Why the churches of Christ do not use
mechanical music in the worship service?
Acapella - Without instrumental
accompaniment.
[Italian: a, as + capella,
chapel]
( American Heritage Dictionary
)
Latin for "in the style of
the church".
We (Christians) have what is perfect, I Cor
13:10. The inspired written word and we
as Christians believe every word strictly.
We believe totally both the Old and New Testaments. (The word
“testament” is derived from the latin “testmentum”, meaning “covenant”). In Luke 24:44-45 Jesus himself tells us he
has fulfilled the requirements stated in the Old Testament ( i.e.: the Law, the
Writings and the Prophets). Therefore
Jesus, having fulfilled the requirements of the Old and as the testator of the
New Covenant through his death and resurrection put the New into full effect (
Heb 9:15-17 ). In this covenant He did not authorize mechanical music and we
will not add to the word of God on or own.
Paul warned the Galatians of false
doctrines and teachings to come. We
must also heed what the Galatians were told and believe the gospel of Christ
Jesus, not the doctrines of man.
NOTE: This instruction is repeated in the
scripture. This
seems to emphasize the importance of
this warning.
DO NOT BE MISLEAD BY DOCTRINES OTHER
THAN THOSE
JESUS TAUGHT AND THE APOSTLES
PREACHED UNDER THE
GUIDANCE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT!
Gal 1:8 - 9 (KJV)
But though we, or an angel from
heaven, preach any
other gospel unto you than that
which we have
preached unto you, let him be
accursed.
As we said before, so say I now
again, If any man
preach any other gospel unto you
than that ye have
received, let him be accursed.
Contracts and covenants.
We need to know what these are before we
progress any further. A contract or
covenant is an agreement between parties.
The agreements may be said to last a certain amount of time or until
certain actions or events have taken place.
When a contract is fulfilled it has no weight or force behind it
anymore. An item from the old contract
can be re-instituted into the new contract but it must be specifically
mentioned. The old contract may have
been in force for centuries but once the new contract is in effect the old
one can only be used as an example ( I
Cor 10:11 ). These examples can be descriptions of what needed to be fulfilled
or what terms and conditions the previous parties agreed to live by.
Some
of the conditions of the old covenant (old testament).
Animal
sacrifice.
( Gen 4:4, Lev chapter 1 thru 6 )
Burning of incense as part of the
worship.
( Ex 30:1 )
Keep
the sabbath day.
(
Duet 5:12 )
Rules of the Passover.
( Ex. 12:1 thru 28 )
Indication
that this covenant would not last forever and ever and that another would take
its place.
1. Jer 31:31 - 33 (KJV)
Behold, the days come, saith
the LORD, that I
will make a new covenant with
the house of
Israel, and with the house of
Judah:
Not according to the
covenant that I made with
their fathers in the day that I
took them by
the hand to bring them out of
the land of
Egypt; which my covenant they
brake, although I
was an husband unto them, saith
the LORD:
But this shall be the
covenant that I will make
with the house of Israel; After
those days,
saith the LORD, I will put my
law in their
inward parts, and write it in
their hearts; and
will be their God, and they
shall be my people.
Some
of the conditions of the old covenant (old testament) that are re-instituted
into the new are:
Not taking innocent blood.
( Ex 20:13, 23:7, Duet 27:25,
Mat 19:18 )
False witness.
( Ex 20:16, Duet 5:20 Ma 19:18 )
Giving
of laws and to whom they were given.
Now let us go back into history to the
beginning for a proper division of the scripture and follow how the law was
given and to who it was given.
2 Tim 2:15 (KJV)
Study to show thyself approved unto
God, a workman
that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly
dividing the
word of truth.
I. Patriarchs
( Patriarchal Age )
1.
A law of living was given through agents of God to
the head of the family. The head of the family then
delivered the law to the members of
the family
verbally.
2.
Without law how can there be sin?
a.
If there were no rules or an understanding
that we must obey the word of
God in the time
of Adam how could Cain have
sinned by offering
a sacrifice God did not
authorize?
b. Without law or rules how could Cain have
sinned by shedding the
innocent blood of Abel?
c.
Why would God destroy the unrighteous by flood
if there was no law in place
to hold judgment
by? For that matter, how could there be
unrighteousness if there were
no rules or law?
3.
Mankind had laws to live by and these were passed
down verbally from generation to
generation by the
fathers or elders of the families.
4.
This age lasted to two different ends.
The first
when the written law was given to
the Hebrew at
Mount Horeb thus beginning the
Mosaical Age for the
Hebrew. The second for the Gentiles
( all nations
other than the Jewish ) when the
House of Cornelius
was converted ( Christian Age ).
II. Mosaical Age
1.
Laws were given to Moses to write down through
agents of God. ( The first covenant ). This law had
365 prohibitions and 248
commandments for a total of
613 rules. Of the 10 most often discussed, 9 were
in force before the giving of the
Law to Moses and
are still in force today. The one not re-instituted
into the New Testament is "Keep
the Sabbath”.
Christians keep to the "Lord's
Day", the first day
of the week.
2.
These laws were written so the people would have
them and could not deny them. The law was also read
in their hearing each year to
further prevent denial
of not knowing the law. This law was to be a shadow
of the good things to come.
Heb 10:1 (KJV)
For the law having a shadow of
good things to come,
and not the very image of the
things, can never with
those sacrifices which they offered
year by year
continually make the comers
thereunto perfect.
3.
These written laws were given to the
Israelites only. ( NOTE:
the Israelites were a chosen people
to be an example of how
God treats and protects
those who follow and obey him.
(1 Cor 10:11)
Deu 5:1 - 6 (KJV)
And Moses called all Israel, and said unto them,
Hear, O Israel, the statutes
and judgments which I
speak in your ears this day,
that ye may learn them,
and keep, and do them.
The LORD our God made a covenant
with us in Horeb.
The LORD made not this
covenant with our fathers,
but with us, even us, who are
all of us here alive
this day.
The LORD talked with you face to
face in the mount
out of the midst of the fire,
(I stood between the LORD and you at
that time, to
show you the word of the LORD: for
ye were afraid by
reason of the fire, and went not up
into the mount;)
saying,
I am the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the
land of Egypt, from the house of
bondage.
4.
The Lord used this system of written laws and rules
to picture in types and figures the
more glorious
system to come.
1 Cor 10:11 (KJV)
Now all these things happened unto
them by way of
example: and they are written for
our admonition,
upon whom the ends of the world are
come.
5.
The law was faulty.
Heb 8:7 (KJV)
For if that first covenant had been
faultless, then
should no place have been sought for
the second.
6.
The law was weak.
Rom 8:3 (KJV)
For what the law could not do, in
that it was weak
through the flesh, God sending his
own Son in the
likeness of sinful flesh, and for
sin, condemned sin
in the flesh:
7.
God intended for this to be temporary.
It was to
last only "till the seed should
come to whom the
promise hath been made".
Gal 3:19 (KJV)
Wherefore then serveth the law? It
was added because
of transgressions, till the seed
should come to whom
the promise was made; and it was
ordained by angels
in the hand of a mediator.
We are not left to guess as to the identity
of the
seed, for Paul wrote, "And to
thy seed, which is
Christ"
Gal 3:16 (KJV)
Now to Abraham and his seed were the
promises made.
He saith not, And to seeds, as of
many; but as of
one, And to thy seed, which is
Christ.
Thus the law was to be fulfilled
through Christ.
III. New Covenant ( Christian Age )
1.
Jeremiah Prophesied the new covenant.
Jer 31:31 - 33 (KJV)
Behold, the days come, saith the
LORD, that I will
make a new covenant with the house
of Israel, and
with the house of Judah:
Not according to the covenant that I
made with their
fathers in the day that I took them
by the hand to
bring them out of the land of Egypt;
which my
covenant they brake, although I was
an husband unto
them, saith the LORD:
But this shall be the covenant that
I will make with
the house of Israel; After those
days, saith the
LORD, I will put my law in their
inward parts, and
write it in their hearts; and will
be their God, and
they shall be my people.
2.
Christ came to take away the first, that he may
establish the second.
Heb 10:9 (KJV)
Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy
will, O God. He
taketh away the first, that he may
establish the
second.
3.
The law was taken away by nailing it to the cross.
Col 2:14 (KJV)
Blotting out the handwriting of
ordinances that was
against us, which was contrary to
us, and took it
out of the way, nailing it to his
cross;
4.
Christ was born under the law ( Gal 4:4-5 ), Christ
lived under the law, and finally
died under the law
to fulfill it. ( Mat 5:17 )
Gal 4:4 - 5 (KJV)
But when the fulness of the time was
come, God sent
forth his Son, made of a woman, made
under the law,
To redeem them that were under the
law, that we
might receive the adoption of sons.
Mat 5:17 (KJV)
Think not that I am come to destroy
the law, or the
prophets: I am not come to destroy,
but to fulfil.
5.
The New Testament could not become operative until
after the death of Christ.
Heb 9:16 - 17 (KJV)
For where a testament is, there must
also of
necessity be the death of the
testator.
For a testament is of force after
men are dead:
otherwise it is of no strength at
all while the
testator liveth.
We understand this for we see it
demonstrated
constantly. We know that no will or testament can
become effective until after the
death of the
testator. Christ death on the cross fulfilled and
ended the law.
Col 2:14 (KJV)
Blotting out the handwriting of
ordinances that was
against us, which was contrary to
us, and took it
out of the way, nailing it to his
cross;
Ever since Christ died and ever
since his will has
become operative, it must be
executed according to
the provisions that are found in
it. Woe to the man
who changes it!
6.
Jesus fulfilled all Old Testament prophesy and on
his death and resurrection his testament
went into
full effect.
Heb 8:6 - 13 (KJV)
But now hath he obtained a more
excellent ministry,
by how much also he is the mediator
of a better
covenant, which was established upon
better promises.
For if that first covenant had been
faultless, then
should no place have been sought for
the second.
For finding fault with them, he
saith, Behold, the
days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new
covenant with the house of Israel
and with the house
of Judah:
Not according to the covenant that I
made with their
fathers in the day when I took them
by the hand to
lead them out of the land of Egypt;
because they
continued not in my covenant, and I
regarded them
not, saith the Lord.
For this is the covenant that I will
make with the
house of Israel after those days,
saith the Lord; I
will put my laws into their mind,
and write them in
their hearts: and I will be to them
a God, and they
shall be to me a people:
And they shall not teach every man
his neighbour, and
every man his brother, saying, Know
the Lord: for all
shall know me, from the least to the
greatest.
For I will be merciful to their
unrighteousness, and
their sins and their iniquities will
I remember no
more.
In that he saith, A new covenant, he
hath made the
first old. Now that which decayeth
and waxeth old is
ready to vanish away.
Throughout the Gospels it is
preached that the
"Kingdom is near", the
"Kingdom is at hand". After
Jesus' death and resurrection these
terms are not
preached again.
Jesus is reigning and ruling the
Kingdom today. We
are in this Kingdom and must do
strictly as our King
commands.
IV. What are Jesus' commandments to us?
1.
Gal 1:8 - 9 (KJV)
But though we, or an angel from
heaven, preach any
other gospel unto you than that
which we have
preached unto you, let him be
accursed.
As we said before, so say I now
again, If any man
preach any other gospel unto you
than that ye have
received, let him be accursed.
Jesus did not authorize the use of
mechanical music
in the work and worship of His
Church, and we must
not make additions to his teachings.
2.
Col 3:17 (KJV)
And whatsoever ye do in word or
deed, do all in the
name of the Lord Jesus, giving
thanks to God and the
Father by him.
"In the name of the Lord
Jesus" means by authority of
the Lord. People were baptized in the "name of the
Lord" ( Acts 10:48 ), i.e.,
they were baptized by
the authority of the Lord. Our knowledge of his
authority is found in the New
Testament. In matters
of worship then he authorizes our
words and deeds.
"In word" is certainly
what we say, what we speak.
"In deed" can be nothing more than our acts, the
things we do, as contrasted with
what we speak.
Singing is our word. Playing on an instrument is our
deed. But we are to say and do by the authority
of Christ. When we sing, it is by his authority, for
we are commanded to sing.
Playing an instrument is
not commanded and we cannot,
therefore, do it by his
authority, "in his name"
and when one uses it in the
worship and work of the church of
Christ, he breaks
the commandment of the Lord. He sins.
3.
Faith in the gospel as the "Word of God".
Rom 14:23 (KJV)
And he that doubteth is damned if he
eat, because he
eateth not of faith: for whatsoever
is not of faith
is sin.
Rom 10:9 - 17 (KJV)
That if thou shalt confess with thy
mouth the Lord
Jesus, and shalt believe in thine
heart that God hath
raised him from the dead, thou shalt
be saved.
For with the heart man believeth
unto righteousness;
and with the mouth confession is
made unto salvation.
For the scripture saith, Whosoever
believeth on him
shall not be ashamed.
For there is no difference between
the Jew and the
Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all
that call upon him.
For whosoever shall call upon the
name of the Lord
shall be saved.
How then shall they call on him in
whom they have not
believed? and how shall they believe
in him of whom
they have not heard? and how shall
they hear without
a preacher?
And how shall they preach, except
they be sent? as it
is written, How beautiful are the feet
of them that
preach the gospel of peace, and
bring glad tidings of
good things!
But they have not all obeyed the
gospel. For Isaiah
saith, Lord, who hath believed our
report?
So then faith cometh by hearing, and
hearing by the
word of God.
Since the word of God does not
authorize the use of
mechanical music in the work and
worship of the
church, and faith comes by hearing
the word of God,
it follows that the use of
mechanical music in the
church cannot be "of
faith;" and since that which is
not of faith is sin, its use is
sinful.
V. Apostles through the inspiration of the
holy spirit teach
us the truth.