Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you,
with all wisdom teaching and admonishing
one another with psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness
in your hearts to God.
Colossians 3:16
In this verse we see six principles regarding corporate worship at work . One, it should be word based. Two, worship should be participatory. Three, worship should be more than one dimensional, containing Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Four, it should be jointly edifying. Five, it should be God directed. Six, it should come out of a thankful heart.
1. On being word based, the word of God is the truth, and we know from John 4:23-24 that those who worship Him must worship Him in truth; so if we want to worship God in truth, the foundation of our worship should be His word. It should dwell richly in us so as to guide our worship, and be sung in Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.
Additionally, it should not be a hodge podge of biblical snippets, or contain vague spiritual references, or substitute euphemisms for biblical terms. It is amazing how many of the songs (contemporary and old) have very little theology, or poor theology, or contain false teaching. To borrow a phrase from Francis Schaeffer, the lyrics we sing must be true truth. There is a didactic (teaching) component of worship that speaks to the heart through the mind. When this occurs worship becomes powerful and personal.
2. On being participatory, the pronouns you and your in this verse are plural, so this is something that all that are gathered together should be doing. So it should not be observatory, but participatory. Any style or methodology of worship that prevents or hinders the joint participation of the gathered believers should be eliminated. Now this does not rule out solos, etc., but corporate worship is just that, corporate worship; and the style and methodology should promote and encourage corporate participation.
3. On being more than one dimensional, there is a richness and balance in the types and styles of songs, and this balance should be part of the corporate worship experience. It will cover all aspects from the richness of deep theology to soul stirring melodies, from contemporary choruses to ancient hymns. It should take us from the depths of love to the heights of joy while covering everything in between.
4. On being jointly edifying, as we sing His word together we are teaching and admonishing one another. There is an edifying power, and an edifying and correcting effect on each other as we sing together or are sung to by soloists, etc. The word put to music will not return empty or void without accomplishing all that God desires, and He desires for us to play our part in the dissemination of His word.
5. On being God directed, as this is the most important of all the principles. All worship should be God directed. It should be about God, focused on God, taking our attention away from ourselves and focusing it on God...His greatness, His majesty, His power, His love, His care, His grace, His provision, His salvation, His faithfulness, His mercy, and all that He is and all that He does. I am reminded of the song, "It Is Well With My Soul", this song is so God focused and was written at a time of great tragedy in the life of the writer. Much like the Psalms, in the middle of lament the focus is still on the Lord. Our coming together for worship is a time for us to corporately present ourselves and our sacrifice of praise to God Himself before His throne in midst of what is happening in our life. It should be a transcendent time in the presence of God for all who are gathered together no matter their circumstances.
6. On being thankful. A thankful heart will be a worshiping heart, a praising heart, a God glorifying heart, and a Christ exalting heart. It is impossible to really worship without being thankful. Praise, real praise, flows out of thanksgiving, and in praising God for all that He is and all that He does, He is glorified. Thankfulness is a hallmark of true Christianity, and is a key foundational element of worship. The more thankful we are the more sincere our praise, and the more sincere our praise the richer our worship.
When these six principles are followed, corporate worship can never be dull or boring, can never be rote; but will always minister to the Lord, and, in turn, bless us.
