We are continuing to answer the question—what function do individual church members serve in the church and the community? In week one, we found that the fi rst step in facilitating worship to God is obedience to Him. Therefore, because God both desires and deserves our worship, we must strongly desire to understand the requirements of God for His worship. From this desire, we must endeavor to learn from the Scriptures the proper way to worship Him. “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15).

The next step in facilitating proper worship to God is understanding He desires us to sing praises to Him. “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). If we desire to facilitate proper worship to God, we must obey the command to sing. Paul addressed the letter to “the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are in Colosse” (Col. 1:2). The way this letter is addressed implies that the commands found in it are directed to the entire congregation, unless otherwise specified. In this specific context, verse twelve bears out who is being commanded to sing— the “elect of God”.

The elect of God are all Christians because He “chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ” (Eph. 1:4-5a). The conclusion of verse twelve is that because we are the “elect of God,” Paul commands us to allow the word of Christ to “dwell in us richly” and when it does, we will be wise and teach and admonish one another. This wisdom, which is manifest in teaching and admonishing one another, should show forth through singing songs, hymns, and spiritual songs.

If one neglects to sing in God’s worship, then he neglects to allow the word of God to dwell in him richly. If one does not sing to be audibly heard, then he cannot obey the command issued by Paul to teach and admonish in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs (Col. 3:16). How can we facilitate proper worship to God if we are not offering the fruit of our lips to Him (Heb. 13:15) as He commanded us to speak to one another by singing? “Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord” (Eph. 5:17-19).

If we are going to understand what the will of the Lord is, then we must be filled with the Spirit, which is the same thing Paul refers to in Colossians 3:16 as letting “the word of Christ dwell in you richly.” The will of the Lord is that we be filled with the Spirit, which means being fi lled with the Word of God (2 Tim. 3:16-17) and if we are then filled with the Word of God, it must come out. Jeremiah said “‘I will not make mention of Him, Nor speak anymore in His name.’ But His word was in my heart like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back, And I could not” (Jer. 20:9). This is why being filled with the Spirit is “speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” (Eph. 5:19). So, let us facilitate proper worship to God by being filled with His Word and, instead of bottling it up like Jeremiah tried, allow it to flow out of us in praise to Him by singing in worship, teaching one another as we sing. If we are not singing in worship to God, we are being unwise (Eph. 5:17).

Just something to consider.