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Writer's pictureBible Brian

The sistrum vs. Ticklist Christians


One thing that has persisted throughout the history of the Church is a long and steady line of what I like to call "ticklist Christians". Ticklist Christians are very set in their opinions of how God should be worshipped, applying their own personal preferences and attempting to impose those opinions on everyone else.

In the modern day, organs and pianos are seen as traditional instruments of worship. Yet when they became more common in the 12th century, Abbot Ethelred expressed his distaste for the noisy, distracting instruments that seemed to be more for entertainment than worship. Fast forward to the modern day and guitars and drums, and just about anything that wasn't used in the Church 300 years ago, are receiving the same amount of hate as the organ did. Ticklist Christians argue that they're more for entertainment, don't glorify God, and even go as far as to say that these instruments are worldly, or even pagan, and therefore are evil.

To these Christians, I say this: God isn't interested in the specifics of worship. As long as you're worshiping Him, loving your neighbour, and avoiding sin, it really doesn't matter if you're using organs or drums, pianos or guitars, even something as pagan as a sistrum can be used to the glory of God if it is done with the correct motivation. It's time for Christians to stop dividing over music choices and start uniting under the fact that we have been forgiven for our sins, credited with the righteousness of Christ and are now restored in our relationship with God.

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