The First Question

“Do you have a hymnbook?” pastor/teacher Sinclair Ferguson asked this question recently during one of his podcast episodes.  

Convinced I was going to win points in some mysterious spiritual life exam, I was pleased to answer, “Yes.” Thankfully, he didn’t ask why, because my answer would have been, “Because I use it to choose the hymns our church will sing in the service.” I’m temporarily filling in until God sends our church a “real” worship leader.

Ferguson shared that sixty years ago, churches didn’t supply hymnals. Most Christians owned their own and would carry them to church along with their Bibles. Some Bibles even had hymn pages in the back. Singing hymns was not only part of worship when the church gathered on Sundays, but also part of a Christian’s daily time of Bible reading, prayer, and praise.

The Second Question

Then Ferguson asked a second question: “Do you sing hymns? . . . not only in church, but as you go through life. Or is there music in your soul only when others are present, and when there’s an organ, or perhaps a piano, or maybe a band, or even an orchestra in your church?”

Christians, he said, are commanded by God to praise Him. Praise should bubble out of a thankful heart and express itself through song. If it doesn’t, he said, “then something has gone out of your soul, and you need to get it back. You need to sing.” The remedy for someone who has stopped singing is simple. “Start singing again. Don’t wait for inspiration. Sing. The singing will give you inspiration.”

I love the Lord. I want my life to praise Him, and part of praising Him is praising Him with my voice. And, I will confess, I don’t do it often enough.

Taking Ferguson’s Advice

So I took Ferguson’s advice. I lifted my hymnal off the shelf and placed it with my Bible and journal. The next morning, I began my quiet time by singing a hymn.

I opened the book at random, determined to offer up to the Lord whatever song the page held. Ferguson had made a good point that we tend to gravitate to what is familiar and, often, contemporary. When we shun the hymns, some of which we don’t know, we miss out on the rich theology they contain.

“The great hymn writers were students of Scripture,” Ferguson said. “And some of them were not only unusually gifted poets, but also fine theologians capable of developing an idea and illuminating biblical truth.”

I opened my hymnbook to a song I recognized but didn’t know the tune to, “O Sacred Head Now Wounded.”

Oh boy. Why not, “Amazing Grace?” Or “Victory in Jesus?”

Worshipping

Determined to follow through on my commitment and offer up this hymn to the Lord, I grabbed my phone and clicked over to YouTube. I found a Fernando Ortega version, played it, and sang along with my hymnbook as a guide.

I didn’t get all the notes right, but I sang the beautiful lyrics to the Lord and worshipped.

“O sacred Head, now wounded,

with grief and shame weighed down,

now scornfully surrounded

with thorns, thine only crown!. . .

What thou, my Lord, hast suffered

was all for sinners’ gain.

Mine, mine was the transgression,

but thine the deadly pain.

Lo, here I fall, my Savior!

’Tis I deserve thy place.

Look on me with thy favor,

and grant to me thy grace.”

Ferguson was right. My heart soared. My faith grew. My love for the Savior expanded until my heart ached, and God seemed very near.

Not surprising, since “God inhabits the praise of His people” (Psalm 22:3).

“Oh come, let us sing to the Lord,” the Psalmist declared, “let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!” (Psalm 95:1-2)

God created us to praise Him in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. When we do, our worship is complete.

Something Unexpected

As I’ve continued to sing a hymn at the beginning of my quiet time, something unexpected has happened.

The words and the tune return to me throughout the day. In quiet moments and in busy ones, my heart continues to worship.

This lifts my spirit, fills my mind with truth, and reminds me that God is near.

May I ask you a question?

Do you have a hymnbook?

And another?

Do you sing hymns?

If you don’t, why not give it a try? If you do, I’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below and join the conversation.

If you’d like to hear the full series of Sinclair Ferguson’s podcasts on the power of hymns, click on the first one, “Christians Love to Sing.”