Since GCOCOnline.com
has been online since the latter part of the 1990s, we have had many email
conversations with the non-instrumental Church of Christ brothers and sisters
and it is usually about musical instruments. We know that all you will find
in the New Testament is singing and no references to musical instruments.
However, we
believe that there is no distinction of a christian's worship inside the
church building or outside the church building. We believe that worship
is offering your body, your talents, as a living sacrifice to God. Therefore,
we play musical instruments at home to worship God and during corporate
worship at the church building.
There are a lot of things that we will not find in the New Testament. For
example, you will not find printed Bibles, hymnals, pianos (invented in
1709), electricity, or even the internet. Since we don't find them in the
New Testament are we then not to use them? The Gutenburgh printing press
invented by Johann Gutenberg in 1450 was used to print Latin Bibles called
Gutenberg Bibles. Gutenberg used his printing press to honor and love God.
He worshipped God by using his talents and the gift God gave him by inventing
and using the printing press. By using the printing press, mass production
of Bibles could be made and this helped the Protestant movement greatly.
When a christian football player makes a touchdown, he stops, kneels, says
a prayer, points his finger to the sky and thanks God, he is worshipping
God right then and there, not inside the church building.
We believe that all good and perfect gifts come from God above and this
includes all tools that God provides to glorify His name and to help sow
the seed to save the lost. God the Father, Jesus the Son and God the Holy
Spirit wants us to praise and worship them with all our God given talents
and abilities.
"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer
your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God for this is
your spiritual act of worship. Do not be conformed to this world but
be transformed by the renewing of your mind." Romans
12:1-2