Worshipping God is an honor and a privilege. Worshipping God through music is a gift, for who doesn't like music? Music is so crucial to enjoy–and even create–throughout our lives, that there have been countless studies conducted by psychologists and scientists to find out the effects that various music has on humans, and even animals and plants. Many of these studies have concluded that music is an essential part of our lives, and that certain types of music are better for us than others.
As a fairly well-rounded musician with over 20 years of experience, and a worship leader of six years, music has certainly been an important part of my life; and being married to another musician further increases its significance, especially when my wife and I play together for God. I believe that music is a gift from God to be used for God, and that He does care what music we listen to—so He most definitely cares about the music we use in our church services to worship Him.
Therefore, in this article, I will give a list of what I believe to be the things we as Christians should look for in the songs we use to worship our God. My beliefs are grounded, as I always strive to make sure, in the principles I find in the Bible, which I will cite throughout the article to state my case for the correct criteria for deeming a song a "worship song." May these criteria cause you to ponder upon the songs you sing, play, and use at your church—especially if you are involved in the music ministry at your church.
Listening Songs Vs. Songs For Worship
Before I present the criteria for selecting worship songs, though, I need to communicate a presupposition of mine. I believe that there are different kinds of music, but also that there are different uses for music. Not all music is equal, nor should it be; and this is the premise of my argument. There are songs that are great to listen to, but these are not necessarily good for worshipping the Almighty God. And, yes, this transfers over to "Christian" music as well. If you cannot see this distinction, then the rest of this article will seem arbitrary to you.
As an elementary music educator, I know one thing: if I play a rock song before I dismiss my students, the next teacher will probably hate me; and if I play a calm, classical piece before dismissing them, the same teacher will love me! Therefore, it is clear to see that music is powerful, and is made with a purpose in mind. Certain emotions are elicited through certain music. Composers (myself included), whether they admit it or not, usually have a purpose for their music; that is, they have something they want others to know, feel, or experience through their music—perhaps something that they themselves have felt or experienced at one time or another.
For example, to prepare men for battle, an army general would not have a pianist play Beethoven's "Für Elise"; it is a love piece! And to put a baby to sleep, a mother would probably not blast Metallica's heavy metal song "Master of Puppets" on her sound system; it is more than 8 minutes of craziness! Every music ever composed has a purpose—or, at least, it will to its listeners. Selecting the music we use to worship God, then, requires a great deal of attention to detail, especially to the lyrics of the song, but also to the song's style (to a certain extent). It is difficult to find songs of worship that contain all of the characteristics listed below, which is okay, but every effort should be made to find and use songs for worship services that include at least one of the three main points—especially the first two points.
1.) Songs For Worship Should Be Sung To God
This should be a no-brainer, but I have seen (and have myself been guilty of using), in many a worship service, songs that do not exactly make it clear to whom they are addressed. Sometimes the lyrics could very well be used as love songs to a significant other. Although this isn't entirely wrong (for we do love God), more care should be taken to find songs that revere God and use His name often. Songs that say Yahweh, God, Father, or Jesus should have preference so that the worshipper can sing to God.
Of course, not having God referenced or addressed specifically in a song does not flatly mean that it cannot be dedicated to God (for God knows our hearts), but it goes without saying that when His name is used the mind and heart will obviously be more aware of the person whom the words are referring to, mainly God. In the Psalms we find so many instances where David sings to God using His name, followed by an attribute of His. Some examples include: Psalm 8:1; Psalm 18:1-2; Psalm 25:1-5; Psalm 31; Psalm 34; Psalm 36:5-10; Psalm 63:1-8; Psalm 65, etc.
Also, in Revelation 4:8-11, we find the angels and the elders exalting the Lord personally, directing their praises to Him with their hearts: "'Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!...Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and by Your will they existed and were created.'" It is a very personal thing to worship God; and even when done corporately, individual hearts are the ones singing to God, so let us all actually sing to Him, who alone is worthy. The Bible says over and over again that His name is to be forever praised and exalted—so let us use His name when singing to God...it only makes sense.
2.) Songs For Worship Should Be About God
Not only should songs used in worship services be sung to God, but they should also, naturally, be about God. If we're being honest, however, there are many songs in the current worship repertoire that speak more about us than they do about God—this is probably not good practice. Of course, there surely is no problem with using songs that speak about our being saved, redeemed, regenerated, and forgiven by God, etc., in the worship service, but not to the neglect of singing songs about Him. Songs to and about God should take center stage in our worship services.
There are so many Psalms that use wonderful adjectives to describe who God is, and these should act as a guide for us in selecting songs for worship. Yes, there are many Psalms that are personal and human-centered (because David used His experiences when writing these songs), but did you know that the majority of the attributes and characteristics of God are found in the Psalms? The Psalms are filled with words describing our God; with words about God. This is one of the ways we get to learn more about God and become closer to Him—let us not dismiss this opportunity to do so through music.
A few attributes and characteristics of God found in the Psalms include: God is our Salvation (Psalm 3:7-8, 17:7, 18:35, 25:5); God is our King (Psalm 5:2, 10:16, 24:7-8); God is the Most High (Psalm 7:17, 9:2, 21:7); God is our Judge (Psalm 7:8,11, 9:7-8, 16, 19-20); God is our Refuge (Psalm 7:1, 11:1, 16:1); God is Omniscient (Psalm 147:5); God is Omnipresent (Psalm 139:7-12); God is Omnipotent ( Psalm 33:6); God is Immutable or never changing (Psalm 90:2); God is Holy (Psalm 99:9); God is Gracious, Righteous, and Merciful (Psalm 103:8, 116:5, 129:4); among many other attributes found in the Psalms and the rest of Scripture. Let's sing about who God is!
3.) Songs For Worship Should Exhort Others To Praise God
Among the many things that music can do, one of those is to move or influence people to do something, whether to fall asleep, go to war, cry, dance, sing...or speed on the highway (techno and dance music are not good to listen to while driving on the highway). Well, why not use music to exhort or encourage others to worship and praise our God? Of course, such songs need to be used wisely, and at the right time. For believers, it should be easy to come up with reasons to worship God, but it doesn't hurt to first remind people of who God is, and what He has done, in order to then exhort them to praise and worship Him.
Therefore, songs of exhortation should be used, perhaps, after a few songs are sung about Him, so as to prepare and inspire people to profoundly and wholeheartedly worship and praise the Lord, whom they now know better as a result of the previous songs. In other words, give people first some reasons as to why they should want to sing to and about God (i.e., who He is and what He has done for them), and then encourage them to encourage others to do the same! Many of the songs we hear today do a good job at encouraging people to worship and praise the Lord...but they fail to tell people why! If we take a look at the Psalms, we see that David always gives us a reason why he is praising God, and why we should do the same.
Psalm 100 is a great example of this:
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into His presence with singing! Know that the Lord, He is God! It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise! Give thanks to Him; bless His name! For the Lord is good; His steadfast love endures forever, and His faithfulness to all generations.
Psalms 66, 113-118 (the "Hallel" Pslams), and 145-150 are also great examples of songs written to and about God, but that also encourage and exhort other believers (and even the world) to worship and praise the Almighty God. Do the songs you sing at your church cause you to want to inspire others to praise Him in Spirit and in Truth?
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