Singing the Truth

Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.

Colossians 3:16

The Word is to be well known among us. It is to be the central thing in teaching us how to live. This amazing Book, this insight into true life, is unrivaled anywhere in the world. There is nothing else that even remotely approaches it in its view of reality.

Notice how the whole body is to be involved in this. We are to teach and admonish one another, everybody — in homes, in church, in classes, in Bible study groups, in breakfast groups — should gather about the Word. We ought to thoroughly know and understand this Book. Here are described marvelous mysteries which challenge the greatest minds among us. Here are simple statements that burst like rockets in our brain and illuminate the whole landscape of life. This is not dead, lifeless truth! It is alive, vital, refreshing and illuminating! It dispels doubts, fears and difficulties. We are to center our lives around the Word of God.

With this Paul links also the ministry of music. I have always enjoyed Hawaiian songs and music ever since I lived in Hawaii many years ago. Once when I commented on the beauty of their music, one of the old Hawaiians said to me, You know, the Hawaiians never had any music until the missionaries came. All the pagans do is chant. They do not know how or what to sing. The first songs the Hawaiians ever sang were hymns taught them by missionaries. It is Christian truth that inspires the greatest music. Music belongs to the believer.

Here the apostle recognizes its powerful ministry in our lives. We are to sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. Psalms, of course, are the inspired utterances of the Book of Psalms and found also in various other books of the Bible. How marvelous is this teaching from God, put in rhythm and beauty of expression! Hymns are literally praise songs, responses that humans have composed to reflect with thanksgiving on what God has done. With this is linked songs from the Spirit, testimony songs which reflect how God has led us. If you look through any songbook, you will find these three types of songs included.

As we sing, we are encouraging one another. You may arrive at church depressed and discouraged, but as the congregation lifts up one of these great songs, you will be lifted by it as well. You will began to rejoice again in spirit because the music and the words remind you of the greatness of God. So we are to sing the truth as well as study it, with gratitude in our hearts for all that God has done.

Father, in all my gatherings with fellow believers, teach us to let the Word of Christ dwell richly among us. Amen.