By Boluwatife Oparinde
The Director of Music, Christ Apostolic Church, Nigeria and Overseas, Pastor Tope Dada has told music ministers that anointing does not replace skills and training, also stressing the need to raise godly choristers for the contemporary Church.
Pastor Dada stated this while giving a Seminar on the topic "Raising Godly Choristers for the Contemporary Church" on Friday, July 29, 2022 at the International Music Conference holding at Joseph Ayo Babalola University (JABU), Ikeji-Arakeji, Osun State.
Speaking to music ministers at the conference organized by the Directorate of Music, Christ Apostolic Church, Nigeria and Overseas, the Director of Music presented that, "Choristers are designed to reveal and establish the mind of God through music. The call is specially created to subdue every negative influence in the environment and establish heavenly reality into our environment. The world is greatly influenced through music presently and we can see the effect from generation to generation. If the Church cannot have godly choristers, then where do we get sound spiritual music? It is paramount and urgent for us to have godly choristers in the church to enhance our worship within and outside the church. Every chorister is a potential leader."
"The quality of great leaders includes courage and godliness. To stand before a crowd and sing is foundational to leadership. One of the best ways to cultivate godly character in people is to show them what is godly by our actions. The Church of today needs to build godly people that appreciate the unique contributions of the scriptures, education, technology, and other ministry functions. Today, the singing ministry is found to have deviated from the earlier scriptural assignment. The aura of God seems to have departed from divine worship. Most music ministers of today are drifting from the initial focus of the singing ministry. We find all sorts of vices prevailing in the music ministry. Primarily, God wants the choir, which is a link that connects the church with God, to worship Him in the beauty of holiness. To be godly, we must be holy as our Father is holy. A Godly choir must be free from worldly affairs and moral pitfalls," he said.
The cleric who described that "the duty of choristers is sacred; they are separated unto God for a purpose," added that, "they are ministers of the gospel, the Levites of today, meant to perform sacred duties of singing primarily, in the sanctuary (Numbers 3:6-12). They are specially called by God to show forth His praise and minister to the spirit of the worshippers."
He highlighted that, "there cannot be a complete service without the choir, low or high profile. The gates of heaven are always open with quality praise. God inhabits the praise of His people. He who sings prays twice. Music aids and leads people in prayers. Many people come to church because of quality music and good singing. Praise brings down God's presence to expel contrary spirits, thereby sanitizing the sanctuary."
Addressing godliness amongst the choristers whom he described as leaders, the clergyman said that, "as the image of God, choristers are expected to be godly in character and service. Too often, choir leaders fail to accentuate the role of godly authority and they misuse such authority. Jesus taught His disciples about good use of authority (Matthew 20:25-27). When you rule justly in the fear of God over men, you are like the sun shining on a cloudless day, like the rain that makes grass to sprout from the earth (II Samuel 23:3-4). Godly authority blesses and nourishes people. Abuse of authority is destructive element."
He continued that, "the society is becoming less tolerant of godly characters. More than ever before, moral deficiency is creeping into the Church. The present-day youngsters will soon be on the front line of leadership in the choir and in the society. We are duty-bound to prepare them now. Godly choir requires a culture of good character. According to Robert Cook: 'There is no substitute for character. You can buy brains, but you cannot huy character.' For the choir, nothing is as important as character. You can buy talent or knowledge; you cannot buy character. It is either you have it or not. Coming from a corporate background, there is a wide difference between the training of leaders in the marketplace and raising godly leaders in the Church. As Christians, we are not obligated only train leaders; we must be intentional in raising godly leaders that will be leading lights in our increasingly dark world."
"We must intentionally raise godly choirs with godly characters, especially in the context of our great mission: Christ Apostolic Church. The world is in desperate need of them. People that model integrity and moral uprightness display strong principles based on truth. There are some non negotiables when it comes to ethical behaviour and integrity in one of them. As people are accountable tis us, we are also accountable to God. Follow the dictum of Mahatma Ghandi that says, 'Be the change that you wish to see in the world.' Wherever there is holy praise, the gates of heaven are open and God descends to bless His people," he said.
Pastor Tope Dada identified some essential attributes of a godly choir as, "salvation comes before service (John 3:16). Those who are not saved but serving have caused terrible havoc for the Church. "You must be Christians before leading godly singers. You cannot represent the God you don't know. You must be saved before you're called to serve (Il Timothy 2:15). Godly choristers are disciplined spiritually and physically. They submit to doctrine that guides their faith. Preserve your anointing with Purity, Anointing plays vital roles in your representation of God. Anointing makes heavenly reality visible and open up the worshipper's heart to God."
The CAC Music Director added that, "Be submissive and ready to learn. Anointing does not replace skills and training. The era of arrogance of choristers must end. Value personal relationship with God, Your relationship with God affects your duty. Regard others as more important than yourselves (Philippians 2:3). Do things without grumbling and strive to maintain oneness (Phillipians 2:14, II Tim. 2:24). Be conscious of the need to the loyal, set realistic goals, make things happen. Submerge your ego and what is right, rather than what is popular. Determine the quality, morals, mentality, and destinations of the choir with strong ethical behaviour. Consciously remove toxins (sinful behaviour, negative mindedness) from your team."
Stating the benefits of godly choristers to the contemporary church such as "Healings, miracles and great move of God will take place with ease (Act 16:25); set spiritual standard for service (Nehemiah 12:29-34); the mind of God is revealed to the Church, and men are drawn closer to God (Hebrews 2:12)," the clergyman challenged that, "being a godly chorister is not an option for us in Christ Apostolic Church. It is a most to enhance quality of worship (Revelation 5:9). Every leader must be intentional in raising godly people in our Church. Your kind of person will produce your kind of choir."
Pastor Tope Dada concluded that, "where the leader loves the Word, Prayer and Worship, it will show in the output of the choir. More importantly, it will determine the kind of congregation you will attract. Many choirs are spiritually static because their leaders have created barriers in the choirs. It takes conscious efforts to bring out extraordinary leaders from ordinary people. Our focus should go beyond mere singing to appropriating the pillars of our faith as outlined in the mission statement of our Church - leading people into the knowledge of God through an in-depth study of the Word of God, prevailing prayers and spiritual worship. We must invest in the next generation by consciously raising young people in godly ways as future leaders of the choir, Church and the nation. These are eager, hungry, technologically savvy vibrant groups in a hurry to exploit beyond the now. Godly youths are reliable vehicles used to spread the gospel. Most unchurched people choose Church based on the quality of the choir, not the building. Our knowledge will be a waste if we are ungodly and if we fail to lead others to Christ through our music."