Question: Is It Okay To Listen To Music That’s Not Gospel?
Donald Bohanon: Absolutely. God wants us as followers of Christ to enjoy life to the fullest. And God doesn’t determine your righteousness based on what genre of music you listen to as long as the music doesn’t contain distorted demonic sounds and isn’t vulgar and riddled with profanity-laced lyrics while promoting promiscuity, sexual perversion, and violence etc.
He determines your righteousness based on what you do in relation to his instructions about behaving in a way that is consistent with his word and how it defines righteousness. I know ministers of God’s churches and one in particular who loves the blues and that’s all he listens to. But he is an upstanding righteous man nevertheless as the Bible defines it. Who follows God’s commandments and word faithfully.
On the other hand, I know many Gospel singers and Gospel music listeners who are some of the biggest hypocrites I have ever seen and regularly transgress God’s word without regard. It’s almost as if many of them falsely believe that righteousness as the Bible defines it can be achieved simply by listening to Gospel music without any change in behavior. God doesn’t have a problem with you listening to Jazz, Classical, R&B, Ballads, Blues, Gospel, Country Music, etc as long as it’s clean and decent music without offensive lyrics.
God wants us to live life to the fullest and there are many talented artists in the world who produce exquisite music that helps followers of Christ do just that. The Bible also tells us it’s not what goes into the man that defiles him. But what he does, says, and thinks and whether it conflicts with obedience to God’s commandments and word that defile the man. Not the quality music he or she listens to. Matthew 15:16-19.