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You might think this article is self-serving since I sing concerts year-round. I can understand that. But I can tell you truthfully that I would think this if I never sang in front of another congregation for the rest of my life.
Applause is not automatically wrong.
- It is the primary way people show general appreciation. We do it for people’s birthday’s, retirements, volunteer-of-the-month, Sunday school promotions, thanking the cooks at camp, you name it. In our everyday lives, it is not considered a sinful practice.
- The Bible does not condemn it. In fact, a strong case could be made for the Bible encouraging it. We can learn a lot from studying worship in the Bible. We won’t all come to the same conclusions about what carries over to our time and setting. But one thing you will never get out of a study of biblical worship is that it should be observed at a distance. Biblical worship is participatory. Applause can be a form of participating, showing one’s appreciation and heartfelt approval of the message. The trees of the field clap their hands. Maybe we should, too.
- Applause is simply saying “amen” with your hands. I find it interesting to note that the sign for amen in American Sign Language is hitting one’s non-dominant hand with the other hand, balled up into a fist with a thumbs-up. It’s a strong, encouraging action that makes a definitive statement. It is not unlike clapping.
- Saying, “Applause makes it about man rather than God” is vague and unhelpful. Does it always mean that? Maybe we should stop thanking the bus workers, camp cooks, or nursery workers with applause since it makes it about them rather than God. I’ve been in many churches who discourage clapping during our concerts, but then turn around and ask for a “big round of applause for the Eversons” when the concert is over. What’s the difference? Could we take the “big round of applause” from the end and chop it up into little rounds of applause and scatter them throughout the concert and it would be ok? I’m just asking for consistency.
- Believing applause is not always wrong doesn’t mean it is always right. I’m not arguing that we should always applaud for everything all the time. Matthew 6:1-5 (which has nothing to do with music, by the way) reminds us that when we give to the poor, we shouldn’t do it to get the praise of men. The praise of men may or may not be applause. It could be silent! But the point of the passage is about motivation. If I did something for the Lord in proper motivation, no amount of applause or appreciation can take away that reward. God knows why I did it.
- I’ve unintentionally applauded preaching. I remember sitting in a service recently where a man was preaching so fervently and connected so many biblical principles together in such a convicting and powerful way that I loudly proclaimed, “Amen!” and simultaneously clapped my hands together 3 times. I was so happy to hear the truth and overwhelmed by its application to my exact situation in life, it naturally flowed out of me. I wasn’t praising the man. I wasn’t caught up in hero worship. I can’t even remember which preacher it was! I just remember the truth.
Applause isn’t automatically wrong. Stop villainizing it. Just treat it like any other normal expression of regular people.
Photo by Lisa Fotios: https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-person-wearing-ring-4124318/
PS If I sing at your church and you aren’t a clapping church, I don’t think less of you. I simply think we should allow churches to be themselves.