Should church instruments be used in ceremonies?

Should church instruments be used in ceremonies like weddings, graduations or birthday parties, customary marriages, or any other event outside the premises of the church compound?

Every devoted article including church instruments, especially music instruments should never be used outside of the premises of the church. These articles are dedicated for ministration in the church to bring glory and praise to God.

These are devoted as holy and prayed for to be sanctified fully for Kingdom purposes. (Leviticus 27:28, 2 Samuel 8:11, Ezra 6:16-17).

But nothing that a man owns and devotes to the LORD, whether man or animal or family land, may be sold or redeemed; everything so devoted is most holy to the LORD.
Leviticus 27:28

Anyone who defiles these devoted articles brings a curse upon himself and his household. Be cautioned!

I have observed many churches that have no idea or wisdom concerning devoted articles or instruments. They have turned the church into a marketplace as they rent church instruments to people, including unbelievers. Consequently, defiling the holy things of the temple.

The rented church instruments are used to play secular music in ceremonies giving worship to demons instead of God. Some are used in traditional rituals which are cloth in a false garment of salvation. Such as burial rituals while playing weird traditional songs.

I also noted that after the instruments were returned to the church, most of them would not function at all as they were damaged. This is because the Holy things have been defiled and are no longer suitable for temple ministration anymore. Think of the curses people have brought on themselves because of a lack of knowledge and wisdom.

My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. "Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your children.
Hosea 4:6

Biblical examples of people who defiled devoted articles or church instruments.

There are two examples of men who defiled devoted articles and consequently provoked God’s judgment against themselves and their household.

1. King Belshazzar (Daniel 5:1-31).

This king defiled the devoted articles of silver and gold that his father had captured from the temple in Jerusalem. He ordered that they be used for his banquet to drink wine with his nobles, concubines, and wives and meanwhile offered praises to idols of bronze, wood gold, and silver. This act provoked God’s wrath against him.

While Belshazzar was drinking his wine, he gave orders to bring in the gold and silver goblets that Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them.
Daniel 5:2

That very night after the hand of God had written on the wall, King Belshazzar’s Kingdom ended and he was killed. This is how serious this matter is.

2. Achan son of Carmi. (Joshua 7:1-26).

God instructed Israel through Joshua His servant to destroy Jericho and all that was in it. Everything was to be devoted to God for destruction.

The Lord also commanded them to refrain from the devoted things lest they bring destruction on themselves. (Joshua 6:17-19).

However, Achan due to his greed disobeyed the word of the Lord. He took and hid the devoted articles under his roof. This provoked God’s judgment against Israel, and for the first time, Israel was defeated at War in Ai due to one man’s sin.

But the Israelites acted unfaithfully regarding the devoted things; Achan son of Carmi, the son of Zimri, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of them. So the anger burned against Israel.
Joshua 7:1

Joshua then sought God to understand why they had lost the battle. The Lord revealed to him that Achan had broken the law of devoted things and brought judgment upon Israel.

As a result, Joshua and the entire tribe of Israel stone Achan and his family to purge this sin out of Israel, and God’s anger was then withdrawn from them. (Joshua 7:24-26).

Conclusion

When you need to use musical instruments, please consider hiring them from any organization that lends them.

And in case the church wants to support its members with musical instruments for different occasions, then it should consider purchasing separate devices for that specific purpose. Therefore help avoid defiling devoted church instruments. They are meant for use in the sanctuary and not any other place.