Darcy Watkins – January 3, 2024
As I consider the trajectory that worship music has traversed over the years, I have arrived upon a position that worship songwriting should be considered a prophetic ministry.
Let’s start with some recent trends regarding worship song writing…
- 1988 (when CCLI started reporting top song charts) most songs were written by one person.
- Since 2010, most songs in top charts are written collaboratively.
- Solo written songs often reflect a time of struggle, a “God moment” or something strong on the song writer’s heart related to their journey with God.
- Collaborative written songs are purposely written for use in church worship services.
I keep pondering on this thought: most worship songs these days are collaboratively written for the specific purpose to be used in church worship gatherings. The church worship gathering is intentionally targeted. It’s not an accident. We are in someone’s “gunsight”, in someone’s mission statement, in someone’s business plan.
We need to be vigilant. We want worship songs to be something beneficial to our worship. Otherwise, there is risk that we can default to embracing songs (and hence messages) that are the result of a commercialized process. We don’t default on this for preaching sermons, why then would we allow this for the songs we sing?
Interesting thing is that there are parallels between worship song writing and what the apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian church regarding prophesying in I Corinthians 14.
He started by contrasting prophecy as something beneficial for all gathered versus speaking in tongues as something that it more of a private benefit. But throughout this discourse, he emphasized that prophesying is something intended to be done as part of when we gather to worship. It’s this something intentional for when we gather to worship that has me thinking that worship songwriting has a prophetic element to it. Then there’s the fact that the effort spent vetting songs (particularly the messages in the lyrics) parallels what Paul instructs in verse 29, advocating that prophesies be evaluated. It’s like we’ve known this already but were just hesitant to admit it.
Prophesies are for the benefit of believers gathered for worship.
Verse 3 “…the person who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouragement, and consolation.”
Verse 4 “…the one who prophesies builds up the church.”
Verse 22 “…prophecy is … for believers.”
Paul encouraged all to come to worship gatherings prepared in various ways. He even mentioned worship songs (hymns). Some church circles emphasize prophetic spontaneity, others consider studying and preaching to be prophetic, why not worship songs too? These all seem to be covered by Paul’s statement in verse 26. It’s mainly important that it be done for building up.
Verse 26 “What then, brothers and sisters? Whenever you come together, each one has a hymn, a teaching, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Everything is to be done for building up.”
Paul also laid out guidelines to ensure that public gatherings for worship are conducted orderly. He encouraged collaboration, suggesting that the spiritual element of prophesying as something from God, interworks with us as the agents of prophesying.
Verses 29-33 “Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should evaluate. But if something has been revealed to another person sitting there, the first prophet should be silent. For you can all prophesy one by one, so that everyone may learn, and everyone may be encouraged. And the prophets’ spirits are subject to the prophets, since God is not a God of disorder but of peace.”
There is also an emerging trend of local churches writing more of their own songs for use in worship. If we embrace this idea that worship songwriting is a prophetic ministry, then we can get some good instructional insights from the scriptures for guidance.
Summary
- The message in worship song lyrics is intended for the church to sing during worship – it doesn’t have to appease the world.
- Worship songs are for strengthening, encouragement, and consolation. Wow! It is actually OK for a worship song to “feel good” if it’s done right.
- Worship songs build up the church as we are gathered.
- Song review and vetting is Biblical, and a key part of the process.
- People are encouraged to team up and “prophesy” together – this implies that writing worship songs collaboratively is supported Biblically.
- The spiritual prophetic element is subject to those involved. Emmanuel! God is with us in it. Not just Him; not just us doing it alone, but the ultimate collaboration, God with us (or maybe it would be better phrased, us with God).
- There is a strong implication that our hearts be “in one accord”, in order, and submitted to God. The overall agenda of worship must originate from God.
I will close with verse 15:
“What then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with my understanding. I will sing praise with the spirit, and I will also sing praise with my understanding.”
Amen.