Is It Scripturally Permissible to Use a Pitch Pipe?

“Is it scripturally permissible to use a pitch pipe in Christian worship?” Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16 are the primary New Testament passages to which the student of the Bible turns to validate the type of music that God authorized for Christian worship. Respectively, they read, “Speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord” (NKJV) and “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” These two verses authorize singing wherever and whenever Christian worship transpires. Consequently, God did not authorize instrumental music for use in Christian worship. Incidentally, “singing” is so specific that other forms of vocal expression are not authorized either, such as humming, whistling or imitating musical instruments.

Unlike musical instruments that accompany singing in many religious services today – though not authorized by God – the pitch pipe is silent during singing. If the pitch pipe were used – for instance, in an attempt to play it – during singing, it would be equally unauthorized and as sinful as using instruments of music along with singing Christian hymns.

The pitch pipe – as long as it isn’t used as though it were a musical instrument, such as a harmonica – is merely one of many expedients to worship and not itself a part of worship. Other expedients to Christian worship may include sound systems, songbooks, artificial lighting, pews, projectors, meetinghouses, blackboards, whiteboards, bedsheet sermons, air conditioning/heating, etc. Instrumental music, tamping, clapping and vocal sound effects are not expedients to worship because they are forms of music excluded by God because He specifically authorized a particular kind of music – singing.