Accuracy of Music Lyrics

[Christ4Ever]

I put this question in a poll rather than posting it in the music area, in the hope of getting a wider range of input.

 

[Peace Seeker]

I think bible accuracy in praise & worship songs does matter. Otherwise wouldn't we just be worshiping God our own way, instead of the way He wants? And if the lyrics are inaccurate, are we really worshiping God, or just a reasonable facsimile of Him, or someone made in OUR image?

The purpose of our worship is to glorify, honor, praise, exalt, and please God. If we water down, dilute or do otherwise with our lyrics or how we worship God, we are not doing that.

Proverbs 14:12
"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death."

Jeremiah 10:23
"O Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself, it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps."

When we do things our way it is vanity and not glorifying the Lord. God has always told man how He is to be worshiped and He is the only one who has the right to determine how He is to be worshiped. We know how to worship Him properly through His word in the Bible.

Ephesians 5:17
"Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is."

And what is the will of the Lord? That we worship Him in Spirit and Truth.

John 4:23-24
"But the hour is coming, and now is, when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is a spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth."

It doesn’t say we can worship God anyway we want, but we "must worship Him in spirit and in truth". The word "must" makes it absolute. There is no other way we can worship God and be acceptable to Him.

Here's an example of some people that wanted to worship God their way. It may be an extreme example, and not about music lyrics, nonetheless it shows that God is not interested in our "interpretation" on how things should be done. Emphasis mine.

Leviticus 10:1-5,9-11. "Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. So fire went out from the Lord and devoured them, and they died before the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, 'This is what the Lord spoke, saying: 'By those who come near to Me I must be regarded as holy; And before all the people I must be glorified.'

I guess I'll leave it at that.....

 

[jiggyfly]

Well, I would have to ask, why does it matter? When most people sing the songs without thinking about what they are singing/saying.

A.W.Tozer said; "Christians don't tell lies, they sing'em every Sunday".

Shouldn't scripture accuracy matter in every venue of our lives?

 

[Peace Seeker]

Well, I would have to ask, why does it matter? When most people sing the songs without thinking about what they are singing/saying.

I think it matters to God that we worship Him in spirit and truth. Can we choose to do it our own way? And just because the singers may not be thinking about what they are singing, God hears them and is. The purpose of praise is to draw us into the presence of God. Should we draw near to Him with inaccurate words?

A.W.Tozer said; "Christians don't tell lies, they sing'em every Sunday".

Does that make it okay? When we bring a "sacrifice of praise",

Hebrews 13:15 “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise – the fruit of lips that confess His name”.

shall we bring our best - and a proper one - like Abel did , or just bring a Cain-like one? Misdirected worship was the cause of untold hardship and suffering in the Old Testament, so we shouldn't kid ourselves that we can praise God without doing it the way He likes it. The highest form of praise would be obedience to Him.

Shouldn't scripture accuracy matter in every venue of our lives?

Absolutely! And all the more so in our praising.

 

[jiggyfly]

I think it matters to God that we worship Him in spirit and truth. Can we choose to do it our own way? And just because the singers may not be thinking about what they are singing, God hears them and is. The purpose of praise is to draw us into the presence of God. Should we draw near to Him with inaccurate words?

Does that make it okay? When we bring a "sacrifice of praise",

Hebrews 13:15 “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise – the fruit of lips that confess His name”.

shall we bring our best - and a proper one - like Abel did , or just bring a Cain-like one? Misdirected worship was the cause of untold hardship and suffering in the Old Testament, so we shouldn't kid ourselves that we can praise God without doing it the way He likes it. The highest form of praise would be obedience to Him.

Absolutely! And all the more so in our praising.

I think you are not capturing the meaning behind my post.
If someone is singing a song taken from a translation of scripture and is not even thinking about what they are singing, what would it matter if what they were singing was an accurate translation? It obviously is not in Truth or in Spirit.

Seems you have missed my point and then made my point without knowing it.:wink:

 

[Peace Seeker]

I think you are not capturing the meaning behind my post.
If someone is singing a song taken from a translation of scripture and is not even thinking about what they are singing, what would it matter if what they were singing was an accurate translation? It obviously is not in Truth or in Spirit.

Seems you have missed my point and then made my point without knowing it.:wink:

Hi Jiggy,

I must be having a clueless day or something, because I have wracked my brain to see how I have made your point unawares. :wink:

Here's something else that came to mind while I was pondering the singing of an inaccurate translation :

For instance, if there was a praise song that wanted to use part of, say, Isaiah 7:14 in one of it's verses, and the lyric went like this : "we praise you lord, who created the heavens and the earth, who was born of a virgin".........

What if we used a different translation and sang the above as : "we praise you lord, who created the heavens and the earth, who was born of a young woman? Because some translations use that wording about the virgin birth. Would God accept this?

Maybe I'm not understanding the poll question, or your answer. The angle I'm coming from is simply that we should have accurate lyrics when singing to God. Don't praise Him that He was born of a young woman when He was born of a virgin.

 

[farout]

Music used in praise and worship better be right in line with Scripture, or never used, no if's or but's!:secret:

 

[jiggyfly]

Hi Jiggy,

I must be having a clueless day or something, because I have wracked my brain to see how I have made your point unawares. :wink:

Here's something else that came to mind while I was pondering the singing of an inaccurate translation :

For instance, if there was a praise song that wanted to use part of, say, Isaiah 7:14 in one of it's verses, and the lyric went like this : "we praise you lord, who created the heavens and the earth, who was born of a virgin".........

What if we used a different translation and sang the above as : "we praise you lord, who created the heavens and the earth, who was born of a young woman? Because some translations use that wording about the virgin birth. Would God accept this?

Maybe I'm not understanding the poll question, or your answer. The angle I'm coming from is simply that we should have accurate lyrics when singing to God. Don't praise Him that He was born of a young woman when He was born of a virgin.

OK, first, as you have quoted earlier, the scriptures record Jesus saying that we must worship God in Spirit and in truth. If one is just going through the motions and singing words from the overhead screen does it matter if the words are accurate? I say no because they are not worshiping in Spirit.

Secondly, what translations do you consider to be 100% accurate?

 

[eddieb]

i didnt vote cuz i didnt get the choices. but one time i was on my knees, hands in the air singing and the song changed and the spirit "got still" is the best way i can describe it. He didnt like that song and when i asked what was wrong he told me he didnt like the song due to the lyrics. now he didnt say all that but he showed me in the word how the lyrics was wrong. 2 and 2 is four.
why would you sing a song to someone that dont like the song?

 

[signpost]

christian songs.

christian songs are psychofantic, arrogant and a complete insult to all that is Holy. these people worship me in vain, they pay lip survice to The Creature all the while filling up the cup of indignation, there is more truth in a good heavy metal tune than any so called "christian song"
Christian songs only serve 1 pupose-that is to puff up the heart of the 1 who sings it. it is mass hipnosis and delusion.
The Most High does not desire worship rather He would have it that we use our energies for works of charity and love,
God help you all.:wink:

 

[Peace Seeker]

OK, first, as you have quoted earlier, the scriptures record Jesus saying that we must worship God in Spirit and in truth. If one is just going through the motions and singing words from the overhead screen does it matter if the words are accurate? I say no because they are not worshiping in Spirit.

I see what you mean. And I agree that in that context of going through the motions, no, it doesn't matter if the translation is accurate. Perhaps such a person shouldn't even bother singing? I don't know.

Secondly, what translations do you consider to be 100% accurate?

I know there isn't a translation that is 100% accurate but some are definitely better than others. I primarily use the KJV & NIV.

So do you think worshiping in Spirit can be accomplished through singing praise songs?

 

[jiggyfly]

So do you think worshiping in Spirit can be accomplished through singing praise songs?

Yes, Paul said, "Well then, what shall I do? I will pray in the spirit, [fn] and I will also pray in words I understand. I will sing in the spirit, and I will also sing in words I understand."

and he said, "singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, and making music to the Lord in your hearts."

and again, "Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts."

 

[Peace Seeker]

Yes, Paul said, "Well then, what shall I do? I will pray in the spirit, [fn] and I will also pray in words I understand. I will sing in the spirit, and I will also sing in words I understand."

and he said, "singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, and making music to the Lord in your hearts."

and again, "Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts."

So.....praying in the Spirit is not about what we say but how we say it - what leads and guides us, our motivations, etc. The Pharisees were praying in the flesh, and by their example we see how not to pray!

Luke 18:9-14

And, singing in the Spirit is not about words, per se, but about the attitude of our heart when doing it. If, as in your comment, we just go through the motions as we sing, it is not being in the Spirit.
I'm praying about this, because from what I've seen, a lot of people don't sing in the Spirit in church!

 

[jiggyfly]

So.....praying in the Spirit is not about what we say but how we say it - what leads and guides us, our motivations, etc. The Pharisees were praying in the flesh, and by their example we see how not to pray!

Luke 18:9-14

And, singing in the Spirit is not about words, per se, but about the attitude of our heart when doing it. If, as in your comment, we just go through the motions as we sing, it is not being in the Spirit.
I'm praying about this, because from what I've seen, a lot of people don't sing in the Spirit in church!

Although it has been 7 or 8 years since I participated in religious liturgy, I would say yes, a lot of people don't sing in the Spirit in "church", based on my experiences from back then.