Worship music varies from church to church and from culture to culture. Still there are some givens for church worship: Music is a gift from God. When he created the world—“The morning stars sang together.” Music helps us express our love for God with our minds, our hearts, our souls, and our might. In church, the choir, worship team, and instruments may assist, but the whole church can sing. Music can lead us into God’s presence, but it is not for show. Music–both traditional hymns and current Gospel songs–should teach and reinforce truth that inspire and build our faith in God so we can live each day productively. Not only does the Bible encourage us to sing, we find in 1 Chronicles Ch 16 how King David organized music and musicians for worship. We read there that the musicians “used their trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments to accompany their songs of praise to God.” King David understood the power and place of music in collective worship. We should also remember music is valuable even for those who can’t carry a tune in a bucket. We can hum or sing in our homes, as we drive or ride in our cars, in times of sadness or in times of gladness.
Dr. Melvin E. Banks, Sr. is the founder and chairman of UMI (Urban Ministries, Inc.). Under his direction, UMI has grown to be a leading publisher of Christian education resources for churches in the African American community. Read More
