THE EXALTED ROLE OF SINGING IN THE CHURCH A SERMON IN SONG

Transcription

1 THE EXALTED ROLE OF SINGING IN THE CHURCH A SERMON IN SONG Presented by Brent Hunter, Evangelist for the Johnson Avenue church of Christ, 7796 Britt Place, Santee, CA , brenthunt@aol.com Website: buildeternalhomes.com Opening song: SING ON YE JOYFUL PILGRAMS! I. Introduction to the special sermon in song service: A. I Love the chorus to SING ON YE JOYFUL PILGRAMS: Sing on, Oh blissful music! With every note you raise. My heart is filled with rapture; my soul is lost in praise. B. Singing began in eternity with the songs of angels as they sang of God's holiness and glory (Isa 6, Job 38:7). It was God's intention that the voices of men and women on earth would join the chorus of angels above. 1. As image bearers of God, both men and angels were to contemplate God's glory and to sing His praises! 2. One of the greatest distinctions between us and the animal kingdom is our power of speech. And there is no more noble use of our tongues than to bless and honor the name of God in singing. 3. James reminds us: "With it we bless our Lord and Father" (James 3:9). David, a man after God s own heart says: "I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth" (Ps 34:1). C. Singing is the natural, spontaneous expression of the wonder of the human soul as it contemplates God. It is when we see the excellences of God s character and the glory of His works, that the soul becomes filled with a sense of awe that finds natural expression in singing. D. Joyful heartfelt celebration must flow upward and find its outlet in the lifting of the voice in praise! 1. Mere words in normal, subdued speech would be insufficient and place too much restraint on the emotions. 2. The heart would feel too confined and restricted. 3. No, there must be a fuller opening of the soul and a freer venting of the affections, and this can come only through the voice in singing. 4. In singing, the soul is carried upwards toward its object of praise-- the living and true God! The singing of Psalms, hymns, and truly spiritual songs, if done correctly, are designed to elevate the soul to a higher degree of communion with God! 5. Illust: 18 th Century preacher John Wells remarked: In heartfelt singing, it is the soul s high mount toward heaven; the saint flies higher toward the element and sphere of joy. 6. Indeed: Sing on Oh Blissful Music! It as if the soul pours out its affection and the voice cannot be imprisoned! 1

2 E. Beloved, those of us who have been redeemed from sin by the blood of Jesus have all the more reason to sing to the glory of God! 1. All the various emotions of the soul can be expressed in singing. We see that in the Psalms. 2. In this present fallen world, there are songs of lamentation and grief over sins, crying out for answers. Alas, in this veil of tears there are times when all of us are called to sing the blues. 3. But the main theme of singing for those of us who know salvation through Jesus Christ is joy and thankfulness. We are to sing Hallelujah to the Lord! 4. The Psalmist often declares how the joyful emotions of the soul have to find their expression in the singing of praise. David says: a. My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness. And my mouth offers praises with joyful lips (Ps 63:5). b. My heart is steadfast, O God, I will sing. I will sing praises, even with my soul (Ps 108.1). c. If the Psalmist had such joy in singing in a day of limited revelation, and restrained influences of the Spirit, how much more joy should we have under the light of the Christ in the gospel and the fullness of the Spirit s grace in the new covenant! 5. Let s begin this special sermon in song service today by thinking about every word, and lifting our souls in heartfelt singing together. May our worship in song this morning be the soul s high mount toward heaven; as our souls reach up towards God and into a celestial element and sphere of joy available only to the regenerated soul. SONG: There Is a Stirring Deep Within Me followed by the Lord s Supper. Song before lesson: Sing Hallelujah to the Lord! Introduction to Lesson: A. Indeed: Sing on, Oh blissful music! With every note you raise. My heart is filled with rapture; my soul is lost in praise. Thank you for the heartfelt singing this morning and for being a congregation that is known for its love of singing! B. Eph 5:18 Be not drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit. 1. It is the heartfelt duty of every Christian to be living under the grace and power of the Holy Spirit. 2. After mentioning being filled with the spirit, the first thing he mentions is singing. Speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord. (vs 19). 3. Notice the connection it is as if the first effect of the spirit s work in our hearts is singing! It must be a melody of faith and love to God and one of joy, purity, and fervency! 2

3 4. The Bible teaches that this is one of the keys to spirituality and true spiritual worship which comes from each believer s heart. Heartfelt singing! C. In a day where the human voice in worship often has to compete and be drowned out by mechanical instruments; in a day when often a few super talented performers entertain while the congregation listens, simple heartfelt congregational singing, as practiced in the NT church is not emphasized or valued. Therefore, I believe in our present day, it is especially important to reaffirm how the Lord Jesus Himself exalted singing in His church! D. THESIS: There are five ways in which Jesus exalted singing in the church. I. BY HIS OWN EXAMPLE: A. After completing His Upper Room discourse and offering His high priestly prayer in John 17, Jesus sang a hymn with His disciples. Matt. records: "After singing a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives" (Matt 26:30) _. 1. Most likely Jesus and His disciples would have sung from "the great Hallel" from Ps 115 to 118 as was the custom during the Passover. 2. These are Psalms of praise, thanksgiving, and trust in God. 3. Read these Psalms sometime in the context of Jesus applying these truths to Himself to sing these hymns and think about how they would have strengthened and encouraged His heart before His sufferings of the cross. 4. What a remarkable scene it must have been to see incarnate deity lifting His voice to praise God with his small band of disciples. B. A higher honor could not be placed upon singing than for the Son of God Himself to come down from heaven and bless it by His own example. Jesus as was his custom worshipped faithfully in the synagogue. There Jesus would have regularly engaged in accapella congregational singing weekly in the synagogue, but this occasion with His disciples must have been especially meaningful. C. Brethren In our singing, we should be conscious that we are following in the ways of our Savior! D. I looked for songs from Ps but they are not songs we are familiar with. Perhaps we can learn some of these Psalms given their importance in the future, however, we have selected: Hear Oh Israel, which stresses the greatest commandment and the need to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength. E. Jesus Himself quoted this passage from Deut. and instituted it as the greatest commandment under both covenants, so this song is certainly fitting as we remember that Jesus Himself came to the earth and sang praises to Jehovah, just as we are doing today! This sentiment is also expressed in Ps 118 with the constant repetition of how, as we make Loving God our first priority, it is reassuring to remember that His Loving Kindness Endureth Forever! 3

4 Sing on, Oh blissful music! With every note you raise. My heart is filled with rapture; my soul is lost in praise. II. BY HIS SINGING WITH US IN THE CHURCH A. Two passages teach us this simple yet overlooked truth. First, let s look at Rom 15: Rm 15 Paul exhorts the church at Rome, made up of Jews and Gentiles, to live in peace and unity. This peace was to be manifested by their singing of praise together so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (Rm 15:6). 2. RM 15: 9-12 Paul quotes OT passages which showed it had always been God s plan to bring salvation to the Gentiles. a. What is striking is that they focus on the act of singing! b. The manifestation of unity would be demonstrated in joyful singing! c. FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE THE CREATION, THE SINGING OF PRAISE WILL RISE TO GOD FROM ALL THE NATIONS OF THE EARTH. Rejoice, Oh Gentiles, with His people, and again, praise the Lord all you Gentiles, and let all the people s praise Him (RM 15:10-11). 3. Beloved, this is that glory of the church that prophets looked forward to, that men from every tribe and tongue would glorify God in their singing! 4. Astonishing truth in Rm 15:9. Paul quotes a Messianic Psalm. Christ spoke through David who said: Ps 18:49 - "Therefore I will give praise to Thee among the Gentiles. And I will sing to Thy name." a. Jesus prophesied that not only would His salvation spread to the Gentiles, but that when it did, He Himself would actually be among them, singing praises of God! b. When we stand to sing in the church we are not alone. The Lord Jesus is present and is singing with us and through us. We become His mouth pieces by which He sings the glory of God. c. No higher glory could be placed upon the singing of the church than to have Christ present, singing the praises of God through us (Ps 18:49)! B. Heb 2:10-12 we are told that because Jesus sanctified us, He is not ashamed to call us His brethren. When we come to worship God, Christ takes us by the hand and ushers us into the presence of God. While His spirit is present among us, we find one of His great works demonstrated: I will declare Thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto Thee (Heb 2:12). Once again it is Christ Himself who is present to sing the Father s praise in His church. 4

5 1. Quotation from the Messianic Psalm 22. It starts off talking about his suffering and anguish on the cross, but at vs 22 it makes a dramatic shift and begins to celebrate the victories of Christ over His enemies. 2. Jesus has passed through death and suffering and now enters into His triumph. 3. It is the ascended and exalted Christ who speaks, and it is as if singing the praise of His Father through His church is the first work He desires to do as He takes His place on the throne of Heaven. 4. This is part of the joy that was set before Him In the midst of the church will I sing praise unto Thee. C. As we sing PRAISES TO YOUR NAME OH LORD, PRAISE TO YOUR NAME, remember, that just as Jesus was with us in His spirit in the communion earlier, He is with us in a special way when we sing from the heart and allow our bodies to be temples of, habitations of, God in the spirit. Sing on, Oh blissful music! With every note you raise. My heart is filled with rapture; my soul is lost in praise. III. BY MAKING SINGING A TEACHING MINISTRY A. We see both the high demands placed upon us and the benefits of singing in Paul s admonition in Col 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, with all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God." 1. Singing must rise from the Word of Christ, and the solid theological content of that Word must be reflected in the psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs that we sing. 2. When this takes place, singing actually becomes a teaching and admonishing ministry of the church. 3. Singing is not a secondary ordinance of worship that carries no edifying benefit in itself. Christ has given singing a most vital role in the instruction of the church. It is a ministry He has entrusted to the entire congregation! B. Remember, as we are lifting up our souls unto God, we ought to look around as we sing and remember we are teaching ourselves and our brethren and visitors by the Word of Christ that we sing! Sing on, Oh blissful music! With every note you raise. My heart is filled with rapture; my soul is lost in praise. IV. BY MAKING SINGING A FORETASTE OF HEAVEN. A. We alluded to this earlier when we sang: When all of God s singers get home. In our singing, the gracious heart takes wings and mounts up to God to join with the celestial choir. 5

6 B. The worship of heaven is filled with songs of praise for salvation: And they sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb (Rev 15:3). 1. When we sing, let us remember it is to be a foretaste of heaven. What higher privilege and blessing could belong to men on earth than to be part of the worship of heaven? 2. The joyful singing of heaven should be reflected in the joyful singing of the church on earth. 3. We are not yet in heaven, and so there are psalms of lamentation and hymns of repentance that must be sung here below. 4. But surely in the light of the great salvation that Jesus Christ has accomplished for us, the overall characteristic of the Christian singing should be joy and thanksgiving (Heb 13:15). Let us offer up a sacrifice of God continually that is the fruit of our lips, which make confession to His name. C. Singing is the only ordinance of the church that shall continue for eternity in heaven. 1. Illus. I Cor 13 tells us that we have faith, hope, and love in the church today, but in heaven, faith=sight, hope=reality, and only love will abide, into eternity! 2. Similarly, when we see Him face to face, preaching, prayer, giving, the Lord s Supper will not be necessary. But singing will abide, along with love. Heaven will be a place with perfected love, and the most amazing singing imaginable! 3. Singing is an eternal ordinance and shall continue forever! 4. Our singing here now is just the tuning of our hearts and the beginning of our singing the everlasting songs of heaven! D. Before we sing the next song, consider this: 1. Jesus has not only commanded us to sing, but He has exalted this ordinance to a most noble place in the worship of His church. 2. Therefore, we are under the highest obligation to give Him the singing He so earnestly desires. 3. True singing is a labor that involves the exertion of spiritual energy on the part of every member of the congregation. 4. Half-heartedness and carelessness is unacceptable. We should spare no pain to insure that Christ and God are honored as we sing! 5. May we never just mouth the words while our hearts and minds are elsewhere, if we do, we fall under our Lord s condemnation of hypocrisy, This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from me (Matt 15:8). E. Sing: "A New Song : Notice as we sing, how the lyrics speak of the song of Moses and the Lamb, and how much we ought to want to go to heaven, and 6

7 look forward to that day when we can hear that mighty angelic chorus sweetly sing, to hear it swell and ring! 1. Shall we sing with the spirit and the understanding! 2. Sing on, Oh blissful music! With every note you raise. My heart is filled with rapture; my soul is lost in praise. V. BY THE POWER HE HAS SENT UPON HIS SINGING PEOPLE. A. In 2 Chron 20, the nation of Judah is threatened with invasion by three enemy armies. King Jehoshaphat gathers the people together for prayer and fasting. 1. Jehoshaphat admits he is powerless before the great multitude that is coming against Him (2 Chron 20: 12). Oh our God, wilt Thou not judge them? For we are powerless before this great multitude that are coming against us; nor do we know what to do but our eyes are on Thee (vs 12). 2. The prophet Jahaziel promises Judah victory the following day. 3. The next morning, when Jehoshaphat sends out his army, he appoints singers to go before them saying: "Give thanks to the Lord, for His lovingkindness is everlasting." (Vs 21). 4. No stranger advance of an army into battle has ever been seen. As they enter the field of conflict the text says: "When they began singing and praising, the Lord sent ambushes against the sons of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Sier, who had come against Judah; so they were routed." (vs 22). 5. Notice: There is an immediate connection between their singing and their deliverance. It is when the voices of the singers ascend to heaven that the power of God comes down and gives them a great victory. B. We find a similar event in the NT. Paul and Silas are arrested in Philippi and thrown into the inner prison. 1. They follow the example of the apostles in Acts 5:4 and Rejoice that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name. 2. They express this joy in their hearts through the singing of hymns while they are in the prison stocks. Hard to be bothered by the pain of the stocks when your hearts are in heaven is a quote from early Christians. 3. Acts 16: But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them; 26 and suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were unfastened. 4. They experience the same type of deliverance! It is when the singing ascends into God's ears that He sends down His power of deliverance. 7

8 C. God responds with mighty works of HIs power and delivers His power when He hears the singing of His people on the earth! Sing on, Oh blissful music! Conclusion: A. If you go back into a time tunnel, you will find the church engaged in heartfelt, congregational singing without instruments. In the NT church, each believer is to be a temple of the HS and our worship was to be spiritual, not physical. B. Unlike the synagogue worship of the OT, and the worship of the NT church for over 1000 years, today many religious groups have added the instrument. 1. It often puts those of us who sing accapella on the defense. Folks will often ask, expecting instruments: Why don t you use instruments of music? 2. Ironically, if the early Christians were to come and visit 21 st century churches, I have no doubt, based upon their own testimony, their question would not be to us, why do you sing accapella, but to those who have added this innovation, they would say, What is that doing as a part of God s spiritual worship in the NT? 3. When it comes to this question, the burden of proof lies upon those who made the addition to worship, not those of who are doing exactly what is commanded and following the examples of the apostles, and the early church who were led by the Spirit! C. One mistake that is often made in this discussion is to not first in a positive way, exalt singing. It is when you witness and experience the benefits of good, spiritual congregational singing, that you can begin to appreciate how unneeded, and out of place lifeless mechanical instruments are in the worship of the church. Invitation: A. He is able to deliver thee from every sin and problem! B. Specifically, Jesus is the only way to deliver you from your sins! 1. Jn 8:34 If you believe in me, you will die in your sins. 2. Jn 3: 5 Except ye be born of the water and the spirit, you cannot enter Invitation song: He is able to deliver thee. Will you allow this song of encouragement to touch your heart? 8