1 Thought from Me

Colossians 3:16 and Ephesians 5:18-19 are two clear commands in the New Testament for Christians to sing together. While the passages contain similar phrases, the primary command in each differs. Colossians 3:16 relates to the word: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.” Ephesians 5:18-19 is about the Spirit: “But be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.”

Why do we sing? To engage with God by his word and his Spirit. We want the gospel message of God’s word to ring deeply in our hearts through his working in us. These two elements, the word and the Spirit, are both eternal. Heaven and earth will pass away, but the third person of the Trinity will never pass away, and neither will his word (which teaches us the message of Christ). Singing is a way that we interact with God in spirit and truth, like Jesus taught (John 4:24).

2 Quotes from Others

I.
To be filled with the Spirit is the same as to be controlled by the Word. The Spirit of Truth uses the Word of truth to guide us into the will and the work of God. – Warren Wiersbe (Source)

II.
The Spirit never loosens where the Word binds; the Spirit never justifies where the Word condemns; the Spirit never approves where the Word disapproves; the Spirit never blesses where the Word curses. – Thomas Brooks (Source)

3 Lyrics on the Spirit & the Word

I.
Holy Spirit, living breath of God
Breathe new life into my willing soul.
Bring the presence of the risen Lord
To renew my heart and make me whole.
Cause Your word to come alive in me;
Give me faith for what I cannot see.
Give me passion for Your purity;
Holy Spirit, breathe new life in me. – Keith Getty & Stuart Townend (Source)

II.
He Himself the living Author
Wakes to life the sacred Word;
Reads with us its holy pages
And reveals our risen Lord.
He it is who works within us
Teaching rebel hearts to pray,
He whose holy intercessions
Rise for us both night and day. – Margaret Clarkson (Source)

III.
O send Thy Spirit, Lord, now unto me,
That He may touch mine eyes, and make me see:
Show me the truth concealed within Thy Word,
And in Thy Book revealed I see the Lord. – Mary A. Lathbury (Source)