While music plays an important role when it comes to worship, it’s important that you understand that there is a difference between performance music and worship music. Now, it’s easy to see why you would confuse the two but it’s vital to your faith that you separate worship music and performance music. This is why we thought it would be useful to put together an article discussing this topic. If this is something that you’re interested in learning more about, read on for the four key differences between performance music and worship music.
Worship Music Focuses on Jesus
If the focus is on the musicians instead of Jesus, it’s not worship, no matter what we call it. A stage, or lights, or a worship team, or robed choir, or microphones are not inherently bad things. But having them doesn’t mean it’s worship either. If everyone on stage uses their artistry to point to Jesus and not themselves, then we can call our gathering worship.
Now, it has to be said that being on stage is tempting as worship can devolve into a performance. Whether it’s a group of singers singing hymns, a worship team rocking out on the latest worship song, or a pastor preaching with a microphone, we must be vigilant not to use the stage to fulfill our own desires and needs, but instead to point others towards Jesus.
Worship Music Involves the Audience
While musical performances are all about the musicians performing and the audience watching, worship music requires audience participation. Since it’s a form of prayer, the audience is basically praying through the worship songs. This is why the audience actively sings the songs during worship. If you find no one is singing along, then you’re likely watching a musical performance and not participating in worship.
The Melody of Worship Music Supports the Words
Have you ever paused to consider the words in a song you know all the words to? That’s because great performance-based music is primarily about the melody, not the lyrics. The opposite is true for worship music.
When it comes to worship music, lyrics take center stage. When it comes to writing a worship song, you need more than just a great musical structure. If you also have great lyrics, you’ve written something remarkable. But even great lyrics aren’t enough to create something truly exceptional.
Worship Leaders Need to Be Committed to Their Faith
While the skill and proficiency of musicians are essential to performance music, worship music is all about being committed to faith and Jesus. When leading worship through music, we should strive to be excellent so people can stand in awe of Jesus, not our talent. A worship team should practice relentlessly so they can be in sync with each other instead of thinking about their next chord change. This will help them lead us in active worship of Jesus.
Conclusion
We hope this article proves to be useful when it comes to helping you differentiate performance music and worship. As you can see, worship music is different from regular music. Understanding this difference will help you better appreciate worship music and will allow you to practice your faith in the best way possible.
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