Why Do We Sing?
In last week’s Sunday school lesson I came across this verse: Zephaniah 3:17
The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.
In the last part of that verse, the Bible says, “…he will joy over thee with singing.” I never really thought about what it means to sing, why we humans sing, and where did the practice of singing come from until I read that verse.
What exactly is singing? The dictionary describes singing as uttering words in tuneful succession. A noted scholar in the field of speech and song said,
“The difference between speaking and singing is flow. In singing, the flow of tone is unbroken between the words, but in speaking, it is interrupted. In singing, the tone is sustained and changed from one pitch to another by definite intervals, over a wide compass that includes notes not attempted in speech. In speaking, the tone is unsustainable, not defined in pitch, is limited to a narrow compass, and the length of the tones is not governed by the measure of music.” (Professor Thomas Fillebrown, M.D., D.M.D.)
So, where did it come from? There are no records of when the first singing began. It simply appears to have been there as long as man existed. Those who do not believe a man could speak when he was created still believe singing came first.
Well, you know when man’s wisdom and knowledge fails us, we can always turn to God’s word. That never fails. We learn in the scriptures from our theme verse that God sings. We can see that God uses His voice to sing, and scripture says His voice is the sound of many waters, an uninterrupted flow of words is clearly descriptive of singing. (Revelation 1:15)
God speaks to us through singing. God not only loves us, but He is willing to express His love emotionally with song. Heaven is full of signing to include the Angels when a lost sinner is saved.
Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth. Luke 15:10
It is, therefore, a simple deduction to reason that man sings because God the Father, the creator of the world, sings. Since we are created in His image, we got the ability to sing because He sings.
So what does that mean to us? A lot! Since singing was created by God to show His love and compassion for His creation, we owe Him the same. Our singing should be filled with songs of praise and worship that brings Him and His majesty to the forefront. Unfortunately, many new songs glorify the creature and not the creator. They are more like a nightclub act than a worship service. Be careful what type of music you listen to and what kind of music you sing. Ask yourself the question: Would God sing this song, or does this song glorify Him? If the answer is no, then we need to choose a different song!