Dr Okpebholo

Recently, I read a paper titled “Common Functions and Purposes of Music of the Global Church. In it Dr. Okpebholo divides the role music plays in the global church into three different categories. The first being music’s function for praise and worship, the second its purpose for evangelism, and third its ability to serve as a catechetical function. The purpose of this paper is to contribute my own insight and account of how music has served these three purposes in the global church. The first section of Dr. Okpebholo’s paper speaks of music’s function as an expression of worship and praise to the creator. The Bible is very clear on the importance and value of worship through music. Yet even without all the scriptural evidence for …show more content…
It opens our soul in a way that allows us to connect with the creator on the most personal level of being. It is a gift from God that heightens our emotions, relaxes our spirit, and brings us joy and allows us to come before the Lord and express our gratitude for our existence and salvation. By singing praises we are returning this gift to Him in a noise in which he finds pleasure. It is not for his good that he commands us to sing praises to him but for ours so that we may become connected with him on a level deeper than mere reason can reach. Praise through music has the virtue of transcending time, culture, and personal economics. A time I experienced this reality was when I attended a youth-leaders conference in the Czech Republic. People from all over eastern and central Europe came and worshiped God through song despite vast cultural, age, economic, and linguistic differences. Another truth that became evident to me at this conference was the fact that music also has the power to not only unify us with the Lord, but also with those who are also called children of God in a way that transcends any differences we may have between one another. Another fact Dr. …show more content…
As a child I found the latter to be especially true. My first contacts with scripture were often through songs sung in Sunday school or on Veggie Tales by Bob and Larry. Music can be a helpful introduction to the initial foundations of Christianity for those who are young. It is extremely important to have a knowledge of scripture as it is our weapon and defense against the enemy. Music can help us memorize Bible passages as well as accompany them with emotion in way that reaches deeper into our understanding. My favorite example of this is Jon Foreman’s rendition of Psalm 23 called “The House of God, Forever.” The message of peace and protection we have in the Lord is beautifully conveyed through soft singing accompanied by soothing guitar tones in a way that helps me understand Psalm 23 on an emotional level. In my teens I began listening to bands who wrote lyrics that were inspired by the theological writings of theologians such as C.S. Lewis and Bonhoeffer. Although I myself had not read these texts I was exposed to deeper thinking and exploration of Christian theology through songs. As Dr. Okpebholo says, music has the profound ability to combine intellect with