Topics: Faith, Music
You can download a PDF version of the complete Bible Study: Can Music Move Mountains?. If you use it, let us know in the comments!
Faith, Music, and Mountains: What’s This All About?
Matthew 17:20: Jesus said, “For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.” (ESV)
Faith to move mountains? Such faith I do not have. While I do not seek to have faith just so that I can make a mountain jump into the sea, I do ask God to increase my faith. Through studying His Word, the Holy Spirit works in us to strengthen our faith, to grow our understanding, and to constantly remind us of God’s forgiveness, love, and grace.
Is it possible for Christian rock music to be a part of that studying, strengthening, teaching, and reminding? Could the Holy Spirit use Christian rock music to help us grow in the faith? Certainly. If the songs speak God’s Word in truth, if the songs point to Christ, if the songs turn our attention on God, then like a preacher, a Sunday School teacher, a piece of art, a hymn, or the words of a Christian friend, Christian rock music can help us grow in our faith.
The Holy Spirit works whenever God’s Word is spoken, and His Word is spoken in many forms. And Christian rock music comes in many forms–pop rock, praise songs, hard rock, and mainstream rock. However, beyond the form of these rock songs, this study will help you and your students have “word-focused eyes” that look for the Word in the world.
In other words, this study doesn’t just ask you to listen to a song, talk about it, and then go on your way. This study urges you to compare songs with Scripture and discover whether the songs provided speak God’s truth. Using the skills you acquire here, you and your students can then venture into the secular music world, seeking to find reminders of God and our need for God outside of contemporary Christian music.
So can music move mountains? No, of course not. Music itself cannot have faith. However, can music move us toward a deeper, richer faith in Christ? Can music grow a mustard seed-sized faith to the size big enough to command mountains? That is for you and your students to decide, but do watch for how these songs can illuminate Scripture, pointing to Christ through melody, rhythm, poetry, and rock-classic-pop-dance-funk-distortion-smash-rap-punk-surf-electric passion.
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