A Review - Worldliness - Chapter 3 by Bob Kauflin

Bob Kauflin is a wise man. He has been used by God in numerous ways to bless my life through his teaching on music, musical worship and love for the Gospel and the Church. I greatly looked forward to reading his 3rd chapter in the book, Worldliness, and he certainly did not disappoint. Bob addresses the question, “What does music have to do with worldliness?”

He answers this question with a set of questions:

What motivates us to like the music we do? Is music entirely neutral? Why does music affect us so deeply? Does the music I listen to affect my thoughts or behavior in any way? Does it say anything about my relationship with God? Most important, are my music choices consistent with the gospel that has saved me?

These question form a filter through which we can look into ourselves and perceive what effect music might be having on our souls. And make no mistake; music will have an effect on you. No good movie would not be the same without the music. This is a fact. What music specifically IS, is hard to pin down. Its kind of like beauty. I can’t tell you what it is, but I can certainly point you to it. Music is the same way. Metaphysically speaking, I honestly don’t know what it is, but I know it when I hear it and I know that I love it. As humans we are wired for music and thus it can easily become an idol. Bob’s chapter helps us battle that temptation.

Most music carries some sort of lyrical content. If this content is ungodly it will have an effect upon us. Some have said (myself included), “I don’t listen to the words, I just like the music. I don’t even know what they are singing about.” Bob wisely replies:

Why not? Christians, of all people, should be asking what songs actually mean. We’re to “do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31). And if we “never” listen to the words attached to music, we’re training ourselves to tune out the content of songs and simply allow the music to affect us. That makes it all the more difficult to focus on the truths we sing on Sundays. We’ll tend to be more influenced by the sound, beat, and tempo than the word of Christ we’re proclaiming. Don’t misunderstand me. Listening to a song with sexually suggestive lyrics won’t cause you to run to the Internet and start downloading pornography. Hearing a song with profanity doesn’t mean you’ll be peppering your conversations tomorrow with four-letter words. But over time the lyrics to songs can weaken our defenses, blur our discernment, and redirect our affections toward the world. Listening to music is never neutral, because our sinful hearts are involved.

Closely following this quote he writes this that I found to be very wise:

Sometimes we pride ourselves in what we can handle, as if exposing ourselves to temptation were a virtue

Well said.

Another helpful section from Bob’s chapter is where he writes,

…maybe you’d like me to suggest a list of artists or music styles that every Christian should either pursue or avoid. Sorry, but that list doesn’t exist. And if it did, I’m not convinced it would be helpful. What’s appropriate for one person to listen to might be sin for someone else because of the differing associations we make. We rarely hear music in a vacuum. Depending on the state of our hearts, any song we hear is a potential carrier of worldly values and perspectives. Rather than a list, I offer you two questions. First, does the music you listen to lead you to love the Savior more or cause your affections for Christ to diminish? Second, does your music lead you to value an eternal perspective or influence you to adopt the mindset of this “present evil age”?

One challenge I see with this is that oftentimes the music that gives explicit glory to Christ is stylistically not music that one would normally find enjoyable to listen to. Christian music as a genre is somewhat limited in terms of stylistic choices. Should we “suffer” through listening to music that is non-preferential for the sake of the content? Perhaps at times we should. Many of us have to do this on a weekly basis at the church we attend as we seek to rejoice in the content of the music we sing while the presentation of that music is quite lacking. But in terms of listening to music that is really “cool” but has very ungodly lyrics, Bob comments:

There are numerous ways we can look for creative music that won’t require subjecting ourselves to the world’s mindset and values. I’ve scanned radio stations, used web sites like Pandora.com, listened to 30-second clips on iTunes, or followed up on recommendations from friends. But in the end, seeking out and listening to “creative” music isn’t a right we can demand at the expense of biblical standards. It could be a sign that we’re worshiping at the altar of innovation rather than at the foot of the cross.

In our day and age with such a wealth of information just a click away, we should most likely not be the people who complain that there are no musical options for us that both satisfy our musical preferences and steer clear from content that is sinful.

What about music that has no lyrics? Are there ways to think theologically about this type of music, be it jazz, classical, or experimental rock? I think there are and I’m sure that Bob would agree, but that topic is a blog post for another day and Bob doesn’t deal with this issue directly in his chapter.

Bob closes his chapter with some suggestions for Christians and their music. I’ll let you buy the book to read how he fleshes these out.

1. Evaluate your current intake of music
2. Delete or throw away music you’ll listen to only if you backslide
3. Listen to music with others
4. Make music rather than listen to it.
5. Go on a music fast.
6. Keep track of how much music you buy
7. Broaden your musical tastes.
8. Listen to old music.
9. Intentionally thank God every time you enjoy music.

This final quote from C.S. Lewis’, The Weight of Glory, sums up his chapter up well:

The books or the music in which we thought the beauty was located will betray us if we trust to them. . . . For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited.

I found great encouragement from Bob’s closing sentence:

Music is a precious gift, but it makes a terrible god. By God’s grace, may we always know the difference.

May it be so.