Psalms Hymns Spiritual Songs
Do you love to sing Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs? I am up in years and enjoy the old ones best. However, I also love many of the new songs. Some songs stay with you and never really go out of date.
Paul talks about the importance of singing in several places. Even though we don’t think of music this way, he tells us to use them in teaching and admonishing one another.
However, you might ask, what is the difference between Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs?
Singing Psalms is clearly singing a Psalm or part of it to glorify God. David and others wrote the Psalms for the people to sing in worship. The early church did not have songs for worship, so they used the Psalms of the Scriptures.
Hymns are songs that give glory to Christ or lift and glorify God for what He has done. Most of the songs we sing today are hymns. Amazing Grace and the Old Rugged Cross are good examples of those that have stood the test of time.
Spiritual Songs are songs that talk about our experiences with God. They are often very personal. These songs are our hearts crying out to God in thankfulness for what He has done and is doing for us.
Hymns about singing
We even have hymns admonishing us to worship in song. Come, We That Love the Lord is an excellent example from the United Methodist Hymnal. The text by Isaac Watts catches the meaning of what Paul is encouraging us to do.
| 1. Come, we that love the Lord, and let our joys be known; join in a song with sweet accord, and thus surround the throne. |
- Let those refuse to sing
who never knew our God;
but children of the heavenly King
may speak their joys abroad.
Old or New
Both new and old hymns can be both inspiring and instructional. Each song, hymn, or spiritual song communicates our relationship to God. They tell what He has done in the past, present, and future. The writer designs each piece to uplift our spirits.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. Col 3:16 NKJV
We are to use the Holy Word dwelling in us and giving us spiritual wisdom. How are we to use it? Paul says we are to teach and admonish each other this way.
The early church used a lot of Psalms. Some hymns that we sang come from the Psalms. The Psalms are full of verses of praise and words glorifying God. Almost everyone is encouraged by a song of praise.
Sound Good or Bad
Often someone tells me that they can’t sing. I have said that about myself. However, God has given us our voices. He has also given us instructions to sing. The Almighty God we worship is interested in our hearts, not that we sound like a great singer.
Paul says, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, Eph 5:19 NKJV Maybe you can not sound as lovely as you would like, but that should not stop you. You can always make melody in your heart to the Lord.
God sees and hears what is in the heart. Therefore, a beautiful spirit making an effort to praise Him is pleasing to Him and usually to those near us. We can sing Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual songs even if our voices are not what we would like them to be.
Sing in the Spirit
Paul goes on to say that we are to sing words and verses that we understand to the glory of God. We are also to sing in the spirit. Not having words to express our love and glory, we are still to sing. Letting the Holy Spirit within us use our tongues to praise God with words we may not understand.
15 What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding. 1 Cor 14:15 NKJV
God is worthy of our praise in whatever way we can find to praise Him. For example, maybe God gave you a gift for playing a musical instrument. You can use your God-given talent for His glory.
The point is
We are all to give God glory in everything we do and say. Singing is one of those ways that God established from the beginning. When Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt, God gave him a plan of worship. That plan included men leading the people in worshiping through song.
God wants us to sing to Him. I don’t know if it is just for His pleasure or to encourage us. So many times, I see in the scripture places where He gives us things to do to make our lives better.
For example, His commandments make our lives better. Thou shall not kill, steal, etc. When people obey God, life is better for everyone. It is the same when we sing Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual songs.
Singing praise uplifts those who sing and those who hear. When I sing, God often brings some part of the song to me in a very powerful way.