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Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs

The reigning theme of all creation and redemptive history is that of the true worship of God. The word worship encompasses, at its core, the verbal idea of ascribing worth to the object of one’s adoration,[1] and since it is God who created the heavens and the earth and the seas and the springs of waters, He alone deserves to be worshipped by the inhabitants of His creation.[2] As members of Christ’s body, it is our highest calling in life to exalt our Lord and Redeemer in view of who He is and what He has done on our behalf.

This will be our joyful privilege for all eternity.

Because of this remarkable calling that we have as the people of God, Scripture repeatedly calls us to employ various psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs in order to herald our glorious Lord. We recently examined two such texts:

Ephesians 5:18–19:  18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;

Colossians 3:16:  16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

Both of these texts speak of the importance of singing from the heart to God, but they also emphasize another crucial aspect of the church’s ministry of music: building one another up with Christ-honoring psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. In a sense, we have in these passages a vertical as well as horizontal focus of ministry. Vertically, godly songs give glory to our Lord and Redeemer; and, horizontally, these same songs are to be utilized in order to exhort and encourage on another so that we would be equipped with “the mind of Christ.” It is this latter, pedagogical use of psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs that isn’t commonly emphasized in the modern era; but it is a principle that has been appreciated and embraced by many brethren throughout church history. Scripture itself models this pedagogical use of psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, not only in the book of Psalms itself, but also in the multiple songs found throughout God’s word.

Having served in pastoral ministry for over 30 years, I continue to grow in my appreciation and understanding of these principles. Even going back to my days in Seminary, when leading worship in the chapel services at The Master’s Seminary, I was deeply gripped by the importance of discovering and utilizing rich psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs which exalted God and encouraged His people. And, as long as I have life and breath in this world, this will continue to be an integral part of my ministry as a pastor.

With this important aspect of ministry in view, we will be highlighting numerous psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs on our sgbcrb.com blog. This will give everyone an opportunity to be introduced to the psalms in our psalter, along with many other songs and hymns that may be new to our congregation, even though they come from a rich heritage of hymnody which spans much of church history. For example, the hymn, Stricken, Smitten, and Afflicted, by Thomas Kelly (1804), heralds many of the truths that we have been considering regarding Psalm 110, as is evident in the first verse:

1 Stricken, smitten, and afflicted, see Him dying on the tree!

‘Tis the Christ by man rejected; yes, my soul, ’tis He, ’tis He!

‘Tis the long-expected Prophet, David’s Son, yet David’s Lord;

by His Son God now has spoken; ’tis the true and faithful Word.

Twice before His trial and crucifixion, Christ quoted Psalm 110 in order to teach others that he was both David’s Son and David’s Lord (Matthew 22:41-46, Mark 14:62). As the hymn continues, we are reminded of Christ’s great work as our High Priest wherein He not only suffered the physical agony of death, but He endured the wrath of God for our sin:

2 Tell me, ye who hear Him groaning, was there ever grief like His?

Friends thro’ fear His cause disowning, foes insulting His distress;

many hands were raised to wound Him, none would interpose to save;

but the deepest stroke that pierced Him was the stroke that Justice gave.

In a world that cries for justice, it is important that we remember that Scripture has much to say about this important subject. Apart from the mercy and grace of Christ, we stand condemned by the standard of God’s justice, and it is for this reason that we must be ready to share the message of the Gospel of peace with others as the Lord gives us opportunity to do so.

Here is a recording of the full hymn (verses 1-4):

It is our prayer that this will be a blessing to all as we seek to praise our God and encourage one another, more and more, as the people of God.

Soli Deo Gloria


[1] The word worship comes from the old English word weorthscipe (weorth ~ worth and scipe ~ ship). The primitive idea of this English word is that of casting to God a declaration of His worth, value or glory.

[2] Rev. 14:6-7 “… and worship Him who created the heavens and the earth and the seas and the springs of waters.”