3. Choose songs people SHOULD sing.
You can choose songs people can sing and want to sing and still fail to choose songs that people should sing. This category may actually trump the other two categories at times. Songs that feel good aren’t always songs that are good for you. Songs that we should sing will eventually feel good to us because they conform our minds and emotions to God’s Word.
The Psalms are the primary reference we have for the kinds of songs we should sing as God’s people. They contain a number of phrases that we generally feel uncomfortable singing. Lyrics about discouragement, trials, questions and disconnectedness. They also contain a lot of words. They’re also more focused on lyrics than musical setting. Lots to learn from the psalms.
Col. 3:16 says we’re to let the word of Christ dwell in us richly as we sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in our hearts to God. That “word of Christ” is the gospel of Christ, the good news that Jesus has come to rescue sinners from sin, judgment, death and hell through his substitutionary sacrifice on the cross. It includes the fact that he was fully God and fully man, lived a perfect life of obedience, died in our place, rose from the dead, ascended to the Father’s right hand and is now interceding for his people and will return one day to reign forever. Do our songs make those realities clear in people’s minds and hearts?
Here are some thoughts on how to know which songs we should sing.
—People know better who Jesus is, what he did and why he did it through singing our songs.
—They help people deepen their theology and connect with history.
—There’s a good chance we’ll be singing these songs a year from now, maybe even five, maybe even 100.
—People walk away with truth that changes them, and not just tunes that move them.
—There is enough content in our songs to stand on its own without any music.
—A particular song brings a variety of feel, depth and/or length to the songs we’re singing (i.e., psalms, hymns and spiritual songs).
Like I said, this is in no way comprehensive and I don’t intend these to be hard and fast rules. But if you’re responsible for choosing songs, I pray this post nudges you to be more purposeful and selective in the coming days. Songs are just one part of the Christian life, but led intentionally and wisely, they can be a means of grace to change people’s hearts and transform lives for the glory of the Savior. Let’s not miss the opportunity.
We’ll be covering topics like this and more at the WorshipGod UK conference in Bath, UK, March 5-8. Love to have you join us!
