Have you ever watched the musical, the Wizard of Oz? I once read about the characters of Tinman and Scarecrow being used to depict the divide that seems to exist in much of our contemporary church music[1]. In the story, Tinman has a brain, but not a heart; Scarecrow has a heart but not a brain; and so they follow the yellow brick road in order to find their missing pieces. Contemporary congregational music is often thought of in the same way. Some songs are ‘Tinman’ songs, they are rich in theology but fail to engage people’s emotions. Others are ‘Scarecrow’ songs that are emotive or catchy, but lack theological depth and end up stirring people through their melodies and experience rather than Biblical truth.
Yet this is not just an issue in our singing. It can be so easy to get the balance wrong in our lives. We can all be prone to separate the heart (our feelings) from the mind (our intellect) when it suits us. For some it can be really easy to let our feelings take priority. Perhaps you’ve been told to “follow your heart,” or “do what feels right” or “do what makes you happy.” Our emotions can consume and drive our relationships, our studies, our job and even Christian ministry. When our lives are driven by how we feel, we idolise the heart - letting our feelings take priority over Biblical truth and faithful obedience.
Others may struggle with the opposite problem, where everything is determined by the intellect. We can overvalue the pursuit of knowledge, become prone to rationalising everything, or become fearful of feeling and displaying emotion. In ministry, it might mean we’re always arguing the ‘correct’ theological position and sidelining pastoral concerns; or we may come up with rationalised justifications for our lack of genuine heart-led obedience. Being a ‘thinker’ can end up being equally idolatrous.
So it’s likely you have experienced these tensions in some sense, both in your life, and in your church singing, especially if your church culture leans heavily one way over the other. My aim is not to push you in one particular direction, but to show how the Bible values Christian singing that engages both the heart and the mind, with songs that are both theologically rich and breathtakingly beautiful.
The Biblical Unity of Heart & Mind
The Bible doesn’t separate the mind and heart in the same way we often do. Words like ‘heart’, ‘mind’, ‘spirit’ and ‘soul’ are all used in the New Testament to refer to the whole inner being, including our feelings and thoughts. Scripture makes clear that the message of the gospel is intended to feed our whole being - to produce lives of faith and obedience. Romans 12:2, instructs the Christian to be transformed by the renewing of your mind, not as a 1st Century self-improvement exercise, but as a command for Christians to align their thoughts and emotions with the will of God. When we come to faith our whole life is changed by the word and the Spirit at work in us. Similarly, when we sing the gospel, we are allowing God to affect and change the whole of who we are.
In Philippians 4, Paul longs for believers to be transformed in the inner self: by rejoicing, being gentle, and putting aside anxiousness. Underlying this transformation is “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, [that] will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil 4:4-7). In God’s ‘peace’ we experience a vital and intimate ‘emotional knowledge’ that comforts and protects our souls throughout life. It’s not just that we know in our heads that God is faithful and good, but we feel and trust this in our hearts. Similarly, Jesus tells us to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” (Mk 12:30). In this way he shows us that ‘loving God’ is so much more than just feeling the emotion of love; it is a deep, thoughtful, committed, and heart-felt love that plays out in everything we do, say and think.
Of course, there are many instances where the bible does focus on what we would understand as either the heart or the mind, in order to teach us something specific about living out the gospel. So, without undermining the unity we’ve discussed, let’s have a look at a few passages that emphasise each.
The Mind
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. (Col 3:1-2)
Our mind (our intellect, our thoughts, our knowledge) is where we process the truth of the gospel made known to us through God’s clear and understandable word. As Paul reminds Timothy, “all Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work”. (2 Tim 3:16-17). It is God’s word that is able to make us wise for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, and because of this we can “call upon the Lord and be saved” (Rom 10:13). We have to understand the gospel to believe in it!
Understanding and obeying the will of God begins with knowledge of the truth and godly wisdom - which is why the foundation of our singing is the Word of Christ dwelling richly in us (Col. 3:16-17). Through our singing of the word, we teach and admonish our fellow believers and offer thanksgiving to God in the name of the Lord Jesus. This is not achieved by the fervour of our singing, but by Christ’s powerful word. For this to happen, the songs we sing in church must be clear and truthful. Sadly, some congregational songs focus on producing emotion without understanding. Have you ever passionately thrown yourself into a congregational song and thought half-way through, “what on earth am I singing?!” Paul says of the Israelites in Romans 10:2, that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. This can be equally true of us. When we sing, we don’t want our zealousness to be based on nothing; we want it to be rooted in the word of Christ and to flow from the truth of his word.
How can we ensure we get this right in our singing? A great place to start is in ensuring that there is a clarity of gospel truth above all else. We then let that truth drive and test any emotional expression in our singing. Paul illustrates this point in 1 Corinthians 14:15 “I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.”[2]. Paul acknowledges the incredible gift of being able to pray and sing in the spirit, as it enables him to experience the depth and emotion of being Spirit filled. But in the context of the gathered church he places greater value on the church using words that are easily understood; in church I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue (1 Cor. 14:19). By conducting our services (singing included!) in a way that is intelligible, the church will be effective in evangelism (1 Cor 14:24-25) and edification (1 Cor 14:26). God certainly expects our hearts to be stirred when we sing, but it is essential that our songs feed our intellect in a way that builds us up in the knowledge and love of Jesus Christ.
The Heart
At the same time, the Bible stresses that just as we know Christ in our minds, through the work of the Holy Spirit we also know him in our hearts. But what does it mean for the Spirit to be at work in our hearts? Is it just a special feeling we get when we become a Christian or when we sing a great song, or is it something more profound? In Ephesians, Paul prays this prayer:
According to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:16-19)
It is not just our minds that contain knowledge about God. Our whole inner being, our ‘hearts’ are capable of understanding all that God would have us know about our salvation.
Paul emphasises the role of the heart in our salvation when he says: For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. (Romans 10:10) As such, the heart becomes the battleground for our salvation and the life of obedience - where we can choose to worship either God the creator or the idols of this world. The heart is where sin and our rebellion against God originates (Matt 15:18-19), which is why Paul’s ongoing prayer is that the hearts of believers remain in Christ (2 Thess 2:4-5). The life of faith therefore requires us knowing Christ in our hearts as much as in our minds. Christian singing plays a vital role here, as the Spirit uses our singing both to plant the word of Christ in our minds, and to stir the affections of our adoration and obedience.
In Ephesians 5, Paul sees emotional, word-of-Christ singing as a mark of the Spirit-filled believer - one who makes melody to the Lord in their heart and who offers God thanks in every circumstance of life.
And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. (Ephesians 5:18-21)
And it’s here that we see the connection between an inner knowledge of Christ and the expression of emotion; because gospel truth and the emotions that flow from the truth are inseparable in authentic faith. In our singing we see how Spirit-inspired knowledge of God allows us to make melody to him and drives our expressions of thankfulness in everything. We can’t have one without the other.
There can easily be a temptation to reduce the gospel to a list of rational facts about salvation in order to guard against emotionalism or experientialism. But the Bible never discounts the emotions which flow from authentic faith. The life of faith is characterised by the transformed inner being - all because God has first poured his love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. If gospel truth and gospel emotion are inseparable in authentic faith, they are inseparable in Christian singing. Singing the gospel is not a matter affecting more the head or the heart - it is a harmonious and inseparable mix, in which the heart and mind are transformed as we sing Biblical truths that stir godly affections within us.
How should Christians express themselves?
Is there one appropriate way for Christians to express their emotions when they gather as the church? The Bible certainly gives examples of the way God’s people sing, pray, praise and mourn.
David also commanded the chiefs of the Levites to appoint their brothers as the singers who should play loudly on musical instruments, on harps and lyres and cymbals, to raise sounds of joy. (1 Chronicles 15:16)
And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground. (Nehemiah 8:6)
By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion.
On the willows there we hung up our lyres.
For there our captors required of us songs,
and our tormentors, mirth, saying,
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion!” (Psalm 137:1-3)
Clap your hands, all peoples! Shout to God with loud songs of joy! (Psalm 47:1)
But are these examples prescriptive? Should we clap or raise our hands? Should we praise God with ‘loud cymbals’? While these examples are all appropriate ways of responding to God both physically and emotionally, they are not prescriptive nor are they appropriate for every context. But they do teach us a few important principles:
- Emotions are good! As creatures made in the image of God, our emotions are very much part of who we are, and integral to our relationship with God and each other. (Luke 10:27) Within the trinity there is an abundance of love and joy, and God expects to see his own character reflected in the church.
- Emotions flow from faith. While not effective to bring about faith, the expression of emotion is a natural outworking of faith. (Roman 5:2) The songs of the Bible illustrate this over and over again. Think of Mary as she sings in response to God’s goodness “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour.” (Luke 1:46-47)
- We have freedom to express our emotions. The New Testament is wonderfully non-prescriptive about emotional expression; giving us great freedom and scope. We are told to sing from the heart; although we are never told how that should manifest itself.
- Emotional expression needs to be considerate of others. Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should! In 1 Corinthians 8, Paul talks about how what we do in church should be for the good of the whole body. For some churches that may mean their singing needs to show more joy and thanksgiving. For others, they may need to temper how they express themselves.
- Emotional expression must submit to gospel clarity. In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul discusses this principle when speaking about tongues and prophecy: it’s not that tongues are wrong, but they shouldn’t be used when they are not understood, and therefore not useful for building up others.
- Singing is an outward form of emotional expression! We have seen that singing engages our hearts and minds with Christ and his gospel. But Christian singing is never just a passive activity but one in which the church gives a very real physical expression to the inner work of the word and Spirit. (Isaiah 35:10)
As people made in God’s image we are able to think, understand and feel emotions. That’s why the Bible is rich with both declarative and emotional language to describe the gospel of salvation. In fact, God longs to capture the hearts and the minds of his people, in order that they may know the fullness of his love in Christ Jesus. It is no surprise then that Christian singing has been used by God throughout history to feed the minds and hearts of his church. As leaders of Christian singing, our responsibility is to ensure that the truth informs and inspires our emotion, and that we allow the Spirit to work in our songs to fill us with the knowledge of the love of Christ.
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Alanna Glover is the Creative Director of Emu Music. She has worked in music ministry in Sydney, the UK and the USA.
Philip Percival is the director of Emu Music. He served as the music director at St Ebbe's, Oxford and now at St. Thomas', North Sydney. He is the author of Then Sings My Soul, a book about Biblical music ministry for every Christian.
Footnotes
[1] http://www.christianitytoday.com/pastors/1999/spring/9l2032.html
[2] In context Paul is using this example to illustrate a specific point about the merits of prophecy over tongues in the Christian gathering (1 Cor.14).