THE CONCEPT OF MUSIC (PART TWO): THE SINGING OF CREATION

The Singing of Creation

The response of the natural world to the majestic glory of God’s created works, is often expressed in terms of singing. This clearly shows that singing is something which God welcomes and in which He delights. There are numerous examples in the Bible of all of God’s creation invited to sing praises to God. “Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it; let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy; they will sing before the Lord” (Ps 96:11-12; NIV). “Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy; let them sing before the Lord” (Ps 98:8; NIV). “Praise the Lord, all his works, everywhere in his dominion”(Ps 103:22; NIV). We read about the birds singing because God provides them with water (Ps104:12).The heavens, the lower parts of the earth, the mountains, the forest, and every tree breaking forth in singing unto the Lord (Is 44:23). The wilderness, the cities, and the inhabitants of the rock, sing and give glory to God (Is 42:1-12). Even the desert shall blossom and “rejoice with joy and singing” (Is 35:2). All these metaphorical allusions to the animated and inanimate creation singing and shouting praises to God, tell us that music is something that God ordains and desires. If these were the only references to music in the Bible, they would be sufficient for us to know that music, especially singing, has a special place and purpose in God’s universe.

The Human Singing

More wonderful than all of nature singing is the invitation extended to human beings to sing. “O Come, let us sing unto the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!” (Ps 95:1). “Sing praises to the Lord, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name” (Ps 30:4). “Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men” (Ps 107:8; KJV). Jesus said that if people would not praise Him “the very stones would cry out (Luke 19:40). The Bible specifically mentions that singing should be directed to God. Its purpose is not personal gratification, but God’s glorification. Moses said to the people: “I will sing unto the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously” (Ex 15:1). David declared: “I will extol thee, O Lord, among the nations, and sing praises to thy name” (2 Sam 22:50). Similarly Paul exhorts the believers to sing and make melody “unto the Lord with all your heart” (Eph 5:19). God and the praising of His people are so wrapped up together, that

God Himself is identified as “my song.” “The Lord is my strength and my song” (Ex 15:2). Music in the Bible is not only for God, it is also from God. It is God’s gift to the human family. In praising God for His deliverance, David says: “He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God” (Ps 40:3). This text tells us that music can be inspired by God, just as His Holy Word. A telling proof is the fact that the longest book of the Bible is Psalms—the hymn book of God’s people in Bible times.

Let’s take a look at church music in the Protestant era and to do this the motivations of the father of the Reformation ought to be understood. Martin Luther’s desire was not to create a new church that would be separate from the established Catholic Church. Instead, his desire was to be a catalyst for reformation within the Catholic tradition. Luther’s motivation for reformation was limited by the explicit tenets of Scripture. If there was a practice within the Catholic Church that was in direct violation of Scripture, Luther sought to reform the practice. If a practice was not clearly rejected by Scripture, Luther did not consider it necessary to abandon the practice.

One area of religious practice that Luther sought to reform was the use of the vernacular language within Christian worship. Luther considered music to be one of God’s greatest gifts to men, and therefore sought to write hymns in the vernacular language in order to use them in Christian worship. Without a doubt, the one song written by Martin Luther that has stood the test of time more than any other is, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” Although the actual circumstances that inspired the writing of the hymn are unknown, the song became the great rallying cry of the Reformation, moving the believers to stand strong in the face of persecution, that God would win the victory by seeing His name carried forth, for His Word will endure forever. “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God” is a song birthed out of the circumstances of persecution. The theological truths that are poetically rendered in the text are a great encouragement to the people who sang it first, driving them to persevere in the circumstances, that they could see the Reformation through to victory. The first Protestant believers cherished the hymn and passed it on to their children as a reminder of the warfare that took place to return the priesthood to the believer. As a result, the hymn has stood the test of time and continues to be a reminder today of the battles fought so many years ago.

Jumping nearly two hundred years later, the next prominent hymn writer to be introduced is Isaac Watts. Isaac Watts was brilliant as a young boy, learning five languages by the age of twelve. Watts was troubled by the dry psalm singing in the English churches, which set him on course to produce over 600 hymns. His disdain for the existing church music drove him to comment, “The singing of God’s praise is the part of worship most closely related to heaven; but its performance among us is the worst on earth.” The impact of the hymns of Watts on the English churches rivals that of the contemporary music today. The battle waged between traditional church music and the sacred music of the day often split churches. Despite the unharmonious beginnings, many of Watts’ hymns survive to inspire Christians today because they contain a sound theological basis overlaid with a lasting musical setting. The impact of his music may be greater than ever imagined. One of the greatest missionary hymns of all time, “Jesus Shall Reign,” was written by Watts in 1719, approximately 60 years before the modern missionary movement began with William Carey.

A sibling pair of ministers overlapped the influence of Isaac Watts. John and Charles Wesley impacted both England and America during the mid-1700s. John Wesley was a profound theologian, but Charles was the better-known hymn writer. The brothers were raised in a strict Anglican form of worship. John responded to a limited view of worship by stating that worship “must engage our whole person.” Charles broke from the traditional Anglican form of worship. Despite his formal training and his missionary service in the colony of Georgia, Charles lacked peace and joy in his heart and life. After returning to London, Charles met with a group of Moravians. While meeting with this group, Charles realized that salvation is through faith alone. This experience brought a spiritual enthusiasm in Charles that reflected in every facet of his ministry. In all, Charles would write approximately 6,500 hymns. The motivation for his hymn writing was to communicate the many facets of the Christian life to church people in a theologically sound fashion. As Osbeck explains, Charles accomplished this by writing hymn texts and “fitting them to any popular tune that suited the meter and message of the lines.” In reality, several of Wesley’s hymns were mariners’ tunes or even bar tunes with new lyrics, which led many lost sinners to sing along and be exposed to the Gospel during evangelistic meetings.

John Newton followed under the influence of John and Charles, also introducing “simple heart-felt hymns” into the services in lieu of the usual psalms. Newton’s most notable contribution to church music is the short, yet powerful, text of “Amazing Grace.” Following John Newton, the hymn writers contemporary to D.L. Moody are of significant note.

Philip Bliss is perhaps the best-known of these writers. George Stebbins, a noted gospel writer, said of Bliss: “There has been no writer of verse since his time that has shown such a grasp of the fundamental truths of the gospel, or such a gift for putting them into poetic and singable form.” As with Bliss, most of the notable hymns of this time come out of the evangelistic meetings led by D.L. Moody, Major Daniel W. Whittle, Ira Sankey, and others. Beyond Bliss, other authors include Lydia Baxter, known for her song, “Take The Name of Jesus With You,” and Horatio Spafford, author of “It Is Well With My Soul,” an emotional hymn written in response to the tragic death of his four daughters.

No history of church music is complete without the contributions of Fanny Crosby. Crosby composed the texts to at least 8,000 gospel songs. Although blind, Crosby was one of the most prolific hymn writers of all time. Crosby was a master at developing theological poetic verse to fit existing musical themes. A vast majority of Crosby’s texts are an expression of subjective testimony or Christian experience.

In our day worship is incomplete without songs written by Don Moen, Ron Kennoly, Darling Zetch, Micah Stampley, Nathaniel Bassey, Frank Edwards, Steve crown, Sinach, Chioma Jesus, Chinyere Udoma, Elijah Oyelade, Tye Tribette, Smokey Norful, Sammy Okposo, Jerry Ekpekuro, Michael W. Smith and a host of other music ministers who have given themselves to worshipping God and Ministering to His People through the ministry of music in worship.

This means that worship music is not only a human artistic expression, but also a gift from God, sometimes inspired by the Lord Himself. We may differ on the style or types of music, but no Christian can legitimately be opposed to music per se, because music is part of God’s gracious provision for the human family. Music is not merely something potentially enjoyable. It is a gift provided by God to meet the total human needs. The very existence of music should give us reason to praise God for lovingly providing us with a gift through which we can express our gratitude to Him, while experiencing delight within ourselves. Now let’s learn about the relationship between music and the human spirit.