 Can I listen to secular music or do I have to throw all my albums away? Like a lot of you, I grew up listening to a lot of music. I'm talking about Michael Jackson. I'm talking about earth, wind, fire, the temptation. Even I even like to listen to country music. I like listening to older rock. I like listening to old school rap. None of this new stuff. Some of the love songs so forth. Question is, is that a sin? Is it okay for Christian to listen to secular music? Well, if it is, then I'm in trouble. Before we figure it out, let's first define what is secular music. And that's all it simply is. It's just non-religious music. So any music that at least for our understanding is something that's non-Christian is that ungodly. Now, to be clear, everybody, including those who are against secular music, actually listens to secular music. When you listen to someone sing a song at a birthday party, happy birthday to you or the ABCs, that's non-religious. That's non-Christian. That is secular music. Or if you hear a jingle on the radio or anything like that, and you don't think twice about it, that is also secular music. I know it's not what you were thinking about. You're thinking of some rock and roll groups, some country groups, some heavy metal band or some R&B group. I get what you're saying, but the fact of the matter is any music, all music, however short, whatever genre is for, if it's not Christian, if it's not religious, it is secular. Is that wrong? Well, the Bible doesn't actually say anything about it. The Bible does not tell us that secular music is bad. The Bible does not say only listen to music that is praiseworthy or praise and worship. No, the Bible doesn't say such, but because the Bible doesn't say you should listen to it, doesn't mean that you should listen to it. There has to be an understanding, a distinction, and we can look in the description to figure out what should I listen to, what's okay, what should I not listen to. So before we get going, there's two things that you need to consider. One, what is the song about? What is it trying to get you to think of? Is this song promoting something that is one sinful? If it's talking about, let's say, something violent, something sexual, something that has to do with hurting your body, hurting your mind, drug use, things like that, well then obviously that is, that can become a sin. And then second, not so much what does it want you to think, but what does it cause you to think? Sometimes a song or evening or can cause you to think back to something else, cause you to reminisce about some sin or cause you to think about committing a sin. And so those are two things that you need to think about when determining is this song even appropriate for you to listen to. There are some songs that are just clearly and completely empathetical to God. That's why Paul says we are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God. We are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. That means even if those things are wrapped in a nice beat, a nice soothing lyric, that doesn't matter because obviously the enemy wants to make the bad things in the world sin. He wants to make those sound appealing. And so you put a nice little jingle with a nice beat, a nice melody, nice harmony, and then now you're hooked listening to sin. Paul tells us in Colossians 3-2 that we should set our minds on the thing above and not on the things that are of the earth. What does that mean that we can't think about anything on the earth? Boy that's not his point. His point is our focus should not be on the things of the earth. Our focus should be on the things of heaven. That does not mean that from time to time, matter of fact it'd be impossible if we never thought about anything on the earth when you go to work. That's not of heaven. That's of sustaining yourself now when you are mowing your grass. That's not for heaven. That's for you taking care of your household when you are eating. Is that of heaven? No. So he doesn't mean that you can only think of things that pertain to heaven, but our main focus should be things that glorify him and that bring us closer to him. And so the question is going to be does that song that you're listening to, does it necessarily take away from that? Now this is a passage that relates to just about everything that you can do and certainly the music and it's going to help you to determine is this particular song worthy or is it okay? Is it acceptable? Here it is in Proverbs 4-23 says watch over your heart or some verse may say guard your heart with all diligence for from it flow the springs of life. In other words whatever you have in your heart it's going to come out either in your thoughts, in your mouth, in your actions, in your desires. Well how do some of these things get in there? Well you start consuming some of these things and that's why it says to guard your heart or to watch over your heart. So if you start taking in music, if you start taking in videos, if you start taking in the words of your friends that start affecting how you think, affecting how you feel, especially if it kind of gives you sinful thought, well then then you're not guarding your heart and you need to be careful because whatever is in your heart is going to come out. Now something you also need to consider is just because it is acceptable and okay for one person to listen to the song, what about another person? Now I'm married so me listening to a love song and someone talking about doing things that God has our day between the husband and the wife to do that's okay. Now obviously nowadays some of these songs have kind of gone a little too far in what they're saying but for the person who is single none of that is appropriate. He or she should not be listening to anything that would cause them or entice them to want to do anything that would be sinful. If the song is promoting sex and you can't do so in a biblical fashion with your spouse, well then you should not be listening because let's just be honest, it will cause you to want to feel lonely, to cause you to want to be with someone and then what happens the more you think about it then your standards end up lowering and then your desire to go and do what you know you should not do, well you decide you know maybe for this moment maybe this will lead to something. You begin to rationalize sin because your heart now wants something that you should not have been listening to in the first place. It should not have been there in the first place but it got there because you allowed yourself to consume something. Jesus puts it this way and he wasn't talking about music per se but it certainly applies to music. Look what he says, he says if your right hand in Matthew 530 causes you or makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you for it is better for you to lose the one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell. Well maybe not your right hand but what about your favorite song? If that song is causing you to stumble and it can, if that song has caused you to think about something sinful and it can, if that song has caused you to want something that is not of God and it can then cut it off. It is much better for you to miss that song and have that song out of your mind than to cause you to live a lifestyle or to cause you to sin. There are plenty of songs that you used to enjoy some time ago and you've completely forgotten about those songs and you don't even miss it. Maybe if someone brings a song back up you'll think to yourself oh I remember that song and you start smiling and reminiscing back to it but that song had been gone out of your life for some time you didn't even miss it. It is possible for you to not miss sin. I think we forget that sometimes. The sin that was in our life the things that we used to do all those stuff including the songs if we don't hear them we won't miss them out of sight out of mind. Same thing with some of these sinful songs. And then something else to remember is that yes the song that you listen to might not affect you but it might affect someone else. Paul puts it this way therefore if food causes my brother's tumble I will never eat me again so that I will not cause my brother's tumble. And this is just not regulated to food this also has to do with anything else. And so if I'm listening to a song again I'm married I'm listening to a song about being with my wife. Well someone else some children might not be able to listen to it. Some other single person might not nor need to listen to this song because again you don't want it also bringing into their mind thoughts that they just should not have. And this also goes it can go with with not just music but with TV or movies or things like that certain things that you read certain things if you can handle it with an amen. If you cannot handle it then fine certain people you can put all sorts of drugs around me won't do anything for me it does not move me. But another person it would be a reason for them to stumble. Some people don't need to be around let's say a lot of sweets. Some people it's okay it won't bother them. Me you put me around sweets I might I might lose control so don't bring certain cakes and and things like that around me. I'm gonna I'm gonna hem and ha you shouldn't have did that all the while I'm consuming it. And so you've got to be thinking about not just yourself but also your fellow man will this cause them to stumble. Remember the passes that we always want to keep at the forefront of us is 1st Corinthians 10 31 through 33 whatever you do and that includes listening to music do it all to the glory of God. But it goes on the same verse 33 we want these people to to be saved we want we don't want to give a fence to the Jews of Greek we don't want to cause them to stumble why because we want to save as many as we possibly can. We also want to live a life that is glorifying to God again that does not mean that we can't do ever that everything we have to do has to be Bible centered it has to be heaven centered there's some things that we already do that are not such as going to work such as eating such as cutting our grass those sort of things. Do we have the ability the freedom the liberty to enjoy certain things yes but if those things are going to cause you to sin or cause others to sin well then take them out of your life. And if you have any doubt as to whether this song is possibly ungodly possibly wrong well then if there's any doubt if you're not sure then it becomes a sin so cut that out as well. So I hope this has been helpful uh in and of itself secular music is not a sin however we know better that a lot of secular music is sinful and you just simply not only should you not consume it you really shouldn't have any desire to consume it. Amen