Dangerous Worship or a Silent Church

Will the church be silent?

Today is the first day, Governor Inslee of Washington State will enforce his rule that churches may no longer “sing” corporately, play instruments or worship collectively, despite their Christian faith.

Many churches in our region made an early stance soon after these edicts arrived.

Most sent e-mails to their congregants, using 1 Peter 2 or Romans 13 to justify their reason for remaining silent. Stating, we are to respect those who are placed in authority over us.

Yet, haven’t those versus been used for centuries to chain hearts to abusive situations, in the name of so-called “Biblical submission”?

And while most churches will put away their pianos, guitars, and modern day lyre’s, a few churches stand staunch against this no-worship order.

One in particular is a humble and conservative church in our area. They state they have done everything mandated, and have been in compliance with governing authorites.

However, the “no singing” mandate is one edict that they, as Christians, just can’t follow.

This local church in my small town states, “to do anything the Bible says not to do, or to NOT do something God commands, is sin”. And the Bible commands us to worship.

This pastor states, God talks about worship 500 times in the Bible. He also commands His people to worship 50 different times, all throughout Scripture.

To be silent in the face of government orders, regardless of what it might cost us, is sin.

Another church made a similar stance to their congregants, via e-mail. Again, a humble, Bible believing church.

They assured their attendants, they cannot comply with Governor Inslee’s orders and will continue to worship.

Sadly, someone got ahold of that e-mail and has turned that church into authorities.

And I wonder, are we in a day where Christians will be regularly reporting Christians? Church goers going against other attendees? Is it a day like Luke talked about in 12:53 when he stated…

“They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”

What does the Bible say about worship, singing?

First, we know singing has power in Scripture.

In Acts 16, Paul and Silas are thrown in a dungeon, shackled at the feet, after being beaten publicly for freeing a demon possessed woman.

In the bowels of that Phillippian prison, persecuted for their faith, Paul and Silas aren’t silent. In fact, they break every rule or anti-Christian mandate.

These prisoners start singing in unisome despite their captivity.

And as they sang a few things happened:

• “There was a great earthquake”
• “The foundations of the prison were shaken”
• “All the doors were opened”
• And everyone’s bonds were unfastened”. (v. 26 ESV)

Worship not only cracked the so-called secure foundation of the government prison, it losed the chains of oppression from everyone around them.

Worship is a catalyst of freedom and a gateway to deliverance for anyone in praises’ vicinity.

Ezekial 28:13 hints that Satan himself was a worship leader, prior to earth’s creation; a beautiful angel with authority in heaven.

God said about Satan, “The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes was prepared for you on the day you were created.”

The word, “workmanship” in Scripture refers to, “labor, job, skill or even profession.”

Lucifer was his name prior to our modern day term for him, Satan. Lucifer means, “Star of the Morning”, but God changed his name to Satan, meaning, “accuser”.

Satan desired to rob the praises from God and lead the thrones of heaven into worship to himself.

And isn’t that what is happening today? The church is being plummeted, attached and accused of “breaking the mandates” by singing? The land is stealing the worship from Jesus?

And didn’t Satan go from a beautiful cherub to a fallen angel, blackening the pits of hell, because of pride and his desire to rob God of worship, insisting on praises for himself?

Why does creation, the people from which God made from dust, always think they can outsmart God? Planning, orchestrating, yet failing every attempt at control, power or self-centered worship?

For example, the Israelites in Egypt. They were freed from their captures, but failed to keep their eyes on the Promise Land. They would rather have the delicacies of slavery, than the land God had for them, filled with milk and honey.

Even yet, when the walls of Jericho crashed with dust rising to the heavens…

When the fortified city offered itself as a sacrifice to a people who had been wandering…

It wasn’t man’s strength that crushed walls or stronghold…

It was singing. Worship fell the walls of Jericho. And still today, praise has the power to crush the walls of every fortified city.

God commanded His people to use singing as a weapon, a weapon of warfare, a tool of entry to all God has in store for His people.

Singing has always been a pathway to people’s freedom.

Slavery Abolished

The African Slaves worked in the cotton field’s and sang of their deliverance. Their words were heartfelt expressions of their deep anguish and a way to cleanse their souls from the sting of oppressive taskmasters.

Singing also was a communication tool that drirected people’s path to freedom.

For example, in the days of Harriet Tubman, a slave tune, “Wade in the Water”, was thought to be a foreplanned escape route hidden in a song.

As slaves ran to their freedom, “wade in the water” was their directive. Doing this washed away their scent from the hounds of hell pursuing them, wanting to bring them back to their captures.

It’s not just the slaves of tangible shackles or prisoners in cells that found song as their gateway to healing.

Deliverance came to a slave trader named John Newton. John was not a religious man, until a wall of water almost engulfs his ship at sea.

It was then, He cried out to God for mercy. Newton’s life then took a slow, upward turn, from slave trader, to active abolitionist.

God birthed the song, “Amazing Grace” from John’s own experience as oppressor turns advocate for the freedom of others. (Must watch story about this song, here)

The song, Amazing Grace, softly pressed against my Grandmother’s lips, as she raised four daughter’s at the end of WWII.

It ignited light across a dark America, as a Second Great Awakening experienced salvation, people packed into crammed tent gatherings, throughout the 19th Century.

Horatio Spafford was a successful investor and attorney, until the market crashed and he lost his son to scarlet fever.

As a result, Horatio thought to send his wife and four daughter’s across the Atlantic Ocean, for a vacation. He would join them when his business deal was done.

To his dismay, a telegram came from his wife, after the ship’s collission and sinking, “Saved alone. What shall I do?”

First his son, now his four daughter’s dead. In the midst of grief, Horatio penned this now famous song;

When peace like a river, attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll—Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to know…

It is well, it is well with my soul. (Watch the full story here)

Worship defies human reason, bridges the deepest anguish and releases the most oppressed captives.

Worship is the foundation that spirs a heart to flight, despite power-hungry, egocentric societies, desiring, like Lucifer, to have worship to God silenced.

Maya Angelo, a world-renound writer rising from teen pregnancy and very real oppression wrote, “Caged bird, Why Don’t You Sing?”

Captivity is Never Neutral

“Captivity is far from natural”, according to Psychology Today. “The suite of maladies and premature deaths that haunt inmates…and other captive institutions stand in stark contrast to the standards of health in free-living…”

“Captivity is a double-edged sword”, Psychology Today goes on. On the one end, we are fed and taken care of; on the other end, we lose our freedoms.

So what is the answer? 

King David, captive by His sin, annointed yet unseen, controlled by a tyrant King Saul; used worship as a balm to remedy His soul.

He not only worshipped, David also called others around him to sing and to dance.

David was the very expression of honest worship and musical praises, making song with of a variety of instruments.

Worship Culture Today

In Washington State today, collective instruments in church are banned. Group song is outlawed. The hand of the land wants to silence our mouths for the sake of a virus that’s more fear than substance.

Yet, doesn’t Jesus tell us, ““If these [people] keep silent, the stones will cry out [in praise]!” (Luke 19:40)

• Martin Luther fought back with the songs of David, amidst being hunted, betrayed, arrested and excommunicated.
• Julius Palmer became converted after witnessing the valiant faith of persecuted Christians. On July 16, 1556, King David’s songs danced from Palmer’s mouth while flames ravished his burning body.
• David’s songs live on as thirteen coal miners were trapped, yet began worshipping, singing Psalms 20. As a result, they were all rescued.

God’s people have always used song as a flame of revival amidst persecution.

Dangerous Christianity shares about the martyrdom of Christians in Roman Collosiums:

“Many people saw in these “Christians” singing hymns and worshipping just moments before the beasts fell upon them, a variety of courage, peace, assurance and faith that they had never seen before in their pagan temples.  Where one Christian fell, ten would rise up and instead of being extinguished, the flame of the Gospel spread throughout the region like wildfire.”

Do we live in an age where Christians would still stand in the face of persecution? Or have we become complacent in our safe houses behind screens of convenience? 

• I have stood on the soil of a people who cry out in praise, in persecuted, communist countries.
• Persecuted Christians choose to worship despite the very real risk of their families, “disappearing”, taken, sent to work camps or even executed.
• I have wept under a tarp of martyred third-world people, crying out in desperation, knowing their very praise might bring attacks from neighboring people, flinging hate-filled machettes.

And yet, the church at large, today, remains silent, hidden under a tarp of complacency?

Worship isn’t entertainment, a commodity or some add-on to a spectator service. Worship is the very core of a people who recognizes, the angels in heaven sing continually, “Holy, Holy Holy”.

All tribed, all tongues, and all people will bow down to the Savior of Eternity one day. And yet, will we stand on this earth, silent before Him now, ashamed of the One who has mercifully delivered us?

Will we let the rulers of this land rob us from His praise? Will the rocks cry out? Or will the people of God sing, redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb?

The church may be silent today in Washington State, but the true people of God, will never be muted…

Not when tyranny comes, not if our brothers or neighbors report us, and not if false teachers use Scripture out of context to silence us.

Praise is our weapon. Worship scatters the enemy. Lifting our voices brings the Kingdom of Jesus to reign victorious in a way nothing else can.

Singing is our identity. It’s what we will do in heaven for all eternity. Worship has always stood at the center of our understanding of who we are in Christ.

“Let everything that has breath, praise the Lord.” (Psalms 150:6)

Will the church be silent today? Or will we rise and sing?