Singing is one of the sweetest pleasures of life in the church. Many Christians prefer singing over preaching, and that doesn’t bother me a bit. I love singing myself. Music touches not only the mind but also the heart. And it spans generations, drawing the church together in joy. Little children may squirm or fuss during sermons or prayers, but singing usually pleases them. Music invites them to join in.
In his wisdom God commands singing as a means of spiritual communication. In song we talk to God and to each other. The Bible says to address “one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart” (Eph. 5:19).
As Christians we expect to continue our love affair with music in the sanctuary of heaven. The four living creatures and the 24 elders of Revelation praise Jesus with “a new song,” glorying in his worthiness. We eagerly anticipate the honor of joining them and myriads of angels in perfected praise: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” (Rev. 5:9, 12).
We sing to God, but have we ever imagined that he would sing for us? No, we don’t deserve his praise. And even if perfected in heaven, we’d still be his creatures. But music is made for a variety of reasons. We sing because we’re happy. We sing to express our love. If talented for it, we may sing to give others pleasure.
What is to prevent the Lord from singing to us for such reasons? Absolutely nothing. The Old Testament prophet Zephaniah seems to be thinking of salvation in Christ when he says: “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (Zeph. 3:17).
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