Christian Music

“For my name’s sake I defer my anger, for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, that I may not cut you off. Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.” - Isaiah 48:9-11

When Swithfoot lead singer Jon Foreman was asked if his band was “Christian,” he offered this interesting response:

Why switchfoot wont write christian songs

I first think he brings out some profound truth in that one profession is no more sacred than another. Whether we are digging a ditch, cleaning a window, changing a diaper, or playing the guitar, our work is a form of worship. And to which God we are worshipping all depends on the position of our heart. Therefore, it is underneath the surface and often not readily visible whether we are worshiping the Lord or some idol. However, this does not mean that such a hidden thing will not bear visible fruit. And often it is in our words where the fruit is most visible (Matthew 15:18-19).

Therefore, I think Foreman lands in a troubling place. For even though he was right to state that a song cannot be “Christian,” it should nevertheless be glorifying to God.

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” –1 Corinthians 10:31

Let’s say I want to write an album demonstrating to the world how glorious my wife is. I compose one song that sings of the beauty of brown hair, and another that speaks of the grandeur of beautiful smiles, and a third that exalts creativity, and yet another that praises wit and humor. Now, all these are attributes of my wife, and to those who know her and me, they would undoubtedly think of her when they hear these songs. But if I never mention her name, am I really honoring her? Shouldn’t I be singing of HER brown hair, HER beautiful smile, HER creativity, and HER wit and humor?

I pose this same question to the likes of Switchfoot. If all we do is sing of sunrises, redemption, love, and feeding the poor, we must ask ourselves, why do we stop short of deliberately directing people to our Lord? The world is always giving other gods (nature, luck, coincidence, evolution, the cosmos, energy, etc.) the credit for what the true God has done, so why would we want to play into such idolatry? “Preach the Gospel, and if you must, use words,” is a cute saying, but it is hardly Biblical.

 “How are they to call on one they have not believed in? And how are they to believe in one they have not heard of? And how are they to hear without someone preaching to them?” –Romans 10:14 

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” –Romans 1:16

I conclude that though there may be no clean divide between secular and sacred, bringing God glory through words is vital in demonstrating our devotion and love. And even though saying the name “Jesus” does not make our speech “Christian”, we can hardly bring glory to His name without saying it.