Why do we Sing on Sunday?

There are a few rare settings in American culture where gatherings of people sing in unison. The top two that come to mind for me are a concert and the seventh-inning stretch at a baseball game. Sadly, congregational singing at a local church can all too often feel more like one of those events than the corporate worship of God’s people lifting one voice to exalt in Christ. The concert vibe has the lights shining on the “performers” and the “audience” in the dark with some singing along, while others just listen to the professionals. The baseball game vibe has passion yet often lacks the kind of content and/or reverence that befits corporate worship on the Lord’s Day. Now I want to be careful here – I am not promoting certain instruments to be used or banned, and I am not particularly promoting one style over another. So, what is it that matters in our Sunday singing?

In Ephesians 5:19 Paul points the Ephesian church toward “addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart.” Likewise in Colossians 3:16, to another local gathering of God’s people, he writes “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” With direct exhortation, the apostle Paul calls churches to singing that is corporate (“addressing one another”), Godward (“to the Lord”), heartfelt (“with your heart”), and varied (“psalms, hymns, spiritual songs”). Some songs are declarative (about God), while other songs are more like prayers (to God). Some songs are personal (I, me, my soul), while others are corporate (We, us, your people). The variety of voices, instruments, and songs are a corporate expression of the one voice of God’s redeemed community gathering on the Lord’s Day to exalt, thank, confess, and delight in the God of our salvation. This clear element of the worship service liturgy ought to trump any concert or baseball game as we lift our voices on Sunday morning to make a joyful noise to the Lord!