The guitar, keyboard and drums back one of Monterey Church of Christ’s worship leaders on Sunday.
Though common to many contemporary churches, the scene stands in flagrant opposition to biblical witness and Church of Christ tradition, according to Tommy Hicks, preacher at Lubbock’s Southside Church of Christ.
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The reason? Instruments.
Churches of Christ have traditionally called for instrument-free worship services, believing New Testament Scriptures and church traditions affirm and require the practice.
Some members, like Hicks, see the inclusion of instruments as a departure not just from tradition, but also from God’s word – and therefore, a matter of salvation.
Others appreciate the denomination’s a capella worship tradition, but question whether it is a Scriptural requirement.
Tradition
The a cappella tradition in Churches of Christ is rooted in Scripture and the early Christian church, said Brian Starr, Lubbock Christian University executive vice president.
“The early leaders of the (Church of Christ) movement took a high view of Scripture and, interpreting it within a generally conservative framework, they sought to restore the worship practices found in the New Testament church,” he wrote in an email. “From that stance, they typically embraced a capella as their worship style.”
The practice continues in most Churches of Christ, including the majority in Lubbock.
To explain the tradition, many pastors point to New Testament Scriptures like Ephesians 5:19-20, which reads, “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (NIV 1984).
Absent in the New Testament are explicit references to instrumental worship, pointing to a Christian standard of a capella worship, some argue.
In addition, the New Testament emphasizes inward expressions of spirituality, rather than outward practices mentioned in the Old Testament, like animal sacrifice and use of instruments, said Dale Mannon, preaching minister of Green Lawn Church of Christ.
“That kind of context explains in part to me why instruments of music weren’t incorporated into the worship of Christians,” Mannon added. “Following Christ was meant to be something that was more internalized than the many demonstrates that we see through the old covenant.”
Hicks goes further, calling the matter an issue of salvation and insisting instruments are the man-made practices exhorted against in Colossians 2:22-23, he said.
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Humming, clapping and other wordless melodious noise-making are also forbidden, he said. Here’s the thinking: The point of singing is to worship God and encourage one another. And how can you teach your neighbor if you hum instead of sing words?
Though Vandelia Church of Christ has periodically used instrumental music, the congregation’s worship assemblies will likely remain a capella out of affinity for tradition, said the church’s preaching minister, Douglas Hale.
Monterey, too, plans to keep its 8:30 a.m. a capella assembly because of continued connection to the service and the worship tradition, said the church’s senior minister, Barry Stephens.
Reliance on the human voice encourages participation in worship, Mannon and Hale say.
And for Green Lawn member Santiago Rodriguez, musical instruments actually take away from the worship experience.
“When you add a drum and you add a guitar and you add all these musical instruments to your singing it sounds good – don’t get me wrong – but it sounds even better natural, with what God has given us,” Rodriguez said. “My wife is a very, very beautiful lady and she doesn’t need the lipstick, the makeup and all that other stuff to make her look even prettier.” Worship should be similarly pared down, he said. “Just natural.”
Going instrumental
Monterey’s decision to include an instrumental worship assembly was the culmination of years of Bible study and discernment, Stephens said.
Numerous Scriptures, like those in 2 Chronicles 7 and 29, Psalms 33, 92 and 150, affirmed instrumental worship, the leaders decided.
Furthermore, New Testament Scriptures traditionally used to support a cappella worship did not speak specifically to the context of gathered worship. And if even if they did, the Greek word translated as “music” or “melody” did not refer exclusively to a cappella worship.
Hicks disagrees with the Monterey leaders’ interpretation, saying the Greek word did mean a cappella in the context used, and Old Testament Scriptures were under the law of Moses, and therefore not applicable to Christians.
But Stephens wondered, “If God feels so strongly about instruments not being used in a worship gathering, then why do I not find a specific text in the New Testament that says you can’t do it?”
Once Monterey leaders had Scriptural grounding, they turned to another question: Was instrumental worship right for Monterey? They decided it was; the practice could help them further spread the Gospel and offer members with non-vocal musical talents a forum for offering their gifts to God. Leaders then guided members through biblical study, with the church opting in the end to have an instrumental service.
The decision came with costs.
Between 35 and 40 members departed during the year-and-a-half move toward the service. Some left on grounds of conviction while others did so because the 10:45 a.m. service would become instrumental and they preferred a late morning a capella service.
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However, Stephens noted, about the same number of people have joined during the 18-month period – including people returning to the Church of Christ fold after years away.
Overall, the response has been positive, he maintained. People participate just as enthusiastically and sing just was wholeheartedly as they did before the instruments were used.
On a recent Sunday, congregants packed the assembly hall, singing along to percussive and meditative hymns alike.
Fractured fellowship
When Monterey Church of Christ debuted its new service on Feb. 5, Hicks preached a sermon titled, “We Cannot Fellowship the Lubbock Monterey Church of Christ,” about the spiritual stakes of instrumental worship. The same morning, he discussed the topic “Surveying the Error of Instrumental Music in Worship” on his radio program on KFYO. He later burned the sermon and radio program on CDs and sent the recordings to Monterey’s elders and as many Lubbock Church of Christ elders as he had addresses for.
In the sermon, Hicks encouraged Southside members to end fellowship with Monterey – even if family members were part the offending congregation.
Ending spiritual ties with Monterey was difficult but necessary because of the potential effect on souls, Hicks said.
The issue is not about a piano in worship, but rather about the authority of Scripture. The matter is of such importance, the preacher wants to debate the matter publicly with Monterey leaders, Hicks said. Stephens said such a debate would not help further Monterey’s mission of reaching those who do not believe in Jesus.
Though Mannon believes firmly in a capella worship, he takes a less hard-line stance than Hicks.
“There’s a fellowship, certainly, that’s based on Jesus Christ,” Mannon said. “And I think as we talk about that – about this whole issue of instrumental music – I think that that’s a fundamental thing to emphasize because it becomes easy to get sidetracked and to place more emphasis on this matter of instruments or non-instruments. All of a sudden, then, Christ is secondary, and I want to make sure that’s never the case.
“Churches of Christ are autonomous, and so I’m presuming that when churches make a decision to incorporate instruments in some way at some point, they’re doing so very thoughtfully and prayerfully and with a Godly intention.”
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Category: WHY
