Teaching and Singing

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 of God 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 counsel one another. Everybody — in homes, in church, in small groups — should gather about the Word. We ought to thoroughly know and understand this book. In it are described 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 Paul recognizes its powerful ministry in our lives. We are to sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. Psalms are the inspired utterances in the Book of Psalms and are also found 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 for what God has done. With this is linked spiritual songs, testimony songs which reflect, again, how God has led us. If you look through any hymn book you will find these three types of songs included. We sing praise songs like, Joyful, Joyful, we adore Thee, God of glory, Lord of love. There are also the great teaching hymns, such as And can it Be? that remind us of the wonderful love of Christ who gave himself for us.

As we sing we are ministering to each other, encouraging one another. You may go to church depressed and discouraged, but as the congregation lifts up one of these great songs you are lifted by it as well. You begin 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.

Thank you for your Word, Father. Forgive us for so often taking it for granted. And thank you for the gift of music that allows me to express my love and gratitude to you. Amen.