THE SOUL WAS MADE FOR SINGING

 

Sunday, April 16, 2023

 

THE SOUL WAS MADE FOR SINGING

 

Eph 5:18-21

18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;

19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;

20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

 

           Singing is one of the most natural things in God’s creation. Coyotes howl at the moon. Have you ever wondered why? Elephants trumpet and birds warble their own tune. Children, even before they can speak, express their joy and sorrow, their love and anger simply by changing the tones in their voice. Mothers listen for these songs and, by some instinct known only to mothers, translate these songs into intelligent speech.

 

           Music expresses emotion and is defined by culture. Most of us know the difference between classical symphonic music and the music of mountaineers we call blue grass. Celtic music conjures up even visual images of the Scotts and the Irish. But what are psalms, hymns and spiritual songs?

 

PSALMS -- These are the compositions of the Shepherd King David and can be found in the Bible. Some were chanted and others were put to music which is now mostly lost. Some were sung antiphonally (one group would sing a verse and another group would respond with the answering verse). When ancient psalms were put to modern music the result was early praise and worship.

 

HYMNS – These are songs written by more modern saints These are poems and rhymes set to music that pictures the Christian experience. Fanny Crosby’s hymn, “All the Way my Savior Leads Me” praises the sure guidance of God in the life of the believer.

 

SPIRITUAL SONGS – These are odes intended to magnify God and edify man.

 

Be Known To Us In Breaking Bread

Words: James Montgomery

Music: "St. Agnes" by John B. Dykes

Meter: 86.86

Luke 22:19

 

Be known to us in breaking bread,

But do not then depart;

Savior, abide with us, and spread

Thy table in our heart.

 

There eat with us in love divine;

Thy body and Thy blood,

That living bread, that heavenly wine,

Be our immortal food.

 

Dear Lord, fill my heart with song and let my lips praise you in the streets. AMEN