A publication of the:
Butler church of Christ
Our meeting location is:
201 5th Ave.
Butler, PA 16001
724-287-0628 (building) / 724-282-9417
(home/office)
Assembling Times:
Sunday Bible Class - 9:30 AM
Sunday Worship – 10:30 AM
Wednesday Bible Class – 7:00 PM
Editor / Preacher –
Brian A. Yeager
Check out the web site:
(I Corinthians 10:31 and I Peter 4:11)
Thinking About Our Worship
Service
(Part 3 – Singing)
By: Brian A. Yeager
Our series on collective worship brings us to the avenue of song worship. It is certain that sound brethren realize that the type of music offered in worship to God is to be vocal music. That is a realized fact because the New Testament specifies singing (Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16), not playing. It is a realized fact because all of the verses in the New Testament that deal with music in worship to God on this earth show the pattern of singing instead of playing (Matthew 26:30, Mark 14:26, Acts 16:25, I Corinthians 14:15, Ephesians 5:19, Colossians 3:16, Hebrews 2:12, and James 5:13). Faithful brethren realize the sinfulness of changing God’s authorized plan of song worship (Colossians 3:17, II John 9, and Revelation 22:18-19). This article is not intended to teach that which we already know, but to challenge us to think about the actual act of singing praises to God. It is a privilege to sing praises to God.
The Privilege of Song Worship
Christians need to feel honored in the fact that they are God’s holy nation (I Peter 2:9). As God’s people upon this earth we need to realize how privileged we are to be able to worship God. The attitude of the psalmist is surely one all Christians should have: (Psalms 95:1-3) “O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.” When one is happy it is not difficult to sing a hymn. Joy seems to give us an extra “bounce to our step”. However, when times are tough and people are seemingly distressed, singing is not something they do. We need to realize the privilege we have in song worship and praise to God during the good and bad times, remembering that He is the great deliverer.
Praising God in Song at All Times
The Apostle Paul and Silas sure did not seem to allow hard times to keep them from singing unto the Lord our God. (Acts 16:23-25) “And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks. And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.” Christians should rejoice not only in times of prosperity and well-being, but also in times of persecution and distress (Matthew 5:10-12). It is those bad times that we can praise God because we know we have a better place beyond this life. We can sing songs like “This World is Not My Home” with the understanding that we are looking forward to leaving this world.
Conclusion
As this article concludes, let us consider
some other specifics. When singing we must always remember to pay
special attention to the words the song has in them. We are not to
sing in ignorance, but in understanding (I Corinthians 14:15). When
we raise our voices to God in song, we are also teaching those around us
(Colossians 3:16). These things must be constantly thought about
as we sing praises in collective worship. As this series of articles
deal with collective worship, we must realize that we can raise our voices
to God outside of the assembly. We must also be strict in our understanding
that because we are outside of the assembly, new rules do not apply, as
the word of God is still in effect. We have a privilege in song worship,
let’s use it often!
Quick
NotesThose In Need of Our Prayers:
Steve Burgoon, Desiree’ Crist, Joan
Croyle, and Mike Lockwood (Mike will be out of town).
Ladies Class:
There will be a ladies class at Kim’s
house today. All ladies are more than welcome to attend. See
Kim for details.
Personal Note:
This Lord’s Day marks our two year
anniversary in laboring with this congregation. We certainly feel
blessed in being able to labor here and to have brethren who have stood
for truth amongst many trials. – The Yeager’s