In the last few blogs, we have been considering what kind of music God desires from His people today. There was a time, under the law of Moses, when He commanded His people to play musical instruments. However, in this dispensation, we do not have such a command. Today we are simply commanded to sing (1 Corinthians 14:14; Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16; Hebrews 2:12).
We have seen in this study that we must have Bible authority for all that we do (Colossians 3:17). Bible authority is established the same way that authority is established in every walk of life, that is, by commands, examples, and necessary inferences. But there is something else to consider when thinking about authority. We must recognize that there are two different kinds of it—generic and specific.
Generic authority is inclusive. It involves the use of things that help carry out a command without changing the command itself. Specific authority, on the other hand, is exclusive. It excludes everything other than what has been specified in the command. For example, if a father commands his son to ride his bike to the store and buy a loaf of bread, that automatically excludes all other types of transportation and all the other items in the store except what the father specified, that is, a loaf of bread.
When dealing with the commandments of God, it works the same way. Sometimes commands involve both specifics and generics, but it is very easy to tell them apart. When Jesus gave what we usually call “the great commission,” He said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you…”
The command to “go” in the great commission is specific. All disciples must “go” and preach the gospel. However, how to get to where we go is not specified, making it generic and includes any means of transportation that we see fit. We can walk, ride, fly, etc. Jesus does not care as long as we go.
Another good example of specific and generic authority is the command that Noah received to build the ark. God commanded that he use gopher wood (Genesis 6:14). When God told him to use gopher wood, that was a specific command that excluded all other kinds of wood. However, since God did not specify the length of the wood, Noah could decide for himself how long or short he wanted each piece of wood to be.
There is nothing complicated about authority, how to establish it, and whether it is specific or generic because we use these principles almost every day of our lives without giving it much thought. We must just keep them in mind when it comes to serving God and doing His will.
When it comes to the kind of music God desires, He has specified what He wants—sing. What does that mean? What did it mean when God specified gopher wood in the building of the ark? The answer to these questions is simply if you take emotion and tradition out of the way. In both cases, it means that what is specified excludes everything else. Regarding the ark, the specific command for gopher wood excludes oak, red, walnut, or any other kind of wood. Regarding music, the specific command to sing excludes playing a guitar, piano, drum set, or any other kind of music.
In faithful churches of Christ, you will only find a cappella singing. Why? There is only one answer to this question, and it will never change. It is not because we do not like them. We do. It is not because we think they are intrinsically sinful. We don’t. It is not because we do not have anyone who can play them. We do. The only reason we do not use them is because we do not have the authority from God to do so. We do, however, have the authority to sing; thus, it is the music we make to praise and honor God.
As you wind down for the night, think about these things.