Singing
Colossians 3:15-17

“(15) And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. (16) 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. (17) And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”

Notice:
I. The Context of Our Singing
II. The Content of Our Singing
III. The Conduct of Our Singing

I. The Context of Our Singing

Paul is speaking here of ‘corporate’ singing in the church, not 'private' singing. Notice the words ‘one body’ in v.15 and the words ‘one another’ in v.16. Singing is one of the God-ordained activities for the local church. It is not everything, but it is an important thing, not to be underestimated.

II. The Content of Our Singing

There is a direct connection between ‘letting the Word of Christ dwell in us richly’ (as a church) and ‘teaching and admonishing one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs’! The content of our singing must be firmly rooted in the Word of Christ. Truth must be foremost in what we decide to sing or not to sing. However wonderful a piece of music might be – the music is not the main thing. The content of what we sing is the main thing.

We could also say that even when a melody is boring or dry – if the content of what we are singing is truthful, then at least we have that! Because, according to the Apostle Paul, edification cannot take place apart from truth. Good music will not edify apart from truth. So let us always remember the really important thing is truth. Yes – we should strive to match the melody with the words, and the melody should be a help to us in remembering the words. But let us be careful not to focus too much on the melody. Let us be mindful of ‘what’ we are singing.

Paul is saying here that as a congregation we should be concerned with being filled with the Word of Christ. And one of the means we do that is by singing to one another the kinds of psalms, hymns and songs that are FILLED with truth! So filled with truth, that they themselves not only serve as expressions of praise to God, but also as a means for instruction and even rebuke.

Note: We are reminded here that not every song is meant to be a ‘happy, happy, happy’ kind of song! Some songs are meant to be a ‘rebuke’! Hence, we must allow for differences among songs. Just like the psalms in the Old Testament had a wide range of subject matter and moods – so the psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs we sing in the church ought to match that same breadth of Christian experience.

III. The Conduct of Our Singing (Notice 3 Things)

A. Notice in v.16, it says that we are to sing ‘with grace in our hearts’.

I believe the main thing here is that we are to make sure that we sing ‘for real’ – from our hearts.
· If we are mechanically singing – going through the motions, distracted, thinking about other things, not engaged ‘spiritually’ in our singing, then we are not singing with grace in our hearts.
· If we are mindlessly singing the words – we are not singing with grace in our hearts.
· If we are singing in order to hear ourselves sing, or because we are enraptured with someone else’s voice, or because we simply are enthralled by the music – then we are not singing with grace in our hearts.

B. Notice it also says in v.16, that we are to sing with grace in our hearts ‘to the Lord’.

Even though our singing is to be filled with the Word of Christ, even so far as to be a teaching aid and a means of admonishing one another – it still must always be remembered that, ultimately, our focus must be ‘the Lord Himself’. We are to ‘sing to Him’. We are worshipping Him.

· Far be it from us to sing merely to be heard of others – to show off.
· Far be it from us to sing half-heartedly, as though it were pure drudgery to do it! Would you act that way in the presence of the Lord? Well, in worship, you ARE in the presence of your Lord. SING TO HIM ! Be just as ashamed of yourself when you half-heartedly sing, as you are when you half-heartedly pray, or when you half-heartedly listen to His Word preached!

C. And then notice in v.17, that all aspects of our worship (including singing) are to be done ‘in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ’.

This phrase means nothing less than this: to pray or to sing ‘in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ’ means to do so, CONSCIOUS of the fact that apart from Christ and His merits, you have no right to be praying or singing! You have no access to God apart from Him. The privilege of worship is IN ITSELF something that Christ purchased for us. He is our Mediator – all of our worship IS through Him. But not only is all of our worship through Him – all of our worship is to be offered up with that ever-present awareness, with that conscious understanding of what Christ HAS done for us, and what He continues to do for us – taking our prayers and our praises, and making them acceptable to the Father.

This is how, no matter what we are singing – whether it is a song that is primarily instructive, or a song that rebukes, or a song that has a very boring tune – WHATEVER song it might be – if we remember that our singing is part and parcel of our worship to God, and that ‘worship’ is not only a duty, but a blessed privilege purchased for us by our Lord Jesus Christ; and if we remember that even now the Lord Jesus makes the words of our mouth and the meditations of our heart acceptable to God – THEN that is how we can sing ‘with thanksgiving’ (v.17) – with gratitude in our hearts.

Website Almost Finished !

Hi folks,

For those of you who have been patiently waiting for Trinity Reformed Baptist Church's website to look better - well, that time has definitely come. We're still working out the kinks and uploading pictures and other files. I estimate it (and this blog) will be fully functional by the end of April '09 - Praise the Lord!

At that time, I will be posting here at least once a week, and I'd appreciate any comments you might have.

Thank you and God bless,
Pastor Arden Hodgins
Trinity Reformed Baptist Church
La Mirada, California