Devotional – “Real Christian Singing” (10 June 2018)

Last Thursday evening, a few of us from the music ministry team went to an event at another local church The event’s theme was how we approach singing as the body of Christ. We sang, we prayed, and then we heard the Bible taught.

The text the speaker taught from was Colossians 3:15-16:

“And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” – Colossians 3:15–16 (ESV)

Here Paul clearly elevates singing in the life of the church. We were told that a recent survey found that one of the major factors of whether or not a child continues to attend church into adulthood is whether or not their dad sang in church. For so many reasons, singing should really matter to Christ’s people!

But before Paul gets there, notice what else he elevates:

  1. The peace of Christ ruling our hearts (see Colossians 1:20)
  2. The unity of the body of Christ (see Colossians 2:19)
  3. Thankfulness (see Colossians 2:6-7)
  4. The Word of Christ dwelling in our hearts (see Colossians 1:25-26)

This is the context in which the best Christian singing is going to happen: when gospel truth and gospel application are front-and-centre in our own lives and the life of our church family.

 

This is the context in which the best Christian singing is going to happen: when gospel truth and gospel application are front-and-centre in our own lives and the life of our church family.

 

Then we will sing songs that reinforce words and truths of the Bible, the Word of God. Then we will sing in ways that lift our hearts up genuinely to the Lord, rejoicing in the gospel. And, importantly, we will sing to “teach and admonish one another”, conscious that we are one body in Christ, and seeking the good of those around us in their relationships with the Lord Jesus.

 

Live it:

We were asked a few diagnostic questions which you might want to consider as you meditate on this passage in Colossians 3:

  1. Do we realise what’s actually happening when Christians sing together?
  2. What does the way you sing in church say about what’s going on in your heart?
  3. What would it look like if the “peace of Christ” truly ruled all of our hearts?
  4. Does singing the gospel really affect you at a heart-level? If not, is that evidence of a heart problem?

 

– Clint Lombard