"Why Theology Matters to Christian Musicians"

Bob Kauflin, director of worship development for Sovereign Grace Ministries, is one of the most helpful thinkers and communicators when it comes to seeing the relationship between theology, worship and music. Here's an excerpt from his recent post, "Why Theology Matters to Christian Musicians":

Three reasons why theology should matter to Christian musicians.

1. You’re already a theologian. Every Christian, musical or otherwise, is already a theologian. The question is, are you a good theologian or a bad one? We’re good theologians if what we say and think about God lines up with what Scripture says and affirms. We’re bad theologians if our view of God is vague, or if we think God doesn’t really mind sin, or is we see Jesus as a good example and not a Savior, or if we our god is too small to overcome evil or too big to care about us.

2. God reveals himself primarily through words, not music. Because we’ve encountered God profoundly during times of musical worship, we can wrongly start assuming that words restrict the Spirit, while music enables us to experience God in fresh and powerful ways. If God had wanted us to know him primarily through music, the Bible would be a soundtrack, not a book. Music affects and helps us in many ways, but it doesn’t replace truth about God. By itself, music can never help us understand the meaning of God’s self-existence, the nature of the Incarnation, or Christ’s substitutionary atonement. Simply put, truth outlasts tunes.

3. Being good theologians makes us better musicians.
Theology teaches us what music is meant to do.
Theology teaches us that worship is more than music.
Theology teaches us that Jesus is better than music.

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