***Start off with movie clip***
Tonight, we are going to be spending some time talking about music, which is something that is a really big part of most of our lives. Over the last twenty-five years, music, which was already a main focus in culture, has become an even bigger factor in our every day lives than we even realize. The birth of the powerhouse television network MTV, the development of the Internet, and the invention of the iPod and other MP3 players, music of all styles is available at pretty much any moment.
Nowadays, it is almost like having a readily available soundtrack for your life. For many people, music is a constant force in our lives that fills every moment that is possible. Many people fall asleep with music on and wake up to music. As people work out at the gym, go for a run, walk the dog, do homework, or play video games, music is usually involved in some way, shape, or form. For a lot of people, myself being one of them, they can’t be in a car without having the radio or a CD on. My wife and I always bicker about this. She likes it quite but I love music so much that I have to have it on just a little bit.
Now, maybe not all of you are that interested in music but it is one of the few conversations that pretty much every person you encounter could participate in somehow. Everyone has music that they like and enjoy. You might not necessarily have a favorite band and know everything about a certain group but everyone likes some kind of music. Whether it’s rap, heavy metal, classical music, or any other style, we all have some form of music whether it is a little or a lot that plays a part of our lives.
Tonight, I want to do a few things. First off, I want to ask the question, “What does God think about music?” Secondly, I want to talk about whether jumping deeper and deeper into a relationship with God should affect what we listen to and how we listen to music. And third, I want to look at a process to evaluate music that I have from a guy named Walt Mueller who spends a lot of time doing just that.
So, now that you know where we are heading, let’s dive in.
What does God think about music? What do you guys think?
***Give the youth a chance to respond to the question***
In my opinion, I think there are a couple of myths concerning God and music and what he thinks about it. Some of them, unfortunately, are pushed by churches and people who are Christians but I don’t think they are very Biblical.
The first myth is that God only likes certain styles of music. We have all heard about the idea that rock and roll is evil that was huge years ago but still lingers around in certain people’s minds. There are some churches that won’t allow drums or guitars in their building because they claim that the organ is the way music is supposed to be done. I actually had a person tell me that a Christian once told her that rock and roll is the reason that the divorce rate has gone up in the country…which is ridiculous. What is sort of funny about this idea is that when the organ first was introduced to the church people said the same thing. The organ was evil and was a tool of the devil. The truth of the matter is that God likes all different styles of music from rap, to the organ, to hardcore screaming, and yes, even country. No where in the Bible will you find that rock and roll or any other style of music is evil. You might not like every style, and that’s ok, but each of them has the potential to be a sweet sound to God’s ears.
The second myth that some people buy into is that, as Christians, we can only listen to certain bands, the Christian ones to be exact. Well, just in case you were wondering, no where in the Bible will you “find the words ‘Thou shall not listen to insert band name here.’”
Just because a certain band is not a “Christian band” does not mean that God doesn’t want you listening to it and that it is evil or bad. Just because you have a relationship with God does not mean that you have to take all of your CD’s and burn them, never to be heard again.
The bottom line is that God loves music. Part of what it mean’s to be created in the image of God is that we too, can create things as well. No other animal can be creative and make something out of nothing. Some of you may argue that animals create things, like a beaver creates a dam, but they are only acting out of instinct not being creative. When we create or listen to music, it should remind us of the unique creations that we are and that music is one way in which we can imitate God and bring joy to Him as well as others.
Now, that we know that God loves music of all different styles and that music shows our uniqueness as being created in God’s image, should having a relationship with God affect what we listen to and how we listen to music? Again, I want to start off by finding out what you guys think?
***Give the youth a chance to respond to the question***
Let’s open our Bibles to Ephesians 5:1-11 and read what Paul had to say to the church in Ephesus.
***Read Ephesians 5:1-11***
Although, Paul does not specifically talk about music here in this passage it can very easily be applied to what we choose to listen to and how we listen to music. What can we glean about music from what Paul says in this passage?
***Give the youth a chance to respond to the question***
As we already stated, just because we have a relationship with God doesn’t necessarily mean we need to dispose of certain CD’s but having a relationship with God definitely should have a big affect on our music choices and the way we think about it. To help us understand what God says about music even more, listen to this paraphrase of the passage we just read that focuses on music:
“Because I love you, I tell you this: Imitate and think about me! Avoid imitating and believing those themes, messages, and behaviors that I say are wrong. They will slowly steam your heart, harm you, and destroy you. But go ahead and indulge yourself in and celebrate those themes, messages, and behaviors that I say are pure, true, lovely, and admirable. Let me ask you this…does your music lead you closer to me and my ways? Or, does your music pull you away from me and my ways? Prayerfully and deliberately look at the world of all music through the ‘eyes’ of my Word. Use your head to guard your heart.”
As we talked about last week, we are all very easily influenced by friends and the peers around us and the same goes for music. Again, it is not really the style that plays a big part in this, although heavier and faster music will typically excite and energize some people where soft and more melodic music will often calm others down, so it has a little bit of an effect but neither is necessarily right or wrong. What we really need to look closely at is the lyrics, and nowadays the video, to help us understand what message is being communicated and if that message is pleasing to God.
So, the process I want to share with you guys tonight is what was with your outlines tonight called the 3-D Guild to evaluating music. I’d like to explain it to you guys briefly and then I want to actually go through the process together looking at a popular song.
1. Discover – what is the songs meaning? Ask A LOT of questions
2. Discern – Compare the answer to #1 with what God’s standards are
a. Technical Excellence – is it even good?
b. Validity – is the artist consistent
c. Content
d. Integration of content and vehicle
3. Decide - Should I listen or not?
a. Does it have entertainment value?
b. Does it have ministry value?
All quotes and the process for evaluating music comes from Walt Mueller 3-D Guide to Making Responsible Music Choices. For more info on this see www.cpyu.org.
