The Spiritual Gift of Musical Worship
Musical Worship: A Spiritual Gift Definition
Music leadership is a spiritual gift, that when used for God’s glory, inspires people to seek God’s heart. So, what makes this person special? Certainly all Christians are called to worship the Lord. However, people who possess the spiritual gift of Music know how to guide the emotions and spirits of others, and to focus then upon the greatness and glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Old Testament Chief Musician
In Old Testament temple worship, God ordained Levites called Doorkeepers. They were responsible for the various entrances to the temple. However, among the Doorkeepers were people gifted in music and song. Their job was to stand outside the main entrance to the temple and sing and play instruments as a giant worship team. To that end, they were commissioned to play and sing songs of praise and thanksgiving. Psalm 100:4 exclaims: “Enter His gates with thanksgiving in your hearts, enter His courts with praise”. The Bible tells us that at one time, there were over 4,000 musicians who served in rotation, providing songs of praise and thanksgiving, from sunrise to sunset. The leader of this worship team was the “Chief Musician”. There are many Psalms written by or for the Chief Musician. (See 1 Chronicles 25:1, 6-8; 2 Chronicles 5:12-14; 2 Chronicles 29:25-30)
New Testament Worship
Jesus proclaimed in John 4:23 and 24, that “a time is coming and has now come when true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and Truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks”. Likewise, Paul further instructs the Church: “Let the word of God dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God” (Colossians 3:16).
The spiritual gift of music includes the following functions:
Lead Vocalist
Musician
Support Vocalist
Worship Leader