The Need For Singers
The need for singers of the Word of God in the worship services is brought about because of the instructions that we as Christians have received in the Word of God. When one mentions this necessity today to the members of the body of Christ, he is met with an inimical stare of scorn. This goes to say that for too many Christians today singing is just a necessary evil which one as a Christian must go through as a formality in the worship of the Lord. As Christians we need to learn that God has not ever given any instruction dealing with our salvation and the working of it out which is not essential.
Under the law of Moses singing was a part of the temple worship and the fulfilling of the duties required to make one faithful under the law. During the time of David the king we find that the children of Israel even tried to improve upon the singing by setting up in the services professional singers, which ultimately became mere entertainment. This today is not taught and commanded us under the last will and covenant of Christ.
The Apostle Paul, by divine inspiration of the Holy Spirit, writes to the church at Ephesus: "Be not drunken with wine, wherein is riot, but be filled with the Spirit; speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father; subjecting yourselves one to another in the fear of Christ." (Eph. 5:18-21)
In this passage of Scripture the Apostle Paul instructs Christians not to give praise and pleasure to the flesh, but to give thanks to the Lord in speaking to one another in song. Usually when one goes to the worship service of the Lord one finds that this service is of good quality with the exception of the song service. The atmosphere that is found here is full of barrenness and fruitlessness; instead of being attuned to the glory of God. It expresses to the outsider and the visitor a longing on the part of the singer to return to the world and its pleasures because the singer is definitely in far too many cases not speaking to others in spiritual songs, hymns, and psalms, Thus his ministry where singing is concerned is not of the Lord as the Apostle Peter instructs us in his first epistle: "If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth; that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ: to whom be praise and dominion forever." (I Peter 4:11 )
Not only do Christians seemingly not realize that we are to give thanks to the Lord in the rendering of psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, but if we sing with grace in our hearts to the Lord we will be teaching and admonishing one another. Again it was the Apostle Paul writing by divine inspiration to the church at Colosse: "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts unto the Lord." (Colossians 3:16)
Herein the Apostle Paul puts the singing of praises unto the Lord on an equal footing with the prayers, preaching, teaching, giving, and doing of God's will. In fact he plainly tells Christians that what ever we do we are to do it to the glory of God and in the name of Christ. In Colossians 3:17 the Apostle tells us that "...whatsoever ye do, in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him."
We must realize that singing of praises unto the Lord is just as much a part of the proclamation of the word as preaching of the sermon by the preacher or by the teaching of the lesson by the teacher. When Christians come together to worship we of necessity, as it is instructed of Christians in the word of God, must praise him in the speaking and singing of psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, making melody in our hearts of the Lord that will proclaim the gospel of Christ to lost and dying sinners (and all of the lost and dying are not outside of the body of Christ.)
God's word sets before us the very essential fact that singing of praises unto God is important to the salvation of our souls. Singing is just as important to the working out of our soul's salvation in our worship of the Lord as is the Lord's Supper, as the prayers we offer one with another and one for another, as the public preaching of the gospel, and as the contributing of our means upon the first day of the week as the Lord has prospered us. Readily one may see that all things that God has commanded us to do to the working out of our soul's salvation are important. Emphasis placed upon this very fact when we read Paul's admonition to the church at Philippi: "...brethren work out your own salvation with fear and trembling." (Philippians 2:12)
In what manner then shall we improve our singing unto the Lord in order that we may be well-pleasing unto him? We need to exact of ourselves training that will eliminate confusion just as we do with the preaching of the word by the preacher. Just remember that a song has never been declared unscriptural on the basis of the tune, but wholly upon the basis of what the words teach and admonish. One can see that Christians need to give more consideration to the singing in that we are preaching the gospel. Secondly, we need to use the singing of gospel songs more to the winning of souls to Christ, and we need to learn that we are not singing merely for the entertainment of ourselves. Thirdly, we need to use singing in carrying out the command of the Lord in the great commission: "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you:..." (Matt. 28:19,20)
In conclusion, are we as Christians teaching with our singing in the manner that will bring glory to God? In order to answer this question we need to realize the great need of singing in that fashion which God has ordained in His covenant. Instead of continuing this inimical attitude toward singing of praises unto God, we need to become the friend of God by obeying Him even in this simple command by improving to the best of our ability our singing as we have been endowed of God. REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MAN WHO WAS GIVEN ONLY THE ONE TALENT!