LIVING WORD DEVOTIONAL
By Pastor Mensa Otabil
Tuesday 16th November 2021
SINGING GOD’S WORD
Scripture Reading: Colossians 3:1-17
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. Colossians 3:16
There are many church songs, but not all of them are scriptural. It is one thing singing a song with God’s name or Jesus’ name, and another thing altogether for a song to be scriptural. Many of the songs that we sing today have catchy tunes and upbeat rhythms but lack theological accuracy.
There are three important things to note from the passage that we should do.
1. Let the word of God dwell in you richly. This is where all Christian compositions should begin. The songs we sing must come out of the riches of the word of God in us. The Lord and His works must always remain at the centre of what we sing about. When we sing, we must sing God’s word. God speaks to us when we allow His word to take root in our hearts.
2. Teaching and admonishing. Christian songs must pass on accurate teachings of Christian doctrine. The songs we sing must help us know the Lord better and experience Him deeper. Consider the book of Psalms in the Bible. It is a book of songs but, it is also scriptural, spiritual, and prophetic. The Holy Spirit inspired the writers of the Psalms as He did the other people that He used to write the scriptures. God speaks through us when our songs are scriptural and spiritual
3. Sing with grace in your heart. What we sing must not only move our bodies. Our songs must be spiritual and sung from deep within our hearts. A spiritual song must first move our hearts before moving our bodies. We must sing from deep within our hearts and allow the Holy Spirit to minister to us.
Do a personal assessment; ask yourself whether the songs you have been singing are scriptural and doctrinally sound. If they are not, you can now begin to look for songs that conform to sound doctrine and affirm the truth of the scriptures. You will be edified when you sing those songs.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, your word is deeply settled in my heart. From deep within me, I will sing of your faithfulness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.