When I was growing up, my family and I attended The River Church, Waterford location. I was there from the age of 5 to the age of 22, when I left with my wife to become the Worship Director at what is now The River Church, Grand Blanc location. When the Lord brought us back to the Waterford location in 2020, it felt like a blast from the past. I have distinct memories of being in late elementary school and early middle school, singing on the stage in the Waterford auditorium to a track on tape at our Saturday night gatherings. I would be a rich man if I had a dollar for every time I sang “I Can Only Imagine.” I remember being so awkward and probably not the best singer, but it is still where my love for worship music really started to grow. Now, here I am in my mid-30s, leading from that same stage, trying to help us all understand just what this whole “gathering” thing really is and why it always seems to involve singing.
1. When you were in school, were you ever involved in singing at church, school talent shows, or plays? What is your best memory from those things?
When the Church gathers together, there are certain activities that go together like little Lego bricks to complete what we call a “gathering.” Normally, we always have the preaching of God’s Word, prayer, musical worship, and some form of offering. Periodically, we will take communion, have baptisms, dedicate children, and that list could go on and on. I think the idea of preaching being a part of a church gathering makes sense to everyone. I have never heard anyone ask, “Do we have to have a sermon today?” However, what I have heard is that people question why we sing at our gatherings. We are going to look at a few different reasons in Scripture why we are commanded to sing in worship to the Lord. When writing to the Church in Ephesians 5:18-21, Paul says, “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.”
2. Have you ever questioned why we sing in gatherings?
3. How are we commanded to sing in this Scripture?
First, it is simply because God has commanded us to do so. I know nobody likes to hear the answer, “Because I said so.” We are going to look at the reasons why God commands us to sing, but first, we have to trust that when God tells us to do something in Scripture, it is ultimately for His glory and for our good. According to the book “Sing” by Keith and Kristyn Getty, the word sing appears in the Scriptures over 400 times, and at least 50 are commands. As Paul addresses the Ephesian church, he tells them to sing and make a melody to the Lord. Our praise comes out of the overflow of our thankful hearts for what Jesus has done for us. It is assumed in Scripture that when we really understand what Christ has done for us, what He has truly saved us from, that we will not even be able to contain our worship of Him.
Psalm 145:2-3 says, “Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable.”
4. Do you find yourself often in awe of God and who He is?
5. If you believe this Scripture to be true, that He is “greatly to be praised,” What stops you from praising Him?
Looking back at Ephesians 5:18-21, we see that we are commanded not only to make a melody to the Lord, but to actually address one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. When we sing, we actually encourage those who are around us. We are singing the truths of Scripture together and collectively being reminded about who God really is. One people with one voice lifting up a song to Jesus strengthens each person in that room. As you sang about God being faithful, someone in that room needed to be reminded of that, and you contributed to encouraging them! This Scripture should encourage us to actively engage in our gatherings. Gatherings are not a spectator sport. I promise you there are much better singers and bands you can go sit and listen to; what we do is collectively come together to worship at the feet of Jesus and to be encouraged by one another through those words.
6. How has the singing of other people in a gathering encouraged or impacted you?
Matthew 26:30-32 records, “And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. Then Jesus said to them, ‘You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.’”
7. Why do you think Scripture mentions that the disciples and Jesus sang together?
Worshiping God through song prepares our hearts for what God is going to do. Here in Matthew, Jesus and the disciples sang a hymn of worship to God before heading out to the Mount of Olives, where Jesus would warn them about what was about to happen with His crucifixion. When we worship through song during a gathering, the Holy Spirit is working on our hearts, preparing us to hear from the Lord through the songs and the preaching. As worship leaders, we understand that each person brings in their own baggage from the week or even from that morning, and the whole world competes for our attention. It is easy to come to gatherings distracted, so we worship through singing to bring the attention of our hearts and minds toward Christ. My hope each Sunday is that even if you do not feel like you want to sing at the beginning of the gathering, by the end of the gathering, you are thankful that you submitted to the Lord’s commands and worshiped Him even when you may not have felt like it.
8. How have you experienced Christ use corporate worship through singing to change your heart?
In Acts 16:25-26, we read, “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened.”
9. Why do you think singing in worship can have such an effect on our attitude and perspective?
10. Why do you think Paul and Silas were singing hymns to God while in jail?
Maybe Paul and Silas were singing praise to the Lord because they knew the Scriptures that tell us to praise God in the good times and the hard times. They could have been singing because they needed to be reminded of the truths of God that they were struggling with at the time. I know that through their worship, God prepared their hearts for what was going to happen next, and He performed a miracle to release them from prison and save the soul of the jailer. I want to warn all of us as well that a hard and bitter heart will reject worshiping the Lord through singing. Paul and Silas could have been angry with the Lord for their circumstance; instead, they worshiped Him! If you find yourself more focused on critiquing the songs, the gathering, the ability of the band, or the hundreds of other things we can find to be critical about, I would ask you to search the condition of your heart. If your life is rooted in Christ and filled with the Spirit of God, then your heart should desire to worship the Lord by singing His praises. Let us lift up a joyful noise to the Lord together each and every time we gather together.
“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.” Psalm 96:1-2
“Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens! Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness!” Psalm 150:1-2