I have had this topic and content stirring in me for a long time. In fact, for years now. I have wanted to do it justice and have taken my time with it.

The question I am asking us to consider is why do Christians sing? But more specifically, why do you, the reader, and I sing when we are with our sisters and brothers in the Lord? Or you could flip the question by asking, why don’t we sing? Delving deeper still, what is our singing together like when we do?

I am specifically writing in the context of Christians singing together in a church meeting, even if that meeting is comprised of only two or three saints – which might even mean when only the brothers are together or only the sisters.

To start with, here are just a few reasons I can think of why Christians currently might sing together in a church meeting:

1. To kick off the meeting on a high note (no pun intended)
2. To offer praise to God as one voice
3. As an expression of worship to God
4. Tradition – it’s just what we do
5. We have been told to do it
6. Most enjoy it
7. Many Christians consider their natural gift of singing and musicianship as their spiritual gift for ministry
8. The church is seen as an outlet to share natural singing talent and musicianship – many Christians are good singers/musicians

However, if we sing together for many of the above reasons, I can understand why some can take it or leave it. I once knew a man who attended the institutional church regularly, along with his family. He flat-out refused to sing. I was on ‘singers’ (what a crazy term and entity that is in hindsight) and was perplexed and frustrated with this brother. With no shame at all, he explained his refusal to sing was based on the fact that he didn’t like the songs, they were old, and he thought it was all very shallow. Again, if we sing together for most of the above-listed reasons, I can understand where this brother came from.

I had always cherished singing to the Lord with other saints, even before I knew we were saints! I grew up in a ‘baptist’ family where my mum was the church organist/pianist, my dad was the ‘Church Secretary”, the ‘Sunday School Secretary’ and a deacon. Gosh, some of these things sound so foreign to me now as I reflect on the tradition, regulations, requirements, and religious practices my family grew up in. However, I am eternally grateful for my upbringing within the Baptist denomination at the same time because it was there that I gained a love for God, scripture, and song. I praise God that my parents were genuine in their love for God and weren’t Christians just on Sundays but every day. They instilled some deep values in me as a child that have never left me, and I still get to enjoy my mother sharing her solid faith with me now, even with Alzheimer and well into her 80’s.

Back to the singing thing. Many days and nights were spent in my family home with my mum playing the piano and teaching my dad new songs that they would teach the Sunday School department. Dad was a good singer with a natural ability to harmonise anywhere from the base to the soprano parts without being able to read a note of music. They also ran the choir, and so again, my dear mum would seek out the best songs, based on the meaning of their words and the melodies, and teach them to my dad. She would also rehearse for the weekly services, playing many hymns my dad would sing to as he lay on the floor reading the newspaper. They are beautiful memories that I cherish.

And so, music and scripture in song, songs of worship and praise, and lyrics supporting the Christian life and faith were part of my life. As a child, I recall my dad choking up from time to time, clearly moved by the Lord as he lay on the floor singing the words he was learning. As I write this account, it is dawning on me that these times between my parents were ones of worship that they shared, perhaps without even knowing it. Even though they were learning and practising for the purpose of teaching others, the Lord was in the songs. They were each touched by Him as they played and sang unto Him together.

Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am in the midst (Matthew 18:20). 

O magnify the Lord with me, And let us exalt the name of the Lord together (Ps 34:3)

Even before I understood what a pentecostal or a charismatic Christian was, I occasionally raised my hands when singing hymns with the congregation in the baptist church. Even as a young teenager, I would be moved to tears and often choke up, standing alongside my dad, trying to get through the words of some of those hymns.

As a young adult, I left the Baptist denomination and moved into the more Pentecostal/Evangelical denominations and singing became something different altogether. Facing the front and being led by a team of singers and musicians. Finally, I was free to raise my hands high, sway with my eyes closed, sing at the top of my lungs and remain standing for much longer. The songs were very emotional and mostly about my love for God, the melodies were modern, and the music was much grander than a lone piano or organ. At the time, I thought that was authentic worship and genuine praise; yet, some in the congregation seemed disengaged or over-indulgent, so this atmosphere left me needing clarification at times. However, as long as I focused on myself and God, I could get lost in an atmosphere of love and praise that moved me. The context of my worship and praise to God was enraptured in atmospheric music that evoked loving emotion and pleasure in me, and it was all about me and God in our own little bubble.

However, even this lost its meaning to me eventually. I don’t even know how that happened. I began to relate to that brother that I mentioned, who refused to sing. I felt it was all the same old, same old, a lot of noise and fuss, but nobody seemed changed by it. It just seemed shallow now, after all those years. It was so routine, professional, and predictable. The words no longer seemed to touch me. I longed for the old hymns that had touched me so deeply as a child, and yet, I couldn’t return to the religious practices and limitations. I was torn but not understanding what had changed in me.

Many years later, I learned to sing with other saints in a new way (yet ancient). We stood in a circle, facing one another. The songs were about Christ, describing Him, proclaiming and exalting Him, and some were written as if they were from Him to us, His body. Intermingled were lyrics telling of His relationship with His Bride, the church, and declaring who she is and what are the cries of her heart toward Christ, her Bridegroom and King. Some songs were written as love songs between Christ and His Bride, one to the other. Other songs expressed the love of the Father for His Son and the love of the Son for His Father. Some proclaimed the Eternal Purpose of God being fulfilled through the church, and we declared these glorious truths to one another, face to face.

There were no instruments at the time, and some of the melodies were rather plain and simple, with nothing fancy or clever about them. Nobody ‘led’ the singing from up the front on a stage. No one had prepared what songs would be sung in advance for when we gathered together; it all just happened organically and equally among us. We didn’t have to wait for the right key, a guitar intro or lead break, a drum solo, or a crescendo. No person sang over the top of the others, and no person kept their mouth shut. There was no endless repetition of choruses, no fancy vocal trills. Sometimes the timing was out, or we were off-key, but this was fine.

Of all my years singing with other Christians in a church gathering of any kind, be it in a Baptist Cathedral, an auditorium, a choir, a worship team, a cell group, a crusade, a mega-church, or a home group, this last experience I have just described to you was the richest and most impactful in an almost indescribable way. Not because it was out of some false sense of humility that we had no instruments or because we were all super-spiritual, but because the life of Christ was evident as we sang these declarations of who He is. There was life in the lyrics, real life, because they were proclaiming Christ. Not only did we sing to the Lord, but we also sang to one another. No longer was it just a ‘me and God’ worship/soak/songfest, but we could look at one another’s faces, smile or cry as we looked in each other’s eyes whilst proclaiming truth to one another, spirit to spirit. Together we were touching eternity, and eternity was touching us.

The words we sang were filled with the fullness of the gospel and not just about salvation. They ventured beyond the telling of a glorious heaven awaiting us when we die. The words were like food – they were spiritual truths to meditate on in the right here and now while living on the earth. Through them, we were encouraged and edified. The lyrics exalted the Lord Jesus Christ and reminded us of who He is and where He lives, which is inside of us, His body members, as His collective expression. They also reminded us of who we are as the body of Christ and where we are right now, which is seated with Him in heavenly places. We were reminded again and again of the magnificence of this Christ, this One in whom the fullness of the Godhead dwells, and our eyes were opened to see Him again and again as we sang. The Holy Spirit opened up the Truth to us in the songs, and as we sang to one another, we proclaimed these to each other. When one body member was going through a particular trial where faith was waning, or they had forgotten their identity in Christ because of the influence of the spirit of this world, it was life-giving and powerful to be reminded of these truths through the body singing together in the way I have just described.

The language and the spirit of the songs were Christ. Our love and our shared joy were Christ. Even the sorrows we carried and shared were Christ. His body displayed Him to the heavenly realms and one another. And yet, I think we only just touched the surface of God’s gift to the church in singing together.

You see, singing together as Christians is more than just singing. It is more than the beautiful or the weak voices and instruments or lack thereof. It is more than words, melodies, and harmonies. Likewise, it is more than the fun and joy and stirring of the soul’s emotions. Singing together is more than something we do. There is a spiritual weight to singing together that is easy to go undetected, unappreciated, and underutilised in the ekklesia.

Like most things with the Lord, we can miss their significance if we only consider them according to our natural mind, i.e. our reasoning, understanding, preferences, and filters. We can filter everything through our personal past experiences and therefore write them off as something similar to what we have experienced before and not worthy of any spiritual consideration before the Lord. That is what we do when we only deal with matters naturally according to our feelings and judgments. But we are called to know the Lord Jesus Christ deeply in our spirit and, by doing so, to be led by the Spirit. We must be open to the newness and freshness of Christ, even in the seemingly old ways. Even in the seemingly insignificant things.

One of the things I enjoy about knowing Christ outside of the institutional system after all these years is the freedom to wonder and ask questions. I used to never ask questions but would accept traditions and practices, or the guidance of spiritual authorities without hesitation, whereas now I freely enquire.  However, as I have grown, I no longer question things from a place of fear but from a place of healthy wondering. Hence, the inquiry of the Lord and the searching in my heart to understand the fuller purpose and weight behind why we sing together. Where did singing together come from? What does God think about us singing? Is it important to Him? What is it for? I reckon these are all great questions, and I enjoy the freedom we all have to ask questions about anything. Knowing now that God is so loving and kind, and such a wonderful Father, makes this Christian life an adventure of discovery.

So, in seeking answers to these questions (even subconsciously over the years) and considering my own experiences, as I have mentioned above, I have reached this conclusion; God has given it to the church to sing together because of what is behind the singing.

In my new book, To The Young Believer, I write about using the scriptures to discover Christ in them. I give an example of a large pane of glass with a scripture verse written on it. I go on to describe a grand view on the other side of the glass and how Christ is that view, subsequently making the point that we read the scriptures to see Christ in them, not just to read the words. In the same way, that is why we sing together. It is not about the singing; it is about what’s behind the singing.

Take a look at the following scriptures (emphasis mine) ;

So then, be careful how you walk, not as unwise people but as wise, 16making the most of your time because the days are evil. 17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18And do not get drunk with wine, in which there is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your hearts to the Lord; 20always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to our God and Father; 21and subject yourselves to one another in the fear of Christ.   – Ephesians 5:15-21 (NASB)

Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom, teaching, and admonishing one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.  – Colossians 3:16 (NASB)

When he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who sang to the Lord and those who praised Him in holy attire, as they went out before the army and said, “Give thanks to the Lord, for His faithfulness is everlasting.” ²² When they began singing and praising, the Lord set ambushes against the sons of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; so they were struck down. – 2 Chronicles 20:21-22 (NASB)

Regretfully, some have taken the account in 2 Chronicles as support for the role of worship teams and song leaders in the modern church, even overlaying Old Testament traditions such as ‘holy attire’ onto new covenant believers. Now, as new covenant saints in Christ, though the Old Testament regulations no longer bind us, we certainly do not abandon the principles of God that we see in the Old Testament. In the Chronicles reference, God isn’t setting up a worship or singers team as an institution for all time. No, what we are having pointed out to us is that God uses the mighty power of praise and thanksgiving in song against our enemy!

Recently, Derek and I felt the Lord encourage us to sing when we would sit with the Lord together during a season of what seemed to be great spiritual oppression. Through this experience, I felt compelled to write this post.  We had been feeling quite under it for a while. With the gentle bidding of the Holy Spirit, we began to sing praises together, intentionally, as a means of breaking through the spiritual fog, so to speak. It wasn’t that we took hold of singing as a weapon in our arsenal to wield as a sword, but rather it was the turning of our faces and voices to the Lord in the trial, that through it, the Lord was showing us how powerful it can be when we respond this way.

Just as those in 2 Chronicles who were appointed for singing and praising gave thanks in the face of impending opposition, Derek and I discovered afresh how the Spirit of Christ is made manifest and glorified when we praise Him in the presence of our enemies. As Derek said, it is the resurrection life of Christ that overcomes in those times, and that is how we overcome. Paul and Silas weren’t singing in prison to fight the enemy but because they were living out of Christ’s overcoming life in them, enabling them to praise the Lord in the circumstances. Ultimately, this resulted in the breaking of chains and opening of cell doors for the purpose of God. Christ’s life overcame as they set their hearts, minds, and voices toward Him in singing hymns together.

Along with the abovementioned scriptures, I think of the many accounts recorded in scripture where saints sang in the company of one another:

• Moses and the sons of Israel singing to the Lord after crossing the Red Sea (Exodus 15:1-18)
• Miriam’s response in song (Exodus 15:20-21)
• David’s many exhortations in the Psalms to sing and make a joyful noise unto the Lord
• Mary’s Magnificat when visiting Elizabeth after being spoken to by the angel Gabriel (Luke 1:46-56)
• Paul and Silas singing hymns while in prison (Acts 16:25)
• The elders singing a new song (Revelation 5:9-10)
• The victorious ones singing the song of Moses (Revelation 15:3-4)

Therefore, in light of these scriptures and others, and in no particular order, here are just a few reasons why I believe we are meant to sing together:

1. We are biblically encouraged to do so (at least 50 out of the 400 times singing is mentioned, it is given as a command to do so)
2. It is an expression of being filled with the Spirit
3. It is a means of letting the word of Christ richly dwell within us
4. It is an expression of thankfulness to God
5. It is a way of admonishing (advising and warning) one another
6. It is a way of exhorting one another
7. It is encouraged because the days are evil
8. It is a weapon given by God that brings the enemy to its knees

The New Testament scriptures reveal that we, the church, are one with God the Father and Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit. Our oneness is explained in Paul’s use of the human body as an analogy, making clear the oneness we have with Christ as our Head and we as His body. Jesus prayed, asking His Father to make us one with them, just as they are one with each other. Jesus told the disciples that the world would hate them because it first hated Him and that no servant is greater than his master, i.e. as Christ’s disciples, we are not above experiencing the same kind of life that Jesus Christ had on earth. When Saul was persecuting the Christians, Jesus spoke to Saul, asking; Why do you persecute Me? Jesus also said that what we do for the least of these little ones, we do for Him. All of these references speak of our oneness with Christ and, subsequently, with one another.

It is typical of the Lord’s nature that because of that oneness, everything that relates to our relationship with Him also now relates to our relationship with one another as well. We are no longer individualistic Christians; we are corporate. Reflecting on all the abovementioned scriptures and the overarching nature of our Lord revealed to us in scripture; it is plain to see that singing to the Lord and of the Lord has an element to it that involves the ‘together’ aspect of the body. It is not exclusive to just the ‘me and Jesus’ side of things. There is clearly a purpose and importance in the togetherness of singing.

Even in the ungodly world, humanity has always used singing to affect and express the deeper part of mankind,  whether it is a love song or a war song, a patriotic anthem, a football chant, or a delightful little ditty. Apart from that, songs and singing together have been used for spiritual expression throughout the ages in all tribes and languages. I’m sure you would agree that music and songs carry a particular spirit to them. It might be a light or a dark spirit of fear. Many songs were written to sing together as an expression of shared victory or shared pain.  For instance, many slave songs express a shared life among the enslaved people and their joint suffering. When sung, the pain and suffering can be felt in the words and melody. There is a spirit of grief and sadness because of what is behind the song.

So as Christians, what is behind our singing together? (again, not in any particular order)

1. We are building one another up spiritually, being reminded of who we are in Christ. This is like pouring Christ’s living water out and into one another, refreshing and washing one another with His life, He who is the Word of God.
2. We are standing together as an army in the presence of our enemies, declaring and proclaiming the Lord Jesus Christ until He comes
3. We are giving visibility to the Son of God in the heavenly realms, fulfilling the Eternal Purpose of God!
4. We are expressing the language of heaven, which is Christ, the Living Word
5. We are communicating with the Lord and with one another in spirit – spirit to spirit, beyond our natural and intellectual faculties
6. We are admonishing and advising one another, bringing one another back onto course, saving one another from error
7. We are ministering to God and one another
8. We are being ministered to by God through one another

I’m sure there is more to add to this list, but you can agree that the ones I have listed are incredibly awesome. God has equipped the church so magnificently through the gift of singing together. Of course, there are seasons in the church’s life, so there will not always be singing in the same way. Because it is a spiritual expression of Christ’s life in her, the church will sing differently at different times. Clearly, at times there will be much joy and celebration, and at other times it may be tough to sing due to sorrow, hardship, and spiritual warring against the church. But hopefully, by understanding more about what God has given us in the gift of singing together, we will look differently now into our singing. We will consider it a weapon in our hands when the enemy is warring against the ekklesia. We will see the value and importance of building one another up through singing together when the ekklesia may be experiencing a general flatness of mood. Hopefully, Christ will gain in us and through us, in whatever way He wants to, as we come to recognise the power of singing together and to one another, as we proclaim and declare Him in all truth, love, and wisdom to the glory of God the Father.

That song (in the context I am writing) is like a spiritual dialect. Much like when listening to an opera in a foreign language, one can be deeply moved without ever understanding the words; spiritual songs touch us in a place unknown to our natural mind. I am convinced that through spiritual songs, the Lord Himself speaks and moves by His Spirit in and among us together, doing things in the unseen realm of which we have no idea. As we sing together saints, proclaiming Him and adoring Him whilst declaring the truth to one another in love, it is Christ. It is Christ speaking, ministering, revealing, and being revealed. It is Christ in us, Christ in you and me. His life is being poured out and given back to Him.

There is a song that goes like this;

You are the words and the music, You are the song that I sing, You are the melody, You are the harmony, Praise to Your name I will bring. You are the Mighty God, You are the Lord of lords, You are the King of all kings. Now I return to You the song that You gave to me, You are the song that I sing. 

Ultimately, why do Christians sing together? For Him. From Him, through Him, and to Him.

If you have sung the same songs together for years, write some new ones. Write them together. But consider what is behind the songs, ensuring they express the fuller truth and revelation of Christ and God’s Eternal Purpose, reflecting the Godhead’s true nature and the church’s identity and relationship with her Bridegroom. Make sure the words speak life, not just emotion, and are not limited to the ‘Jesus and me’ bubble. Learn new songs and learn them well enough to sing them freely together, so your singing is declaration and exhortation, not just singing words on a piece of paper. And as you sing, look at one another, sing to the Lord whilst also singing to one another. This is our privilege, our language, our strength in adversity, and our spiritual dialect.

Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth. Sing to the LORD, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples. For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. Psalm 96:1-4

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As we that’s what we’re giving to each other – – like the vast land behind the glass panel

 

 

 

 

 

Misty Mountains – The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey