worship and when the Holy Spirit’s power is present in worship,
lost people come to know Christ. The problem, however, is that many Christians
treat worship as primarily a time to reach people.
The Bible says that God was provoked to anger and
jealousy when his own people worshiped other gods, i.e. idols (Deut 32:16-17).
Moreover, the Apostle Paul warns the Corinthians not to participate in pagan
actions[3] which is
participation with demons. Not to assume that nonbelievers consciously worship
demons, everyone either worships God or Satan, the god of this world (2 Cor
4:4); there is nothing in between. Even those who think they worship another
god, such as Buddha or Allah, worship Satan and, thus, participate with demons.
Satan is good at disguising himself as other deities. It is usually unknowing;
yet, when we invite a lost person into our midst for corporate worship, because
such a person is totally and radically depraved apart from Christ, no figure of
speech, we are inviting a worshiper of Satan into our midst. Surely, God’s power
is greater; yet, we should be careful not to approach corporate worship as primarily
a time to reach the lost because a lost person has no capability whatsoever to
worship triune God.
I also suggest that inviting the lost to our worship
gatherings is not biblical because we are told to go (Matt 28:19-20), i.e. we
are told to go to the lost rather than bring them to us. We must be mindful of
these facets of our faith.
My thoughts here are related to the music we sing in
corporate worship because when we realize that worship is for the sole purpose
of glorifying God, we no longer begin designing services to reach people but
rather to give God a fraction of the worship he deserves through every endeavor
including music. We should ask: if we are using secular music to reach people,
are we really designing our worship services for worship or evangelism? To me,
the answer is obvious; the sole purpose, in that case, is not to worship God.
Walk the Thin Line Carefully
This is not an easy topic with which to deal. Likely,
many will consider me too rigid or strict. I can even hear the comparisons
between myself and the Pharisees in my mind. I am simply trying to be as
careful as possible in my call; it is a serious task. I listen to secular
music; many other ordained ministers do also. In the context of corporate
worship, which is not an ordinary moment but rather a sacred moment set apart
for God alone, we should think about what elements we use including music. In
some contexts, perhaps the use of a secular tune or even text work to
illustrate a gospel concept. Brother or sister, however, I challenge you to be
careful when making those decisions. It is not the lives of lost souls at stake
but rather the worship of God, which is far weightier. Consider the purpose of
worship. Is it okay to use secular music in corporate worship? I am a both and
person rather than an either or. It is both; nonetheless, we should be careful
because the worship of God from his people should not be compromised.
[1] I should clarify, however, when people teach that
Reformation era composers (such as Martin Luther) utilized bar-tunes in their
worship services, it is a misunderstanding and even a mistranslation of the term,
bar-tunes. What is meant by this is that metrical hymnody began to appear
around this time and metered music began to see bars (or measures) in the
music. It does not necessarily mean that the tunes were known primarily for
being used in bars, although some of them certainly could have been.
[2] Good Reads, accessed August 24, 2018, https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/333745-all-music-should-have-no-other-end-and-aim-than.
[3] This context deals specifically with food.
