Choosing songs for worship

When I opened my Bible last week and read about the sons of Asaph who were responsible for temple worship service under the direction of King David, I was surprised to read that their worship was for the purpose of prophesying:

David, together with the commanders of the army, set apart some of the sons of Asaph, Heman and Jeduthun for the ministry of prophesying, accompanied by harps, lyres and cymbals. Here is the list of the men who performed this service:

² From the sons of Asaph:

Zakkur, Joseph, Nethaniah and Asarelah. The sons of Asaph were under the supervision of Asaph, who prophesied under the king’s supervision.

³ As for Jeduthun, from his sons:

Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Shimei, Hashabiah and Mattithiah, six in all, under the supervision of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied, using the harp in thanking and praising the Lord.

⁴ As for Heman, from his sons:

Bukkiah, Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shubael and Jerimoth; Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti and Romamti-Ezer; Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir and Mahazioth. ⁵ (All these were sons of Heman the king’s seer. They were given him through the promises of God to exalt him. God gave Heman fourteen sons and three daughters.)

⁶ All these men were under the supervision of their father for the music of the temple of the Lord, with cymbals, lyres and harps, for the ministry at the house of God.

Asaph, Jeduthun and Heman were under the supervision of the king. ⁷ Along with their relatives—all of them trained and skilled in music for the Lord—they numbered 288. ⁸ Young and old alike, teacher as well as student, cast lots for their duties. (1 Chron. 25:1-8 NIV).

So, under the old covenant, songs were chosen for worship to give a prophetical message. If we take the Old Testament prophets to determine that message, we see that those themes would have been surrounding divine judgment on pride, unfaithfulness, injustice and sin, repentance, the promise of a future Messianic kingdom, pleas for social justice, and God's future rule. 

When we check the psalms that have been attributed to Asaph and his sons, these are certainly the themes we see there.

So what take home can we gain from this in the selection of modern day worship songs?

At the risk of sounding confrontational, I would have to say that many of the songs commonly selected for worship don’t fit these categories. Songs about me and what I can get from God and God’s blessings to me without any heartfelt repentance, certainly don’t belong in the brief that Asaph and his sons were given when asked to lead worship in the old temple.

What do you think?

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