By David Shead
The song choosing process
It’s time to actually choose the songs! How do we go about doing it? It involves planning, preparation and order.
Let’s look at order.
Choosing what we sing in Church: Choosing Songs – preparation (Part 7 of 9)
By David Shead
The song choosing process
It’s time to actually choose the songs! How do we go about doing it? It involves planning, preparation and order.
Let’s look at preparation.
Sermon – A Festal Garment (Esther)
Do you love a good party? Go back a millennium and you may have found yourself at an Israelite party – or ‘festival’ to be more accurate. Israel as the people for God conducted festivals which celebrated or reminded them of what God had done for his people. At these festivals they would read out one of their (Old Testament) scrolls – Ruth at Pentecost, Song of Songs and Passover, Ecclesiastes at the Feast of Tabernacles, Esther at Purim and Lamentations at the anniversary of the destruction of Jerusalem. This custom was not continued by the Christian church.
Yet these little books exist in our Bible and it is not often that you hear them preached. So, in our Five Festal Garments series we are going to look at these little biblical treasure troves and see what Christians can learn today as we get dressed to live godly lives.
Let’s look at the Book of Esther
Read the Bible text – Esther
– Dave Swan
Watch the Video – here
Choosing what we sing in Church: Choosing Songs – planning (Part 6 of 9)
By David Shead
The song choosing process
It’s time to actually choose the songs! How do we go about doing it? It involves planning, preparation and order.
Let’s look at planning.
Sermon: Unshakeable Confidence (Romans 8:31-39)
‘We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him’ (Rom 8:28). What a promise! Yet, the promise here is not that ‘all things’ will be good – but that in ‘all things’ God would do what is good.
How do we know?
Read the Bible Text – Romans 8:28-39
Talk – Romans 8.31-39 (Outline)
– Ken Noakes
Choosing what we sing in Church: Five principles for choosing songs (Part 5 of 9)
By David Shead
Principles for choosing songs
How do we choose the right songs for the right times? The following are five principles to keep in mind.
Sermon – Groaning in Hope (Romans 8:18-30)
Amid the many challenges we have in life, both as Christians and as participants in a fallen and broken world, we need not waver in hope. God himself is with us and working in and around us in everything to ensure that what he has promised us in Christ will indeed eventuate. So we wait patiently, relying on him.
Read the Bible Text – Romans 8:18-30
– Josh Ord
Choosing what we sing in Church: What makes for good and effective singing? (Part 4 of 9)
By David Shead
What makes for good and effective singing?
Allow me to suggest five aspects which make for good and effective singing in church.
- Good and effective singing in church relies first of all on a clear awareness of what corporate worship is about and what contribution singing can make.
- Good and effective singing is singing that helps to bring God’s people together in honouring him, in receiving his word, in prayerfully relying on him and in strengthening each other to serve him.
- Good and effective singing in church is singing by the church for the church and in praise of God.
- Good and effective singing is not measured by its musical quality or volume or frequency or style; good and effective singing doesn’t have to mean guitar, bass, drums and three professional vocalists (nor does it have to mean organ and robed choir!). In fact (and this is a topic for another occasion), “good music” and “good corporate singing” sadly too often seem to be almost mutually exclusive. Some of the best corporate singing I have ever been part of has been unaccompanied, or very sparsely (acoustically) accompanied, and some of the worst has been in the context of a high quality, highly produced, professional musical “performance”.
- Good and effective singing means the right song at the right time carried in the hearts and on the voices of the congregation to one another and to God (Ephesians 5:19)
For more in this Series:
What is corporate worship? (Part 1 of 9)
Why Sing? (Part 2 of 9)
What is the ‘shape’ of the corporate worship gathering? (Part 3 of 9)
What makes for good and effective singing? (this one)
Five principles for choosing songs (Part 5 of 9)
Choosing Songs – planning (Part 6 of 9)
Choosing Songs – preparation (Part 7 of 9)
Choosing Songs – order (Part 8 of 9)
Choosing New Songs (Part 9 of 9)
Sermon – God’s Own People (Romans 8:5-17)
The most important thing for Christians to do – especially when we find ourselves continuing to sin – is not to do, but to be; to be “in the Spirit” – that is, to belong to God through Christ and submit to his rule. Pleasing God is the work he does in us by his Spirit, as his Spirit leads us and confirms that we are God’s children and heirs, and enables us to call him “Father”.
Read the Bible Text – Romans 8:5-17
– Dave Swan
Choosing what we sing in Church: What is the ‘shape’ of the corporate worship gathering? (Part 3 of 9)
By David Shead
What is the “shape” of the corporate worship gathering?
Why don’t we just sing, and nothing else, when we gather for corporate worship?
We need to be careful that, in seeking to understand the importance of corporate singing, we don’t end up distorting our gatherings.
churchcentralonline.com 