Singing | Cross Connect

Singing

Introduction https://youtu.be/Btuz8ffmDQM

I originally intended this sermon to focus on the crisis in contemporary Christian worship but praying further over this it became clear that I needed to broaden and deepen (Eph 3:18) the scope of today’s teaching into answering far more foundational questions. Why did God create a world in which music and singing would be so universally present? What has gone wrong with this vital sphere of human life, and how has Jesus restored and raised it up beyond anything possible in the first order of creation? The biblical framework to answer these questions is Paul’s testimony that, “all things were created through Christ and for him Christ” (Col 1:16). God’s plan for us includes music and singing because they are indispensable dimensions of giving to Jesus all the glory he deserves. Despite superficial appearances, the place of worship is vastly devalued in the Church. I heard a mature believer recently question whether the title for a BBC programme, For the God Who Sings (https://www.abc.net.au/classic/programs/for-the-god-who-sings) is biblical? It definitely is.

The God who Sings

God describes himself in Zephaniah 3:17, “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.” When the joy of the Lord in granting deliverance to his people (cf. Num 14:8; Ps 147:11-149:4; Isa 62:4-5-65:19; Luke 15:5-6, 23-24; 32; John 15:11) reaches a certain intensity this can only be described in human language as “singing” (cf. Ps 96; Jer 51:48). Whilst this testimony to divine song lies at the extremity of prophetic imagination, there are many less direct indications of the universal importance of song.

The Holy Angels Sing

Job tells us that at the beginning of creation, “the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy” (38:7). Unable to contain their pleasure in the Lord, the host of heaven unashamedly extolled by voice the Creator for his shining brilliance (Luke 24:41 cf. 1 Pet 2:9). These holy and perfect reflectors of God’s will of God were one with the divine wisdom which was “rejoicing before him always, 31 rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the children of man.” (Prov 8:30-31). In affirming the testimony of the cherubim who cry out, ““Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”” (Isa 6:3), we must likewise vigorously affirm the indestructible joy of the Lord in creating the world. Our clouded vision of the centrality of singing comes through how sin, guilt and the Accuser (Rom 3:20; Heb 10:2; Rev 12:10) lie to us that we are deeply unworthy to share in the eternal joy of the Lord (Isa 35:10; 51:11; Hab 3:18; Phil 4:4). (“It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” C.S. Lewis)

Fallen Beings Fail to Sing in Glory

Even though God the Father has always witnessed to all humanity of his goodness “by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.” (Acts 14:17), even though people of all times and cultures love to sing, fallen human beings are so idolatrously self-obsessed (Rom 1:23) that the usual object of their affections expressed in song is ourselves and our loves. The great Evangelical Bible scholar, John Stott, comments with deep insight, “There is no forgiveness in this world…the clearest proof of this is the simplest…A Buddhist temple never resounds with a cry of praise…Muslim worshippers never sing.” Christian worship without singing is virtually inconceivable because we worship through the cross. As a start off point the people of God today need to understand that our worship in Christ completes and perfects the pattern of old covenant worship (1 Cor 10:11; Heb 11:40).

Prophetic Presence

The Old Testament attributed the mental afflictions of king Saul to “the evil spirit from the Lord”, but David’s lyre playing was a powerful gift of God to bring him deliverance (1 Sam 16:14, 23). David’s Spirit-inspired musical psalms, made him a prophet of Jesus (Mark 12:6=Ps 110:1; Acts 1:16=Ps 69:35; 4:25= Ps 2:1-2), so that in line with this he appointed Levites for temple service, who “prophesied with lyres, with harps, and with cymbals.” (1 Chron 25:1, 3) so that the Lord might perpetually be praised in song (1 Chron 16:37; 2 Chron 31:16). Music has prophetic power; once, when called upon to prophesy, Elisha summoned a musician, “when the musician played, the hand of the Lord came upon him. 16 And he said, “Thus says the Lord….” (2 Ki 3:15-16).

Lament

For most of her history the Church has sung through the Psalms as her primary hymn book. Today, the singing of entire psalms has become rare, this is a great tragedy, and it is partially responsible for the sad fact that few churches expound “the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27 cf. Amos 8:11) for the disciplining of their people. This is especially true when we think of our struggle to know how to lament. About a fifth of the Psalms are psalms of lament, about 15 are community lamentations (12, 44, 58, 60, 74, 79, 80, 83, 85, 89, 90, 94, 123, 126, 129) and a similar number are individual lamentations 3; 6; 10; 13; 22; 25; 28; 31; 38; 42; 43; 44; 56; 57; 71; 77; 86; 130; 142). Today we are suffering from a disease unique to our time and culture, “toxic positivity”. Loneliness, despair and anxiety will remain a plague not only in the world but also in the Church until believers understand that expressing grief is a valid and necessary human condition. (Cairo example Coptic funeral. Until the priest finished the prayers, the church was very silent. At that point wailing broke out all over.) Our sorrows are a call to remind us that we not only need God but that we need to praise him in all the circumstances of life (Eph 5:20; 1 Thess 5:18).

The True Human Sings

All this is true and important, but only because it is grounded in the life of Jesus. We read of how on his way into Gethsemane and the indescribable sufferings that awaited. Jesus led the apostolic band to “sing a hymn”, likely a praise psalm (Mark 14:26 likely Ps 113-118). Christ knew that however great his pain his Father was worthy of his highest praise and worship.

Even though the New Testament presents Jesus as our perfect worship leader (Heb 8:1-2; John 4:24), this is rarely acknowledged by the worship cult of today which finds it easier to revere anointed singers and musicians. We prefer the fruit to the root (cf. Rev 5:5; 22:16) and gloss over the testimony of scripture that the greatest lamenter is the Incarnate Son of God. The fullness of Jesus’ identity is expounded in how Israel’s greatest Psalm of lament, Psalm 22, shapes his identity.

[Whilst it is not always clear which psalms were first penned and sung by David, Psalm 22 certainly was (titled: “To the Chief Musician. Set to “The Deer of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David.”).] Who else but David, unrecognised by the prophet Samuel (1 Sam 16:6-13), despised by his brothers (1 Sam 17:28-30), unjustly persecuted by Saul (Pss 18; 52; 56; 59), threatened with death by his own soldiers (1 Sam 30:6), severely disciplined by God for adultery and murder (Ps 51; 32?), pursued to death by his son Absalom (Ps 3) restored and forgiven (Ps 25; 40; 103) could be reckoned worthy by the Spirit as a fit organ of prophetic inspiration to Christ. King David’s dreadful-and-wonderful experiences uniquely qualified him to sing of the coming Messiah’s suffering-and-glory (Mark 12:6=Ps 110:1; Acts 1:16=Ps 69:35; 4:25= Ps 2:1-2). Which of our contemporary musicians share this testimony? Through the divine covenant promise that he would have a faithful descendant (2 Cor 7:14) only this composer could prophesy of the coming “Son of David” (Matt 9:27; 12:33; 15:22; 20:30-31; 21:9, 15; 22:42) and his death and resurrection with complete faith in the God who delivers from the severest of trials (Pss. 8; 16; 22; 40; 41; 68; 109; 110). Only this see-er (1 Sam 9:9) (or the Davidic circle) saw clearly the beauty of the Lord (Pss 27:4; 45:11; 58:2; 96:6) and the splendour of his holiness (1 Chron 16:29; 29:2; 96:9). Only because of his sufferings-and-miraculous deliverances could David be inspired to pen words fitting for the agony and exaltation of Jesus.

From the cross, Christ’s dreadful unforgettable words, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?” (Mark 15:34), are a direct quote from Psalm 22:1, they are spoken in the total aloneness of the hellish darkness into which he alone can be immersed in bearing away the sin of the world (John 1:29; 2 Cor 5:21; Gal 3:13; 1 Pet 2:24). This moment of divine despair climaxes the titanic struggle between the holiness of God and the defiling sinful impurities that make ordinary human worship offensive to a Holy Father (John 4:24; 17:11). The progression of the psalm reflects both the history of Jesus and God’s plan to save our lost humanity. The psalm moves from the singular “me” of Jesus’ sin-bearing to the plural “we” of adoration, personal lament turns to shared adoration. As he recognises our common Father (John 20:17; Heb 2:11), Jesus is recorded in Hebrews (2:12 citing Ps 22:22) as saying, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation/ecclesia/church I will sing your praise.” Risen from the dead and exalted to the right hand of God, triumphant over the hateful powers of evil working to destroy the praises of his God (1 Pet 3:21-22), Jesus leads his people into shouts of victory and gladness. A theologian testifies of the glory of singing, “Jesus doesn’t disdain to call us brothers. He doesn’t try to steal the show. He’s no prima donna; he doesn’t insist on singing solo.” (Peter Leithart). Through his ascension into heaven, Christ’s “I” becomes the church’s “we.” His lament has become a hymn of praise. The tragic “songs of Zion” in exile (Ps 137; cf. 1 Pet 1:1; 2:11) now ascend in every one of Pentecost’s tongues as “the high praises of God” (Ps 149:6).

As the Lord sings in the midst of the nations (Ps 18:49; Rom 15:9) he is progressively converting them (Ps 2) to the cause of his kingdom (Rom 11:5). The worship of God’s people has nothing in common with entertainment; it is a counter-cultural anti-demonic mind set (2 Cor 10:1-6) which stirs up the fury and enmity of the devil (Rev 12:11-12) against us. Satan is especially vicious when we give praise to the Lord in the midst of persecution and suffering to the point of death (Acts 5:40-41; 16:25). This explains that whereas the primary worship document for the old covenant people was the Psalms, for us it is the book of Revelation. This much neglected misunderstood book must be read through its many elevated hymns (https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/article/songs-of-the-seer-the-purpose-of-revelations-hymns/) which powerfully testify to the exalted Lamb who is unfolding the entirety of God’s plan for all things (Rev 5-6). The whole story of Bible (seen clearest in the pattern of the psalms, and Revelation) is a sort of arc which moves from lament to rejoicing. If we refuse to lament, we will never reach the glory the Lord has destined for us (in this world anyway).

The “New Song”

At the pinnacle of the musical elements of Revelation is the “new song”, “the song of the Lamb” (Rev 5:9; 14:3; 15:3). The Lamb himself is singing this love song into eternity celebrating his victory with his Father in the holy war against the deceptions (Rev 12-13) of the powers of evil (cf. Ex 15; Ps 98:1-3; 144:9-10; Isa 42:10-13). This is the song of the love of God in Christ sung the universe into being and has held it together until its restoration in Christ when he Returns (John 19:30; Rev 21:5-6). Only this gospel song has the authority to lead the nations into repentance (Rev 15:3-4). Our failure to embrace the cross has deprived most of contemporary worship of such power. This must change. Someone sent through a contemporary song, (“For the Cause” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYfNWAIa5vI), to an online group the other day. Because I respect the spirituality of the people in the group, I felt obliged to listen to it, and as I did, I was deeply moved to confess my sin. If revivals are “born singing”, we need to pray for a mighty move of the Spirit on our worship scene.

The Crisis in Contemporary Worship

The great evangelical prophet-teacher of the twentieth century, A.W. Tozer, wrote a book titled, Worship: The Missing Jewel in the Evangelical Church. 60 years later this is even more true for the whole Western Church. Something is very deeply out of order when the founder of our most famous music stable, Brian Houston (Hillsong), is forced to step down from his role over the influence of multiple addictions on his behaviour. I have long heard about a gifted worship leader out partying Saturday nights (cf. 2 Pet 2) then up on stage enjoying singing to Jesus on a Sunday morning. This makes much praise and worship predictably repetitive in style, substance and subject matter when it should lead us into the cloud of glory from which we can only emerge more holy. I recall as a very young believer coming out of our local Pentecostal service and saying to a friend, who agreed, “We come here Sunday by Sunday say, “Praise the Lord, Hallelujah.” and go home unchanged. Thank God for those in refugee ethnic churches, and a small remnant who, unlike most of us, have not lost their saltiness (Matt 5:13). The kingdom key that we must ask Jesus for (Matt 16:17) is the faith to be reckoned worthy (Acts 5:31) to can share in his lament on the cross (Gal 4:19; Phil 3:10; Col 1:24) and to share with his anticipatory JOY for our coming resurrection with him (Ps 34:18; Heb 12:1-2 cf. 2 Tim 2:12). Lamentation united with faith (cf. Ps 22:1) is the form of praise that made it possible for the Father to create/recreate the world through the Lamb of God (Rev 13:8) by the power of his eternal Spirit (Heb 9:14).

Conclusion and Application: The Depths and Heights of Humanity

The average Australian follower of Jesus is so preoccupied with the things of sight, sound and sensation that we have lost a vision of the depths and heights of what it means to be created in the image and likeness of the suffering-and-glorified Christ (Luke 24:26; Eph 3:18; Tim 3:16). As long as we dumb down the agonies and lament of the cross (Ps 22:1; Mark 15:34), we can never be grasped by the revelation that in Jesus our humanity has been taken forever into God (Athanasian Creed). The great visions in Revelation 4-5 of the heavenly throne room of centred on the Lamb standing as slain (5:6) trace out over creation an arc of unsurpassable beauty (cf. Isa 4:5), in glimpsing the glory of the Lamb, we will worship God “with all our heart…soul…mind” and “strength” (Matt 22:37; Luke 10:27). “For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.” (2 Cor 5:14-15). When this insight burns in us, we will prophetically give witness to Jesus (Rev 19:10) in both lament and “unspeakable glorious joy” (1 Pet 1:8), not only in Sunday church, but in the workplace (https://www.jubilee-centre.org/blog/marketplace-lament) in homes and in every place human beings draw life and breath (Acts 17:25). The Spirit is beginning to teach the Church in Perth (Rev 2:7 etc.), that lament is simply another form of praise to the Lord who controls of all things (Phil 3:21). And who, no matter how dark the hour (Isa 9:2), deserves out highest praise and worship.