A Theological Vision of Singing

the following message is made available by truth for life for more information visit us online at truthfortheworld.org open your Bibles with me if you will to Psalm chapter 96 verses one through three psalm 96:1 through three Christians are a singing people Muslims don't gather to sing neither do Hindus or Buddhists or even Rastafarians Christians do and while not everyone preaches or leads in prayer or is on a stage singing we all sing the singing throughout this conference has been absolutely stunning last night I was trying to just hold pitch here like with this tidal wave of singing coming right at us we did our very best so tonight coming right back at you you better bring your a-game singing has played a formative role in my life personally spiritually one of my earliest memories of singing is seeing my dad who is a Baptist pastor stand on the front row he's a large guy six-five you know with his eyebrows up he's bouncing and singing louder than the rest of the congregation and so I learned from him so now when I preach standing on that same spot in the front row I try to sing loud within the band and that's what I what I was modeled for me my mom would be up in the choir singing much more beautifully than my dad grew up around the great hymns of our faith on the Baptist hymnal 1975 anybody else what a great hymnal starting a petition to bring it back but I think that ship has sailed I began leading congregational singing when I was 15 years old which is far too young if you're taking notes 15 years old when I started leading the singing of our church started this way our student Minister took another post and moved on and there was no one left to do it he had taught me three chords on the guitar the year was 1995 in most of the songs that the church was singing in 1995 in America could be played with three chords and a lot of Prayer I continued to lead singing and started traveling internationally I remember being 18 years old being in Denmark is the first time I practiced this singing in two languages one song so we had maybe 50 American students with us and a few hundred Danish students gathered together in one place and singing worship to God both in Danish and English and that had a profound impact on me one of my favorite memories and practices of singing is just every night with my wife and my kids at home singing some of the hymns that I grew up singing singing at a conference like this is incredibly refreshing and encouraging but I think there's an even better singing and it'll happen when you go back home on Sunday morning and gather with your church now if your church is like mine we don't have the musicianship that's represented here we don't have a building this nice but there is something that cannot be replaced when the local church people that we have covenant 'add together in membership sing together there's a shared miss that cannot be replaced it's rooted in relationships I bet you have a few meaningful memories and thoughts about singing as well sadly I had not stopped past early to teach our congregation on the practice of singing before just a couple of years ago and I have some very strong opinions on church music I'm sure you do too I knew singing was meant to glorify God and meant to be congregational and I just felt like our people understood that we know that more is caught than taught and while that's absolutely true I slowed down and actually taught on the role of congregational singing in our church I preached on singing when I told our other elders we were gonna I was going to do that they're like you're preaching on singing it's like water coloring on justification or something yeah preach on singing and I just wonder for the churches that you Shepard if there is a clear and articulate philosophy or theological vision of congregational singing that's been taught and caught and modeled what is your theological vision of singing beside the Ministry of the word the primary activity that we do together when we gather is sing most congregations we spend half an hour of our gathering in song we spend 26 hours a year singing but do our churches know why we sing my hope and these minutes together is it as pastors we can think intentionally and biblically about the importance of congregational singing if you're already involved in the music of your church then praise the Lord for that and if you're not a full disclaimer I'm trying to lure you into getting more involved in the singing of your church as the pastor of your church and what I want to do is look at Psalm chapter 96 verses one through three as a microcosm of a theological vision of singing that we could look many places in God's Word to see but we specifically and concisely see it here in Psalm 96 one two three and what we'll see is that singing is an act of worship singing is a means of discipleship are focused together as pastors here and then finally as singing is a declaration to the world it is an evangelistic expression as well so let's pray for God's help as we look at His Word and wrestle with it think through how to apply it let's pray father we are so grateful that you're the God who has spoken to us revealing to us who you are how you work in the world the glory of Christ and how we might rightly live lives of response help us now as we read from your word give us wisdom and humility and ever-increasing joy in Christ we pray amen Psalm 96 verses one through three this is God's Word his inerrant infallible eternal word Oh sing to the Lord a new song sing to the Lord all the earth sing to the Lord bless his name tell of his salvation from day to day declare his glory among the nations his marvelous works among all the peoples the grass withers and the flower fades but the word of the Lord stands forever the first thing I wanted to look at Psalm 96 just looking at verse one is that singing is an act of worship it's the first reason we sing the primary reason we sing and the psalmist puts it like this to bless his name to bless the name of God Don Carson defines worship as the proper response of all moral sentient beings to God ascribing all honor and worth to their Creator God precisely because he is worthy delightfully so and here we see this connection between blessing the Lord so how might we say that properly responding we can do that in song ascribing honor we sure hope to do that to the Lord in song and even delighting in God as we sing when Christians sing whether we're alone gathered together as people gathered in our homes with our families our primary duty in singing is to bless the name of the Lord as an expression of worship singing is a commandment this is no suggestion from God this is a commandment on the same same kind of Commandments and imperatives we see throughout all of the scripture and this psalm commands us to sing a new song to the Lord Spurgeon thinks there's a Trinitarian overtone with the three times sing to the Lord sing to the Lord sing to the Lord what we see clearly from this text is that we are supposed to sing and that everyone is supposed to get in on this singing sing to the Lord all the earth now not everyone loves to sing I understand that even among pastors now your volume tells me that most of you do love to sing but maybe you don't maybe you think your voice is uh awkwardly too low or maybe it's too high or it's just too loud there's no such thing as singing too loud let's just say maybe right our our singing is meant to be loud and if possible beautiful but we should at least go for volume it's been my philosophy my whole life we could wax eloquent from Calvin or Luther as we think about how to think about the nature of singing but perhaps no quote is as effective as this one from the 2003 cinematic masterpiece elf as buddy the elf says singing is just like talking except longer and louder and you move your voice up and down and there you have it we are commanded to sing to the Lord as an act of worship and these very short three verses God commands us three times to sing there are over fifty direct commands in scripture to sing singing is mentioned over 400 times in the Bible the longest book in the Bible is a book of songs which are meant to be sung the New Testament commands us twice in Colossians 3:16 Ephesians 5:19 to sing God sings Zephaniah 3:17 says the God sings over his people with gladness and love Jesus sings he's saying at the Last Supper his final words from the cross were quote from a song in eternity we will sing to God it's not all we will do but we will sing we see this in Revelation 5 through 7 the singing God commands us to sing to join in his work of melody making singing truth and beauty why is it that God would command us to sing I think it's just because he likes it I think when the redeemed are gathered together and we sing something as simple as this I love you and I lift my voice to worship you O my soul rejoice take joy my king in what you hear let it be a sweet sweet sound in your you consider all the commands of God the same surely it's because he delights in the singing of his redeemed people before we move on let me just help clarify something when we sing together as the people of God it is an act of worship because we've tried to delineate these things by saying singing and worshiped and to think clearly about these two subjects and we must because when people say how was the worship today or we like the worship at this church we know what they mean they mean likely that we like the singing at this church or how is the singing today but at our church if someone comes up and says I really enjoyed the worship today I just smile say which part which part do you mean I know what they mean already you see but I'm just always looking for little windows to teach which part do you mean a sermon or was it the call to worship the benediction the sermon this brother said be offering yes pass the baskets twice the preaching praying communion all of these or acts have gathered worship so while we must see singing as a form of worship we cannot confuse the terms and collapse the word worship on singing worship is too heavy a doctrine for singing to carry worship is too heavy a doctrine for singing to carry but let's not be confused in the matter we don't want our congregational singing to be less than worship to God it must at its essence be worship to the Lord my friend Keith Getti says that this should be a regular question that we asked one another how was the singing on Sunday how was the singing on Sunday God has given each one of our churches a song to sing songs of worship of praise of confession and repentance song singing back to God for all that he has done for us my first point of application of this passage to this one first point is simply an exhortation to us as leaders to be intentional on teaching on congregational singing furthermore to model congregational singing she's gonna plead with you during the singing do not be hidden back in some remote place would be on the front row helping lead the charge in song this is part of our responsibility as the Shepherd's of God's people to be with them leading them in this work singing is an act of worship second singing is a means of discipleship it's a means of discipleship verse two says we tell of his salvation from day to day the psalmist is calling us to sing the salvation of God and notice the content of this song the salvation of God it's so interesting that scripture commands us to tell of the salvation of God to tell of the gospel of God in singing every single day day after day because this is the news that edifies us this is the environment in which disciples are made it's the good news that builds us up and singing is a means of disciple making what I mean by that well two things first singing shapes our thinking what we sing shapes our thinking the more we sing truth the more the truth shapes us it's in singing that we bring our doubts to the truth and apply the truth to our doubts and singing we can bring our fears to the truth and apply truth to our fears we shape our thinking by what we sing this is why we need to be singing hymns that articulate truth that are robustly doctrinal that are rich with biblical texts biblical language biblical contours because we want our thinking to be renewed around the gospel to be renewed day by day by telling the salvation of God Plato is often attributed with this quote whether that's true or not we don't know but what is sure that Scottish writer Andrew Fletcher said these words let me make the songs of a nation and I care not who makes its laws British Congregationalist RW Dale takes that sentiment and applies it to the church he said let me write the hymns of the church and I care not who writes the theology I think both what Fletcher and Dale understand is the importance of the effect that singing has on what we think surely this is what Paul has in mind in Colossians 3 when he wants the word of Christ to dwell in us richly in Psalms hymns in spiritual songs that's the first thing it shapes our thinking second it shapes and expresses our affections singing shapes and expresses our affections the mind and the heart are to be engaged when we sing to God together our hearts move toward the things that we sing when someone's birthday we could say happy birthday to you happy birthday to you happy birthday dear Michael happy birthday to you but when we sing it together it's a little bit embarrassing for the recipient but the joy rises and when we're in love we sing right you sing when you're in love remember this old love song it went like this and I see I will always love you and to simply speak those words is one thing but when you hear Whitney Houston sing it even the most calloused heart may feel a little bit of moisture on the face you know or think about Handel's Messiah we could just say and he shall reign forever and ever but when the four part chorus kicks in who doesn't want to stand up and say and he shall reign forever and ever singing is a means of discipleship because it shapes our thinking it shapes and expresses our affection three spheres of singing that I want us to look at as environments of disciple making the first starts with a very small circle sing to yourself sing to yourself we need to sing the gospel to our hearts in psalm 42 David is in the darkest of places and he sings to his soul three times if you include Psalm 43 as well hope in God he doesn't just say it he sings it to build himself up he sings it this is what hymns of our faith are meant to do sing them to ourselves to build ourselves up I remember when we were in the process of moving some 8 years ago now we had built a wonderful life in a community that we loved and the Lord was directing us from there and we had sold our house and exchanged keys and I was just going to drop off the last thing that the homeowners had asked for so I was in this empty house by myself the home were we brought home like our oldest three children and had weathered a lot of storms together and the house was empty so I wanted to spend just a moment thanking God for His faithfulness to us there so I sat down on the staircase leaned up against the wall and the verse text that came into my mind was I dare not trust the sweetest frame but wholly lean on Jesus name in the very moment just to be able to have language to sing to express to the Lord gratitude and also to say this life that you've given me is is yours that you gave and you can take and if there's idols in my heart that are leaning too heavily into this I don't want those I want to lean on your grace alone let's not underestimate the means that God has give us in singing to ourselves the moments of being in need of being reminded of God's love to sing a love that will not let me go to sing how deep the Father's love for us to seem the love of God is greater far than tongue or pen could ever tell the moments of fear the singing of mighty fortress is our God a bulwark never failing times of forgetfulness great is thy faithfulness Oh God my father morning by morning new mercies I see so sing and encourage your heart ii sing with your family we need to be teaching the hymns of our faith to the next generation I wonder what songs echo through the walls of your home I want to make sure that my kids grow up knowing and treasuring all the classics from Johnny Cash to Willie Nelson I'm sorry sorry I meant Isaac Watts to Augustus toplady that's right that's what I meant to say my wife who is godly er than me recently brought up that we were probably listening too much worldly music and she's probably right but more often than we're listening to Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson we are listening to holy holy holy and teaching our kids hymns every night before we go to sleep we've seen the doxology together the practice of family worship has fallen out of practice and this is one thing that we're really missing to simply call our families to gather together to read the scriptures together to pray together and to sing together it's really that simple sing with your family is an expression of worship and finally singing with your church one of the most important things that we do as a part of gathered worship is to sing because when we sing we proclaim the salvation of God we sing worshiping him and then we proclaim the salvation of God to brothers and sisters in Christ reminding one another the truths of who God is of our continual need for His grace the all-sufficient work of Christ and help together by God's grace we are following him as disciples it's there that we stir one another up to continue to live in light of the gospel we're not just singers of songs we're heralds of the good news Paul teaches infusions 5:19 again in Colossians 3 I'll read it in its entirety 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 you sense thankfulness rise in our congregations when we sing your church needs you to sing so it's quick application see singing as a vital part of disciple-making not just an add-on but something we've been commanded by the Lord Himself to do and as an expression of pastoral ministry you can do a word study of your own Colossians 3:16 Asian's 5:19 write down things that psalm 96:1 through 3 doesn't cover to help us build out the theological vision of singing a biblical theology of singing and then how to press that in in our churches finally singing is a declaration to the world I do think the order here is critical for us singing is first an act of worship this is its tell us this is its great aim we sing to worship the Lord and from that great aim come two streams the building up of the saints and the proclamation to the Lost both of those flowing out of that first a declaration of Christ that's what it is we're declaring his glory among the nation's his marvelous works among all peoples I was at lunch with some doctoral students a couple of years ago with the incredible Tom nettles and dr. nettles has this reputation for singing in the middle of his classes he loves hymns and he loves to sing and he was her last day of the seminar so we thought well let's take him out to lunch and we took him to this place in Louisville called game-game is a wonderful combination of dead and it smells like testosterone it's incredible and dr. nettles was sitting there eating his elk burger and we were talking about hymns and some of the hymns that had most shaped him and in the middle of game in the thick of the testosterone dr. nettles starts singing and I don't mean like polite tableside singing I mean full voiced you can't kill a dead man singing and dr. nettles is singing his faith and immediately I am a little bit embarrassed there's some you know blue-collar guys over here and some white-collar guys over here and it's us and dr. nettles I kind of want to just apologize to the room what's happening but I didn't I just held my seat and as he continued to singing I felt a change in my heart I realized that he was singing because he had a song to sing and even though there were people that we didn't know in the restaurant dr. nettles sang he declared the glory of God among the nation's the marvelous deeds of God among anyone who would listen and as we walked out I felt my heart just sag a little bit shame that I was embarrassed of him doing that in public and I repented ask the Lord to forgive me and made me more like dr. nettles now I don't think you should welcome to workplace Monday morning and start belting out I tell our guys going into Toyota corporate on Monday morning you don't do this but when the time is right sing as a testimony there's two things going on when we're singing first the truths that we're telling in our songs are being declared that's right here in verse three but there's another thing going on another kind of declaration and this declaration comes through the unity that is shown in the body of Christ as we sing it's the unity of our belief one of the things that makes singing together so powerful is to hear voices of different backgrounds stories various ethnicities singing together this is why the Gospel of John says us by our love that they'll know that we are his disciples that it itself is an apologetic singing is a powerful expression of unity basil the great said who can longer count him his enemy with whom to the throne of God he hath raised the strain saamne t repels the demons and lures the Ministry of angels when we sing together week after week United as a church body unified in our praise to God it is a powerful declaration when the church sings we sing first and foremost to the glory of God this is reformed theology 101 and singing is not excluded we sing the God's glory we sing also as a means of discipleship as a practice of planting the truths of God in the fabric of the life of the church and we sing as a declaration to the world never knowing who is in our congregations on a Sunday morning it could be the day that Jesus saves yet another sinner hearing the truths of the gospel preached and prayed and sung so in closing just looking at these three little verses there's there's much more to be said but for now we'll wrap it up I just want to encourage you as fellow pastors let's not overlook the role of singing in the life of our church and all the reasons that God has given it to us well let's pray and we'll transitionary time of questions God we're so grateful that you have given us a new song a song that sung by new hearts that were once dead and sinned but are now alive in Christ we're thinking you've commanded all the earth to get in on this singing that as we've seen we bless the name of our God in telling your salvation day after day I pray that every time we hear the good news of the gospel it would soft in our hearts one more degree rescue us from it being one degree more calloused thank you for your church and for the joy it is to help Shepherd under the lordship and leadership of Christ Jesus must be faithful shepherds in your church singing shepherds among your church best in Christ's name Amen guys I don't know how much time we have total but I think about 20 minutes or so so if you'd like we could transition to a time of questions and I'll do my very best to answer anything that might be helpful two three four one two three four rock music is one two three four do you think that's detrimental and Christian music hmm you've mistaken me for a musician I just play the guitar i rhythmic structures I mean so this broader question of rhythmic structure in how it serves congregational singing is a really important conversation there's really good work coming out of southwestern Seminary by one of the professors there and he takes Watson's when I survey the wondrous cross just looking at the rhythmic structure of it and then a course was placed on it maybe 15 years ago or so and just looking at the rhythmic analysis of it you have Watson's hymn which is really simple and in this new course is placed on it is extremely difficult to sing rhythmically and so I think probably some ways rock music has been detrimental to congregational singing but I think there's one of many many elements in that conversation so you were talking just in in 4/4 time you know 6/8 is the time signature of heaven thank you so much for the emphasis on congregational singing I hear maybe could you speak to just the role of like special music and when it comes to individuals who sing and that that seems to create more problems than congregational singing by way of personalities or performance and if you could just speak to how you disciple that in the lives of people so that as they're there it's not about them it's about Christ that's a great question I'm not quite qualified to do that we don't use special music at our church but I realize there are churches that practice that and are edified by it and so just because we don't do it I'm never prescriptive on other churches that they shouldn't do it I do think the sound of a church should be the congregation singing do you think that's true but there are some churches that really benefit from special music so I think then you're at a conversation of just teaching regularly on humility in on serving a church even in special music well that that's an interesting thing you know before the 1950s there was never such thing as a special music in American church life but it's hung on for dear life how many of you practice special music in your churches so quite a few I think if that's edifying to your church then it'd be the same lens through which we look at all kind of leadership are this person on the stage we want to bring glory to Christ build up the Saints declare the glory of Christ to the unsaved with humility enjoy okay brother Matt look my god I wanted to ask you a question we're not on a playground anymore we're on the battlefield were in a spiritual warfare and worship is a war song I minister to inmates maximum-security pod I wanted to ask you what your hem would be if you and I were thrown in prison because this was an explosive educate of word of God it says but at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God and the prisoners were listening today so knowing your heart and your life if you would just share with me one stanza if we were thrown in prison would him would you sing are we about to die or will be will we be in there Lyle that is a great question I would probably just sing the doxology and sit down oh there you go there you go i-it's it's hard for me to ever get past when I survey I think that's what we would do yeah maybe later we have these guessing it how do you as a pastor you know one of the things in our church we're constantly evaluating is a lot of the new music coming out let's just say is coming from churches that maybe have some questionable theology we sang one last night how do you evaluate how do you separate great song we do the song in our church but how do you separate and what personal evaluation do you go through in your church or for you personally that says this is a great song this is a god-honoring song but at the same time being able to separate maybe the source from where it came yeah so listen I'm joking there but it's a really heavy question he's asking with serious pastoral implications I think you have to know your church to know what songs you can sing so I'll use Spurgeon as an example when he gets when he goes to edit his own hymn book he says in the preface he's including hymns written by people from any kind of theological stream and but not commending anything other than this hymn and so I think I think that's all that's in part a wise practice for us but you've got to say that you've got to say that if you're going to play songs from streams of the church that carried dangerous doctrine you need to talk about it otherwise don't sing those songs some of the most dangerous doctrines of our day are carried on the wings of song and we've got to be wise passed orally in what we sing so there are certain streams I do sing and certain ones that I won't I think every church will have to decide that for them I'm a Baptist so of course I'm gonna say this you've sorted out amongst yourselves it's the beauty of the autonomy of the local church but it is it's a really important question and one that has to it must be thought through passed orally so guys if you're if if this is a foreign conversation get involved in this in the songs that your church is singing in that Canon of songs know where they're coming from here's the thing know what is two clicks away from that on YouTube I think that is the new litmus test know what's two clicks away and and know the strength of your own congregation and how to how to sort through those things forgive me I don't come as a pastor myself and also I'm not very good with words but I've noticed in my congregation we do sing a lot of those questionable theology music bands songs and and you're in charge of the singing no no no I'm not I'm sorry confession if so no no I'm sorry I'm sorry no you're throwing somebody else under the bus right that's more more of how I can encourage so about a month ago our worship leader thank you for mentioning that he introduced the new song it was actually by the Gaithers I've never heard our congregation sing louder it was by who the J Thurs Vocal Band okay yeah I grew up listening to it I didn't like it as a kid I loved it now and it was played in my house a lot my thoughts went to the day Thurs when they're in town is there anything I could bring Martin elder let congregation is there anything I could bring toward the elders with the music director also there to help encourage maybe branching out we've also played the same song three weeks in row now and it's dwindled in volume ever since Boswell's I think I'm sorry oh yeah there's so many great hymns being written today Keith and Kristin are writing great stuff it's to town and continue to write wonderful hymns city of light we singing one of their hems I think already and we're I think we're doing another one or we've done two already I don't know but that's their writing great stuff you can just there's great music being written we don't have to compromise to find great songs so approach any recommendations for how to approach my elders about this humbly okay patiently okay I've known the here's your lip in the church I know everyone there yes yeah as long as we're singing true things that focus on the glory of Christ and I'm happy okay okay thank you chips Dedham was a professor at Southern Seminary for a long time he's with the Lord now he said a mature Christian is easily edified and so I think that must be true of us so thank you thank you for sharing today my name is Alan I've been asked by a local church of mine to recently plant the church so I'll be planting a church soon and as a younger fellow who's planting a church I'm looking for advice from you about how you begin creating that culture of worship some tangible pieces of advice perhaps you have for me yeah well that's a great question where we'd be planting you know in Ohio Oh Medina wonderful yeah so we just planted a church eight months ago this Sunday and we I wanted to make sure that from the very beginning these kind of principles were resonant in our culture and so we started with a small selection of songs really songs that our church mostly knew from our planting group and I've just been very slow to introduce new songs we live in this very commercialized and consumeristic culture that we're always looking for the latest and greatest songs and I just don't buy that we have such great hymns to choose from already it better be fantastic for us to add it because we don't want to choose songs to just get through the weekend we want to choose songs that'll carry us all the way to death and so I don't want to just consume a song and then hate it in three months that makes sense so I would build with the end in mind in reverse engineer that process specifically categorically I would look at a hymnal and see what categories are represented there and then find hymns that talk through a broad categories not just one category but think it through for a complete diet like you would with a meal and then think with the end in mind and reverse-engineer that solo back here I just want to say thank you so much for the the songs that you write and how you speak the Gospel through them throughout history songs and hymns have come and gone but some have stuck what makes songs timeless and what are some songs today that have been written that may have the ability to become timeless that is a great question as an example the year I'm not gonna tell you the year yet yes I am the year is 1995 and there are two songs that are written in 1995 both went to the top of the charts one in the UK and one in America the one in America was Lord I lift your name on high how many of you saying that it's a good song how many of you sing it still today in your churches okay just a few the same year in the UK stood on and wrote how deep the Father's love for us and how many of you have sung that in the past and how many of your churches still sing it yeah that's my footnote my answer is I don't know I wanted you to see my empirical research methodology I haven't no idea I think there's something so Laura lift your name on high is a good song he was written with pop sensibilities Stewart the melody of how deep the Father's love for us and a time signature the church really had not sung in a long time it's in five four and for whatever reason it just held its ground here's what I think it is I think that it allows the church there's enough handles on it where we can navigate it it doesn't intimidate us because we get it pretty quickly and I think if you look at historic hymnody specifically with the tunes that are being written that is the key to write tunes that are simple and memorable that is also the challenge how do you write tunes that are simple and memorable I mean I try to write hymns that kids can sing that's my goal is to write a melody that my kids could sing easily and they would want to but it sits at the hands of the church to determine what songs will stick around and what don't and even though the broader sense it's at the hand of the Providence of God he gives us songs to sing he gives the church songs to sing and he's got us yes I guess two questions are you the senior pastor at your church preaching pastor as well and do you also lead to music done I don't okay I'm in that situation I really enjoy it but I've heard from different pastors and whatnot like you need to get out of that as soon as you can and I'm I'm kind of confused by why they think think that so I guess I just like to hear your thoughts on the preaching paths are also being the pastor that leads the singing and then set my second question with that is what would be your recommendations as you try to teach a new song how often do you sing it you know so that they actually learn it but they're not hating it you know three weeks later yeah that's a great question so the first part how many of you are both the preaching pastor and you lead singing in your church if we were in the UK right now that might be flipped like that's still widely practiced and historically so I mean the earliest Baptist that was what you did I was a part of pastoral ministry all of my heroes are pastor hymn writers that led the singing in their church sorry I'm with Benjamin Keach all the way to Spurgeon who didn't lead all the time but he led regularly still and even we who's in the front row he was still louder than everybody else that's my inspiration there's no reason why you can't do both I can't do both because I'm not that gifted my wife talked me into playing piano and on Christmas Eve and I promised I would never do that again like try to be involved in the music and preaching but there's there's no reason why you can't do that as long as as long as the church is happy with it and is blessed by your ministry I would I would keep doing that the second part of your question new songs well I I introduce new songs far slower than most people and so we made only introduced four or five songs a year use this is again just knowing your church and knowing I think again having planning with the end in mind and working backward and so I want to be really careful introducing new songs which which can be true even if you do a new one every month I'm just lazy I don't have to learn a new song every month yes so when we introduce a new hymn we would sing it for three or four weeks in a row usually three weeks in a row take a week off and then do it again that's that's what we do you should sing it every Sunday we even there's a new city that's right not new it may be a few years old but it's City of Light yet not i but Christ in me and our music director on Sunday I can't remember the hymn we sang third right before the sermon but he said hey can we add this last verse of it because we introduced it just a few weeks ago and that was an amazing idea so I think repetition early on is really important so the church can own that song it becomes a part of your church yes my wife and I had this discussion for many years years ago there was a Christian artist and had some wonderful songs spoke to me personally and brought me closer to Christ 2530 years ago since then he's fallen into sin now I still love playing those hymns all those songs that he recorded at home and my wife is always he shouldn't be listening to that guy anymore he's no longer a Christian my question I'm posing to you is if there is a song out there it's touched millions of people's lives when the song was released they were Christian but now they fallen into sin they walked turned their back on God are those songs still appropriate in the church again I think you know this requires pastoral care I think so I think if there's a work that has has bless God's church it's it's bigger than the person who wrote it then and so we've got to be careful that we don't only sing from people we agree with a hundred percent theologically like we have no friends left so we can write our own songs from then on honor and with this in mind I mean for example a Robert Robinson is a good example like we sing come thou fount on night one I think we'll sing it as well with my soul tonight and I mean everybody loves to tell the first part of Spafford story nobody tells the back half and so I tell young people that want to write hymns for the church like your you better stick close to the Bible you're you're signing up for life of suffering and historically it didn't end well for so many people and so I I think it's just fine but that's one person's opinion so I think if you think your church might here's the thing if people are gonna be singing that song and all they're thinking of is this person has denied the faith of Christ then it's not it's the lost its its service to the church but if they think I love that song I don't know who the author is most people don't have any idea who wrote the hymn as we sing that's the way it should be by the way what matters in the hymns is the truths we sing not the author or the born-on date it doesn't matter if the hymn was written 400 years ago or last week matters the truths that we're telling so all right one more are we done one more so I just got done preaching a sermon series on worship preached Colossians 3 Ephesians 5 the importance of congregational singing the thing that this still sticking in my mind that I'm trying to think about is the fact those those two passages aren't specifically about a worship service right there about congregational life as a whole so I'm just one your advice do you do you try and push to have congregational singing be a part of the life of the church beyond the service what does that look like how do you do it be a little more clear the natural question sure just the idea that the congregation needs to sing to one another the word of sing songs to one another I think that goes beyond just the service to the body life to the life of the church as a whole that's one of the other in a community groove or at a dinner someone's house yeah yeah I mean when I read it I don't think it's just specifically about the service I think it is more broadly than that so that's what I've been trying to wrestle through is what would it look like for my church to try and embrace the idea of congregational singing in ministries beyond just a service you thought about that but does I have it for two cents you know I think what's implicit in in both of those texts is there there are clear and immediate application before the church gathered there must be because it's the Ministry of the word among the church the singing among the church but as far as what that looks like outside I think I think most of that is going to be culturally applied like if you live in Texas and we're about to go golf if we're on the first tee and we start singing together that's never gonna happen that's just never gonna happen it's there there are families who as a part of family worship sing and just whoever is over there would would join in that singing I think it's a pretty beautiful practice some families sing before meals I think that I remember being in Europe and and with some Scandinavians that did that every meal they sang I think that's evidence of that happening beyond that I don't know you can invite me over we'll sing you're leading singing but I'll sing with you yeah thank you guys [Applause] this message was brought to you from truth for life where the learning is for living learn more about truth for life with alistair beg visit us online at truth for

Channel: Alistair Begg

Views: 4,812

Rating: 4.9603958 out of 5

Keywords: Truth For Life, 2019 Basics Conference, Discipleship, Ministry, Pastoral Ministry, Pastors, Worship

Id: aYnBop0cAXU

Length: 58min 4sec (3484 seconds)

Published: Tue May 14 2019