When a christian sings the right music the right way, he is singing to God. There is no greater blessing in music than when God is blessed by our song!
In part 1, we explore Scriptural examples of people singing unto the Lord. I hope and pray that the examples set forth by godly men and women will be a blessing to you and encourage you to sing unto the Lord!
I would like for you to imagine that on April 21st, you awake to someone beating on your front door. You jump out of bed and make your way to the door where two nicely dressed men stand with a waiting limousine. One of the gentleman tells you that your presence has been urgently requested in Buckingham Palace for the Birthday of Queen Elizabeth the 2nd. “After all” he says, “Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 of the 53 member states in the Commonwealth of Nations. She is also Head of the Commonwealth and Supreme Governor of the Church of England.”
Can you imagine the tremor in your voice when you say, “W-w-What do they want ME for?!?!”
Then he replies, “they want you to sing, ‘Happy Birthday’ to the Queen!”
My, wouldn’t you sit up straight and start to think about how you were going to sound! You would gargle your throat clean as a whistle and do your vocal warm-up’s and exercises. You would think about the consonants, vowels, diphthongs, and every syllable of the song you were about to sing unto the queen. Wouldn’t you give great pains to imagine the crowd, and the monarchs, and the dignitaries, and the great throng of people that you had been specially chosen to sing to?
It’s quite an honor isn’t it? Now, look at Psalm 104:33.
Psalm 104:33, “I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.”
In this blog post, we will consider that God has designed for our song to be unto him. That is, when we sing in a way that is acceptable to him, we are ushered into the presence of God. Greater than standing before an earthly king or monarch, we are part of a great choir that worships in the very presence of God Almighty!
Psalm 100:4, “Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.”
Now, if we are to take proper advantage of this amazing opportunity, we must have a thorough understanding of what God has said in his word about music. Before we begin, let me express that the only benefits you and I can receive from music come when that music is to the Lord. We mustn’t be deceived, as the world is, and believe that there are strong benefits (to our psyches, our mental development, etc., etc., ad nauseum) from all music. The only time you or I can receive true benefit from music is when it is to the Lord! Therefore, this will be the most important message I could ever give on the topic: Because all of the benefit is found in this one truth, Our song is “Unto the Lord.”
Let’s begin by looking at some Scriptural Examples of men and women who have successfully entered into God’s presence and sang unto the Lord.
I. Scriptural Examples of Singing Unto The Lord
A. Moses, Aaron, Miriam and the children of Israel sang “Unto the Lord” in Exodus 15
Exodus 15:1, “Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.”
Exodus 15:21, “And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.”
B. Deborah and Barak sang a song “Unto the Lord” in Judges 5
Judges 5:3, “Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes; I, even I, will sing unto the LORD; I will sing praise to the LORD God of Israel.”
C. David instructed Asaph and his brethren to sing “Unto the Lord” in 1 Chronicles 16
1 Chronicles 16:23, “Sing unto the LORD, all the earth; shew forth from day to day his salvation.”
D. When Moab and the Ammonites came against Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20.
2 Chronicles 20:20-22, “And they rose early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa: and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe in the LORD your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper. And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the LORD, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the LORD; for his mercy endureth for ever. And when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.” (emphasis mine)
E. Hezekiah commanded the Levites to sing “unto the Lord” in 2 Chronicles 29.
2 Chronicles 29:30, “Moreover Hezekiah the king and the princes commanded the Levites to sing praise unto the LORD with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshipped.”
Just as an aside, they were singing song that were about 282 years old. No one was complaining about, “these antiquated songs.” Or wondering why they couldn’t sing the latest and the greatest, top-ten billboard hits. Could you imagine modern day praise and worship services ending like this one? No, those services are unfortunately named. We can tell when God is praised and worshiped when the people sing praises with gladness and bow their heads to worship!
F. The “Levites and the priests praised the Lord day by day…” in 2 Chronicles 30.
2 Chronicles 30:21, “And the children of Israel that were present at Jerusalem kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with great gladness: and the Levites and the priests praised the LORD day by day, singing with loud instruments unto the LORD.”
G. The Israelites “sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the Lord” in Ezra 3.
Ezra 3:11, “And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the LORD; because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.”
H. The Psalms alone speak of people singing “Unto the Lord” over 20 times. Here are a few examples:
Psalm 13:6, “I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.”
Psalm 27:6, “And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy; I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the Lord.”
Psalm 104:33-34, “I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. My meditation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the Lord.”
So we have seen that there is no shortage of “Scriptural Examples of Singing Unto The Lord” and examples are a great blessing and serve to strengthen our faith. But, we are also commanded to sing unto the Lord. In my next post, we will examine where God commands us to sing unto him!