Sing a New Song to the Lord

Recently, I have been reading through the Psalms in the Bible. Often, I have noticed multiple phrases from several Psalms that all carry the same instruction:

• "Let us sing praises to the Lord"

• "Make a joyful noise to the Lord"

• "Sing praises to the Lord"

• "Sing to the Lord a new song"

At times in the Psalms, David includes the instruction to sing with the lyre, with trumpets, with horns, with the lute, and with the harp. In 1 Chronicles 25, David is helping prepare for the temple that Solomon will build. In the roles of the priests, he adds 288 musicians who will have duties such as singers, psalmists (song writers), and players of stringed instruments and percussionists.

As I read through the Psalms, I also saw many lines or phrases that appear in some of the songs that are sung in churches today. Maybe you will recognize a song from one or more of these phrases:

• "The Lord reigns, let all the earth rejoice"

• "Of whom shall I be afraid"

• "As the deer pants for the water"

• "Come and see what God has done"

• "You have made me glad"

• "I sing for joy at the works of your hands"

On a given Sunday, worshipers may sing from a hymnal, words printed in a bulletin, words on a screen, or from memory. Some people will be singing with strong voices staying on key and pitch. Others of us will be singing to fulfill the scripture of making a joyful noise to the Lord.

My purpose of this article is not to give an inventory of the Psalms, promote certain types of music or age of the songs, nor to critique the quality of church music or singing. Rather, my real purpose is to focus on our understanding of what we are singing and to whom we are singing. In addition, what is the sense of faith and praise that fills our hearts as we participate in worship through music.

Let me be clear - I love to sing and have many songs that I really love to sing in church. However, I am in the group of joyful noise makers. I wish that my voice had that clear resonate quality that follows the melody and the key of the music. While that is not the case for me, it does not keep me from participating in worship through singing praises to the Lord.

So, let's answer the questions I raised above. First, what are we singing? Hopefully, we are singing words of praise and adoration to God; recounting all the marvelous works that God has done; testifying of the faith that exists in our own lives; and proclaiming His truths that others might hear and believe.

Second, to whom are we singing? Too often we are singing only to each other. There is nothing wrong with that because I not only need to sing but also to hear the message of the song. But ultimately, we are singing to the one, true, living God. He is the one who has extended salvation to us through Jesus Christ. It is His love, grace, and mercy that permeates our world to transform the lives of all who will believe. He is our audience of One.

Finally, what is the sense of faith and praise that fills our hearts as we participate in the worship of God through music? I raise this last question because it seems that often we are just mouthing words and enjoying a melody or rhythm without thought to the significance and meaning of what we are actually saying in our singing. I admit that there are times when I realize the significance of the words of a certain song and how they are a testimony from my own life. Amazing Grace is one of those songs that can produce tears as I remember that I was once lost and am now saved only because of God's amazing grace. The chorus "Oh How He Loves You and Me" is a reminder that His demonstration and proclamation of His love for me came with the price - "He gave His life, what more could He give; Oh, how He loves You and Me."

David uses the phrase that I chose for the title of this article several times in Psalms. I don't think his emphasis was that we should only sing new songs and forget the old ones. Rather, I believe that he means for us to sing of the new life we have through faith in God. We are to sing with the realization that God has changed our lives in a miraculous way. We should sing now with more than a repeating of words. Now we should sing with a spirit of thanksgiving, rejoicing, and love to the Lord for what He has done and is doing in our lives.

David wrote these words in Psalm 101:1 -

"I will sing of steadfast love and justice;

to you, O Lord, I will make music."

May we make David's personal testimony of singing become our testimony as well. May we sing to the Lord with the realization of all that He has done in our lives. May we sing in true praise and worship to our Lord.