Philippians 4:8 says this:
“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — let your mind dwell on these things.”
In studying this verse (for a future message on a different subject!), I found out that Paul is encouraging the Philippian church to appreciate and meditate on the good things in the “non-Christian” culture that surrounds them. Learning that really got me going.
Why?
Because sometimes people ask why we do what they call secular music as part of our worship.
And Philippians 4:8 tells us why: when U2 or Natasha Beddingfield or The Fray or John Mayer or others capture truth in their songs, the bible calls us to “let our mind dwell on these things.” The fact that the record companies producing their albums aren’t “Christian” is irrelevant. By God’s grace, these artists give expression to the truths of the bible and the emotions of the human heart. So we not only “dwell on” those things, we sing them!
When you look at it that way, maybe there’s not such a difference between secular and sacred music after all.