"And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives" (Mat 26:30). "And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them" (Acts 16:25). "For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name" (Rom. 15:9). "I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also" (1 Cor 14:15). "Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms"(James 5:13). "Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord" (Eph 5:19). "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).
Of the New Testament passages cited above, a strong case for singing as a specific requirement should be obvious to the honest student of Scripture. Jesus sang in the upper room; Paul and Silas sang in the prison; Romans 15:9 stresses sing in the sense of glorying God and confessing His name. I Cor. 14:15 describes singing with the spirit and with the understanding which only vocal singing can fulfill. James 5:13 parallels singing with praying, thus stressing the spoken or vocal praise to our Creator. Such praise is described in Heb. 13:15 as the continual sacrifice of praise, which is described as "the fruit of our lips." These passages show that first century disciples readily complied with the command to sing.
Of the text listed, Eph. 5:19 and Col. 3:16 will be primarily addressed. Eph. 5:19 emphasizes "speaking to yourselves" as a result of being filled with the Spirit. Col. 3:16 commands "teaching and admonishing one another" as a result of Christ's word dwelling in us "richly in all wisdom." The phrase "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly," is equated with the term: "but be filled with the Spirit" (Eph. 5:18).
The word "speaking" (Eph. 5:19), comes from the Greek, laleo, which means to "talk, tell, or utter." In both texts "singing" comes from ado, which is always indicative of praise to God. Singing is a specific kind of vocal music. Not all vocal music is singing, however.
The kind of singing which God prescribed in Christian worship involves speaking, or the pronunciation of words. The singing is directed toward two objects, God and mankind. In Col. 3:16, Paul defines that which is directed toward man as "teaching" from didasko, which means to "give instructions," and "admonishing," from noutheteo, which means to "reprove gently; warn." In both texts the singing, as worship, is directed to God. The term "yourself" in Ephesians and the phrase "one another" in Colossians come from heautou, which is a reciprocal pronoun, denoting mutual action is involved in the singing. It means that when one sings, he instructs and warns himself and at the same time, he does likewise to the other, as they worship and praise God.
Singing, which is a specific act, is done "in the name of the Lord" (Col. 3:16-17). Playing a mechanical instrument of music, a different act from singing, cannot be done in the Lord's name. Non-vocal forms of music like finger snapping and hand clapping are no more authorized than mechanical instruments. Noises and sounds that mimic musical machines, do not speak, teach, or admonish with comprehensible words. Consequently, not only "vocal bands" imitating musical machines are prohibited, so is humming, and the use of the sustained Ah.... None of these practices teach or admonish, nor do they constitute singing psalms, hymns, or spiritual songs.
"If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God" (I Pet. 4:11).
Don H. Noblin
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