Why do we sing hymns?

Saturday, July 1, 2017

Is it just a Christian tradition to sing hymns or is there a Scriptural directive involved?  Let's see what we can find?

According to Colossians 3:16, we sing hymns from the Spirit to each other to teach and admonish; and we sing to God to show Him our gratitude. 

Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.
‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:16‬ ‭NIV‬‬

In the first two verses of Psalm 40, David tells of the wondrous things God has done for him. Here is Verse 3: 

He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the Lord and put their trust in him.
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭40:3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Where does the hymn originate? 

   From God.

To whom is it directed?

   To God. 

For what purpose did he sing?

   So that others might believe?

(Actually if you read the verse in context with the verses before it, I think you'll see that is was the wondrous things that God did which caused others to believe. But look at Acts 16:25.)

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.
‭‭Acts‬ ‭16:25‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Then God caused an earthquake and all the prisoners' chains were broken. It was through the earthquake, the praying and the singing that the jailer came to believe in Christ. So God used the hymns as an evangelism tool. 

The same can be said for this verse in Isaiah. The song is the medium used to spread the story of the Lord. 

Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world.
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭12:5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

So why do we sing hymns?

We sing songs from God, to God, about God, to teach each other, and to the world. 

There you have it. 

Lord, give us your song to sing. May we bless you in our singing.