Why Don’t Muslims Sing Like Christians?

Audio Transcript

Who will not fear, O Lord,
   and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy.
   All nations will come and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed. (Revelation 15:4)

Who will not fear? All will come and worship. Three times we see fear and worship, fear and worship, fear and worship. But now there is a great fear-transforming reality, isn’t there? A fear-transforming reality.

“All my trembling before God is awe and wonder. There’s no condemnation.”

Why is it that in worship Christians sing and Muslims don’t? Why did Christianity produce centuries of music? High music, low music, middle music, happy music, sad music. There’s music everywhere Christianity goes. People sing. Why? Because fear has been totally transformed by Jesus. It’s because of the Lord’s Supper. It’s because of a crucified savior that Islam does not believe in.

Without a crucified Savior bearing all the wrath of Allah, Allah will not be sung to. He will be trembled over and maybe you’ll kill yourself while killing others in order — possibly — to get into some paradisaical relationships. Oh, how sad is that religion?

Bear witness to your Muslim friends the good news that the God who made heaven and earth has sent his one and only Son to bear his wrath that we might not have to bear it. We can trust him and know the wrath has been relieved and lifted. The guilt is gone. There’s no condemnation, and all my trembling is not trembling out of uncertainty whether I’m going to fall off the ledge.

Rather, it’s become the sweet trembling of awe and wonder and thanks that I’m not going to fall off the ledge, but I was so close and I was just like all those sinners. By grace alone I stand here. Oh, how can we not tremble with happiness?


Read, watch, or listen to the full message: