SINGING WITH THE SPIRIT
WORSHIP SERIES 9
Have you ever taken someone's word for something and then found out that it was not the truth? It makes you feel foolish for not checking it out yourself, doesn't it? That is the way I feel right now! The Bible says we should prove all things and hold on to what is good (1 Thess. 5:21). It warns us of what results when the blind lead the blind (Matt. 15:4). The scriptures even tell us that we are responsible for our own salvation and cannot blame others if we were led astray (Phil. 2:12). But I have accepted something as the truth for over 40 years only to discover that there are a lot of fools out there just like me.
The
passages in question are the two we quote most often about singing in our
worship. They are Eph. 5:19 and Col. 3:16.
"Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual
songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord."
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God."
The phrase in question is "one another." All my life I have heard sermons and read articles that say that these words in the original Greek mean "one to another to another". This they say prohibits one person singing while the others listen. I never thought to question the definition or even look it up myself. Why would a respected and highly educated brother teach something that is not true? Probably for the same reason that I would preach it. We are too lazy to study for ourselves. The truth is that we are too lazy to even think for ourselves.
I
learned the truth somewhat by accident. You see, during my research and study
on worship in the 1st century I found a verse that created a problem.
If the accepted Church of Christ definition of "one another" was true then it
contradicts this very plain verse, which needs no human interpretation.
"What then shall we say, brothers? When you come
together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a
tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of
the church."
1 Cor. 14: 26
Since I believe that the Bible does not contradict
itself then the plain passage must be true. Paul clearly said that when the
church comes together "everyone has a hymn" just like everyone had a word of instruction or
other things to share with their brethren that they all might be strengthened.
This fits with another truth we have learned about worship in the first
century. We know that they did not have songbooks or even tonal music so
everyone singing the same hymn in unison would have been difficult if not at
times impossible. When I was in Nigeria many congregations had no songbooks at
all. Others had small paperbacks that contained words to psalms, hymns or
spiritual songs but had no music notation. Wake up brethren! Not only is the
style of music we use in the U.S. not that of the rest of the world it is not
even close to that sung by Christians in the first century. It is either total
ignorance or complete arrogance to transfer to those who lived 2000 years ago
our way of doing things. The Bible says, "Everyone has a hymn." Accept it. Learn it. Apply it.
This does not justify using a choir or soloist with a beautiful voice in our worship. As we have learned acceptable worship is one of participation not observation! It is bad enough that we deny Christians the right to pray for themselves when we assemble. The use of a choir or a soloist to entertain the assembly is just the last step in destroying the right of Christians to worship God acceptably. It is unscriptural because it is entertainment and demands that the worshippers sit back and enjoy. We do not have to twist the meanings of Greek words to oppose such a perversion of acceptable worship.
It was past time then to look up the meaning of "one
another" for myself. Mr. Vine simply defines "heautou" as "one to another" as used in Eph. 5:19. When
combined with the Greek "pros" as "pros heautous" it can be
translated "among yourselves" or "one with another" as in Mark 9:10. However it
is either poor scholarship or even worse to tell folks that words found in one
passage are those used in another when they are not! Eph. 5:19 and Col. 3:16
teach exactly what is taught in 1 Cor. 14:26, i.e. saints were to use psalms,
hymns and spiritual songs to teach one another but "pros" that is in Mark 9 is not in this passage. Therefore "heautou"
does not mean that
everyone must sing in unison and therefore Eph. 5:19 does not
contradict 1 Cor. 14:26. It means that if a Christian has a hymn on
their
heart they can, should and must share this in song with the
congregation that
all may be edified.
Finally, if you believe that "everyone has a hymn" is
unscriptural then what about the preacher who recites the words of a song
during his sermon! You say that is not singing? You forget that the early
church did not have four-part harmony as our gospel music does. In fact the
music scale that is the basis of today's music did not develop for more than a
millennium. Their music was more like that of today's Arabic music that sounds like chanting. Therefore
when the preacher recites: "O how I love Jesus, O how I love Jesus. O how I
love Jesus, because he first loved me" he
is "teaching and admonishing one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual
songs." Just because he does not use
the tune written in 1864 in the key of "A" makes no difference. He is obeying 1
Cor. 14:26 and Col. 3:16 and the church is strengthened.
Why then does the church today deny Christians the
right to obey God and sing when they have a hymn? Why does the church today
deny Christians the right to sing to God "in spirit and in truth?" Why does the church today deny
Christians the right to "sing with the spirit and sing with the understanding also?" Why does the
church today deny Christians the right to sing from the heart, "the deep
seat of emotions"? O yes they do!
It's because the church today doesn't even know the difference between "the
spirit" or "the heart" and the "mind" or "understanding"! Until they learn that "thinking about the words"
is only "the understanding" that Paul taught about and is not "the spirit" that
is also required,
our worship
services will continue to be a reason for our spiritual weakness
instead of
being a source of our spiritual strength. When we learn what it means
to sing "in spirit" then and only then will our singing be acceptable
unto God.
In our next lesson we will see what can happen when Christians are allowed to sing as God has authorized in His divine word.
To be continued.