So, now that you believe you're a musician, you claim it's your right to be paid by your church leadership right? Or maybe, you've heard of a few other church musicians in your city that are being paid by their churches. Or maybe you've even read about a strong proponent of musicians being paid by churches online or somewhere else.. So now, you strongly believe that your case shouldn't be different right?
Well my friend, hold up a sec! Just before you go to brewing animosity, rebellion or even instigating a revolution to "fight for your rights", let's talk about this issue a bit so we all have a better understanding and basis for our beliefs and actions. But first, I want to state two things as a way of laying a clear foundation about this theme of musicians being paid or not paid by churches, which has raised so much controversy in recent times between different schools of thought.
1. I personally believe that it is a principle that has its root and origin in scripture as being instituted by God Himself, as a way of catering for the Levites who He set apart for special services in His house.
Deut. 18:1-5, Num.18:21,24
2. I also believe that the fact that it was spoken about specifically in the old testament, doesn't make it an outdated principle, since nothing in the scripture is really outdated. It just depends on our understanding by the Holy Spirit.
So, I would rather not belabor the issue from the popular "should they or should they not pay musicians" viewpoint, but will take this opportunity to speak to my fellow ministry musicians to help them acquire a better understanding of and thus, a better stance in the matter....
Now, why should a church pay you, ministry musician? Or put in other words, what would qualify you as a Levite that is deserving of the ordinance by God to be catered for by the temple (church)?
Let's define who a Levite is from scripture. A Levite is first of all, genealogically, a descendant of Levi, the son of Jacob, who is a grandson of Abraham. This implies that a Levite is a person of a strong covenant with God. In other words, he is someone who has a strong relationship with God by His Son Jesus Christ (in our dispensation).
Secondly, a Levite is functionally, a chosen, called or consecrated person. This is since God originally, chose and set apart these Levites for the specific task of serving in the temple, assisting the priests who ministered in the temple.. So, a Levite cannot be just anyone, but has to be someone who is called or chosen by God to the ministry (service) of God's house.
Num. 1:48-53, 3:5-10
Thirdly, a Levite is by qualification, a skilled or trained person. In scripture, it shows that whenever God calls or appoints a person or specific group of people for a unique task, especially those that are connected with the temple or ministering to Him, they were skilled in the very responsibility they were called to carry out. This was also the case for the Levites.
1 Chro.15:22, 25:6-8
So, for you to be a true Levite who then deserves to be catered for according to God's ordinance, you MUST be:
1. A CHRISTIAN (BORN AGAIN)
This is what defines your relationship and covenant with God. Just being a musician alone does not qualify you to be a Levite or ministry musician. This is especially since the task is a highly spiritual one that ministers to God first and foremost and then to God's people. So the church leadership has to be careful to not appoint or give responsibility to people in the ministry based only on qualification or skill, but primarily on the basis of their spiritual qualification. Ask yourself these questions "ministry musician":
A. Have you proven that you love God and have an ever-growing relationship with Him?
B. Have you indicated a true and sincere interest to be a part of the local church assembly or are you there just for your musical role?
C. Do you attend spiritual programs or activities that may not necessarily require your functioning like Bible study, prayer meetings, evangelism and so on?
D. Do you pay attention when the sermon is ongoing or just step outside to get some fresh air or snack on something during this "time out"?
These are key questions and considerations you must clarify to qualify calling yourself a church musician.
2. CALLED
So it is not enough to be a Christian, you must sense a calling to serve God with your musical gifting or talent. Now, there are going to be some people who though they are musically gifted, do not necessarily sense a call to serve with that gift, especially as their life's career or work. They may have another career path or work but can just use their gifting to serve in the church, just like every other Christian is expected to. These do not necessarily qualify for this unique privilege. The Levites were not allowed to do any other work asides ministry in the temple. In fact it was so serious that they were mandated to live close by the temple and didn't get any other land allocations like other tribes in Israel. So you must be called to serve in a full time capacity in a church with your gifting to qualify for this ordinance. Except your church is large and capable enough to give love gifts to everyone who serves in the ministry. In that case it becomes a gift not necessarily a rightful due.
3. SKILLED/TRAINED
The issue of skill and training is one that cannot be overemphasized when it comes to ministry. While the heart desire to serve and calling by God to ministry are the major prerequisite for ministry, gifting and skill are also required for effective ministry since as earlier stated, God always called skilled people to His service or placed on them the skill, gift or ability to do the responsibility required of them in excellence. So every church musician must endeavor to consistently and continuously acquire skill that ensures you are equipped to deliver excellence in your service. Afterall, God requires of us to "play skillfully" unto Him.
So when these 3 factors have been met, my dear ministry musician, God will by Himself set you up to be catered for either by the church directly or some other way. If you must talk about the issue of receiving a welfare allowance or salary, it must be done with wisdom and humility to ensure that it is seen only as a tool to enable you serve effectively and wholeheartedly. If possible, find a way to get someone else who recognizes the essence and is in the position to speak on your behalf to do so. That was exactly what happened in my case. I never had to talk about being paid by my church. I only indicated my desire and commitment to serve full time and God used my then music pastor to set up the privilege of being committed financially by my church.
Never let money or gain be your motive for wanting to serve in church. It should be born out of your love for God and desire to serve Him. Also, take into consideration the capabilities of your church to take care of you. You cannot expect your church to pay you beyond their capacity.
You must also learn to look at other ways to be a blessing to the body of Christ with your gifts beyond your local church and even to the world at large. There are many such ways that can help you to sustain for and cater for your needs that will be discussed and highlighted in subsequent posts.
In all, remember God always takes care of those He calls..!!
Grace...!!!
