WORSHIP IN THE PSALMS (4)

“Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in PSALMS...” – Colossians 3:16a

There are explicit biblical commands concerning WORSHIP in the PSALMS: “Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in PSALMS and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord” (Col.3: 16-17). Why should we be “teaching and admonishing one another in PSALMS”? Why should congregations of New Testament Believers be Psalm-singing people? What’s the benefit of reciting or singing the Psalms of the Old Testament? A survey of Psalm-singing shows that Psalms have been the Songs of Israel, of Jesus, of the Apostles, and of the Early Church.

God’s people have been singing psalms since the days of Moses, to whom Psalm 90 is ascribed: “Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations” (Psa.90:1). Psalms were the norm in the days of David, when the Psalter became the “hymnal” of Israel. When we sing psalms, we identify with our forebears in Faith, and offer transcendent worship, applicable in all times and places.

We sing the Psalms because Jesus sang them. As a Jew, He was “born under the law” (Gal.4:4). This meant He was required to live according to all God’s commandments, one of which was that every male Israelite was required to assemble three times a year at the holy sanctuary for public worship (Lev.23; Num.28-29). At the temple Jesus would have heard the singing of the Psalms: “On that day David first delivered this PSALM into the hand of Asaph and his brethren, to thank the Lord” (1Chr.16:7). Jesus also would have learned to sing psalms in weekly synagogue services, which He still attended as an adult (Lk.4: 16-21).

We sing the Psalms because the apostles sang them. Though sometimes overlooked by the modern church, it is a fact of the New Testament and church history that the Psalter continued to serve as the “hymnal” of the Christian church. After His ascension, the Church continued the practice of utilizing the Psalms in Prayer and Praise to God. When the early, persecuted church “lifted their voices together to God” in prayer, Luke records them reciting Psalm146:6 and Psalm 2: 1-2 (Acts 4:24-26). Paul commended the singing of “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” as a means of praise to God and edification of one another as brethren (Eph.5:19). James commands those that are downcast in soul to pray and those who are cheerful to “sing praises/psalms” (Jam.5:13).

Essentially, we sing the Psalms because we love the Word of God. We believe God commands us to sing the Psalms and the examples of His people doing so are found all throughout His Word. The Psalms are God-inspired collection of meditations, prayers, and songs to use in our praise of Him. Reading and preaching the Word is central in public worship. In personal and family devotions we read, meditate on, and memorize Scripture. Together, we’re doing this in the songs that we sing publicly and privately.

Moreover, singing psalms is a means by which the Holy Spirit sanctifies us; making us more and more like Jesus (Rom.8:29). There is an close connection between the Holy Spirit and the Word – the Psalms in particular: “Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you will hear His Voice” (Heb.3:7). This is quoting from Psalm 95:7-10. The Spirit’s sanctifying work in our hearts is linked to singing psalms to God with our hearts. This also is the means by which “the word of Christ [will] dwell in [us] richly” (Col.3:16). When we sing the Psalms, we are engaging the Holy Spirit and the Word, which Jesus said is how we are sanctified (Jh.17:17).

The Psalms present authentic, raw, humanity before the face of Almighty God. By singing the psalms, we exercise all our affections, emotions, and passions in relating with God. The Psalms are a complete guide for spiritual life, and they assist us in finding and expressing a holistic humanity. Through them, God teaches us how to express the entire range of our emotions and experiences.