This is Part 1 of our series “Why We Do What We Do.”
This month begins a series of articles discussing why we do what we do in our Sunday morning worship music times. I am very much looking forward to this process of searching Scriptures together to find what they say about this subject, as well as exploring who God is calling us to be as a church, with our own unique place in His kingdom.
So, our first question is: Why do we sing at all when we worship? As with every aspect of serving the Lord, we need to understand why we do it. Is it to provide an outlet for the more musical among us? Is it to fill up time in a worship service? Is it to show off talents? Is it to make a show of our spirituality? (If we answer any of these questions with a “yes,” we’d better take a serious look at our motives!)
The first answer is because the Lord tells us it is good to sing! Psalm 92:1 says, “It is good to give thanks to the Lord and to sing praises to Your name, O Most High.”
The second answer is that the Lord commands us to sing. Colossians 3:16 instructs: “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”
Third, the Bible is jam-packed full of examples of singing to the Lord, in all kinds of situations: To praise God for His deliverance from an evil oppressor, to thank Him for answering a prayer for a son, to soothe a troubled spirit, to gain His strength when confronting an enemy, to remember His promises after a Passover meal, to witness to His goodness in a prison cell.
If you want to see the priority God places on music, read the passages in I and II Chronicles where huge emphasis is placed on the training and ministry of the temple musicians. At the very core of their ministry was the responsibility to sing praises to the Lord, and we are told that they served in the Lord’s house day and night (I Chronicles 9:33). When the ark of the covenant was brought into the newly-completed temple, II Chronicles 5 tells us that the “singers were to make themselves heard with one voice to praise and to glorify the Lord… accompanied by trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music.” And what happened after this joyful display of worship? “The glory of the Lord filled the house of God”!
We know that music is not an end in itself. (As worship leader Tom Kraeuter says, “Jesus didn’t die for music.”) We know that worship is not defined by or limited to music. However, we also know that God created music, and all good gifts are from Him and for His glory. Music can stir us. It can melt our stony hearts, replace sadness with joy, and whisper God’s Word to our very soul.
John Wesley gave a challenge to Christians of his day, and it holds for us today as well: “Sing lustily, and with a good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard, than when you sung the songs of Satan… Above all, sing spiritually. Have an eye to God in every word you sing. Aim at pleasing him more than yourself, or any other creature.”
Finally, one last word from Psalm 104:33: “I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.” Let’s rejoice in this beautiful gift all the days of our lives!
Worshiping with you,
Jeanelle
