Why We Sing!
I am obsessed! I always enjoy reading, thinking, and praying as I prepare for a sermon or a series. But this idea, it’s got its hooks in.
I am of course talking about the biblical command to sing, which I got to sermonise (yep, it’s a word!) as part of our autumn season of vision. I’ve always loved music and singing both in church and out, but as I prepared this preach I felt that I received the gift of melodic expression afresh.
Now that I write it down it feels like the most obvious of truths, but it occurred to me that singing in worship is not only a way of expressing praise and ascribing glory, not only a way of acting out our intent towards God; but is in itself a means by which we are drawn into God’s vision for creation, whether we mean to be or not. Singing is hard wired (by that same creator God, right?) to open us up to new ways of knowing, seeing, and encountering God; to bring about healing within; and to join communities together- brothers and sisters connected in breath, and beat, and heart.
Through this lens, the surprising prevalence of the scriptural command to sing is transformed. It becomes a deep and constant testament to a father’s heart that longs for our flourishing- our healed and whole salvation. And where we join in, and singing does its magical work on us, we bear witness to the goodness of this God. It turns out that the medium is the message, and even what we receive as we sing together is tantamount to crying out ‘Glory!’
Have you ever wondered why the Bible describes the angels as endlessly singing ‘holy holy holy’? Or thought ‘mightn’t that get a bit boring?’ Well, as it turns out maybe this is less a picture of limited heavenly pastimes and more a glimpse of a deep oneness that can’t help but glorify the One who is one.
What a gift singing reveals itself to be! But also what a great challenge it begins to pose. A challenge to the rampant individualism of our time, and its religious expression as personal piety. I wrote a few weeks ago and asked ‘what good is a divided church to a divided world?’ and I suppose that this is the question that rushes up to meet us every time we stand to sing. Singing in its fullness is a gift- truly a grace- but perhaps it is this challenging dimension that means we are offered this gift primarily as a command.
I believe that this question of unity in amongst inevitable diversity is the question of our time. I believe that God is calling us beyond our ways of seeing and being into something new, something generative, and something truly gospel, good news.
The Invitation
I want to make some space for us to properly examine this idea together. So, I’m putting together a 24-hour conference at the end of January called Why We Sing!
The conference will run on Friday evening 30th January, and all day Saturday 31st. We will have the opportunity to eat together, to get to know one another, to reflect, discuss, and of course, to sing.
Everyone is both welcome and encouraged to join, so save the date, let us know you’re planning on being there, and I will look forward to starting the new year together.