Now, please do not think I am bashing down Christian Music because, first, it is not about the Christian it is FOR Jesus Christ. So….. let’s get into it.
P.S: This is my opinion based from observation.
- The Holy Spirit VS. Emotions
Before I dive into this point, let’s define the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is, of course…..A Spirit… but is represented as a person, typically referred to as a He. He is a member the Holy Trinity which includes: Jesus Christ, God the Father, and Holy Spirit. He is given to those that accept The Lord Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior and have repented from sin. He convicts Christians to do the Will of God and speaks to them also. He is a Guide in our lives. Just as your parents, but the Holy Spirit is our Eternal Guide. It was given to us ever since Jesus Christ ascended into Heaven [Acts 1:4 and 4]. It fills us with comfort and wisdom, it reprimands us, it directs us, it communes with us, it shines through us as we live the life God wants us to.
Since you know what the Holy Spirit is, now it is time for the Emotions. When I go online and watch people sing Spiritual songs about “Christ” I do think, they are not. There seem to be a lot of I’s and Me’s in them; rather than, God and Jesus Christ. Don’t get me wrong… I listened to many and in fact, sung to them, but there is no Voice from God speaking to me those songs. People think if you worship Christ you will experience some happy emotion and get uplifted almost like, you are in “Heaven”.
SEE EMOTIONS!!! None of that lasts. Unlike when you truly Worship and Praise God you feel joy — Indescribable Joy!! Something you cannot receive from Man. That is the true presence of God. When a Christian feels this, they realize the Goodness, Grace, Mercies, and the Loving kindness of Him. In these spiritual songs today, they make promises to God saying: “ I will worship You for the rest of my days” — sounds nice, “ I will die for Christ” — seems impossible, “ I will forgive those who have trespass against me, because you did the same to me, Lord” — Now, wait a minute…. Let’s be real — that’s tough. But that doesn’t mean it is impossible; in fact, that doesn’t any of these are impossible. These are all honorable, but when I listen to rest of the song it rambles on with ‘I’. Praise is to magnify, or give glory to the One Who created us. We, as Christians, are to spread His Name and His word to the deepest depths of the world. We are to give thanks to Him for He is Good. Worship is to give God the love He deserves from us, to exalt His Name, and establish Him as Our Lord in our lives not some other. These things not only make us feel closer to God, but, it allows us to feel closer as brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus.
Phew! That was just the first point so…..let’s get into the Second.
2) Popularity vs. Message
Now, What do I mean by this? I’ll tell it simply.
There is no Praise given to the Goodness of God, only to the Goodness He provides.
See, simple.
Yes, God is a Provider, but not where you take advantage of it. And yes, I do it too, we all do, I believe it is Human Nature. When I listened to “Amazing Grace”, “Above All”, “Jesus is Coming Again”, “In Christ Alone (My Hope is Found)”, “All to Jesus, I Surrender”, “Here I am Worship”, “Because He Lives”, “As the Deer”, and so much more. What happens is that I feel like I can do ANYTHING, doesn’t matter what it is…..well, maybe. There is Humility, Gladness, Joy, Peace, and Gratitude [Psalms 95:6] that speaks from each of them and it opens your eyes to realize how much we ought to be grateful for because Christ had died for us on the Cross, just so we can receive the free gift of Salvation. The Christian Songs today, well, some of them, discuss how you receive blessings when you do certain things, that aren’t aligned to what the Bible says. So, it is people’s negligence towards what should be discussed because it is people’s lives at stake, and people need the Blood of Christ. I noticed that people tend to focus on what another wants to hear — look, I get it, people need to get around, but if something is dedicated to something sacred or meaningful, it SHOULD remain that way; especially Godly music.
The Biggest Christian Music Productions are Hypocritical.
The music may sound appealing, like, “Oceans” and “What a beautiful Name it is”, but, it is always about the Message you want to convey. These people are more devoted to appeasing the World because they are of the World. As Christians, we are not to dwell on that, although, it is hard, because we sometimes may be fooled by them. As much as I listened to Hillsong and Bethel Music in the past, they’ve lost their love for Christ and their mission to promote Him, because of the world’s immense impact on them. Apparently, it’s still popular, not because it is Spiritual, but because it appeases people’s desires. The Hymns, Psalms, and Spiritual songs are meant to be for Worship [John 4:24-28] [Psalm 104:33].
3) The Misunderstanding of Conveying a Godly Message through Music
Music is the bridge that connects us between multiple universes. It sustains so much power to influence anyone. That is why it is used in many ways, including in Praise and Worship. Christians express love through music, the same as any other artist does for their art. Music has power to control a person, like, spiritual songs: they connect our hearts to things we can not see. Which is what makes Praise and Worship so important because it allows us to sense God’s Presence and let Him take control, to let Him help us connect with others. Then, we as Christians realize that the things of the world are of no importance to us.
Now, because Music is so influential, Christians get involved in secular music. To be fair, I believe Christians that sing today, are inspired to sing from Non-Christians most of the time (that’s in my opinion), because that is just how powerful Music truly is. But let’s not forget Music was created by God the Father, so it is necessary to give God the Praise He rightfully deserves.
Most of time, a song that has a good meaning to it, normally, its message comes from a Godly one. Like most universal truths do. But because secular music sells so much, Christian Music Production Companies *adjust* their messages for the viewers, this should not be the case. Because it is only teaching half-truths, which many believe, and many are fooled. Everyone is born a sinner, and for every crime there is a punishment; that is why we are given the gift of Salvation, so we can repent and turn away from our sin, because Christ has forgiven us.
So, this is what I believe, Godly Music is just as important as Godly Preaching. They are forms to give God thanks, which is why these are the duties of a Christian — we are to represent Christ and share His Word regardless of the persecution and hatred we may receive. We have to remember, we were not the ones who received hate first, it was Christ. It WILL be hard, but it is a journey so…. Keep Going!
I hope you enjoyed. Thanks so much for reading.
“Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” Colossians 3:16 KJV