A Song in My Heart

Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away the judgments against you; he has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil. On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: “Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. I will gather those of you who mourn for the festival, so that you will no longer suffer reproach. Behold, at that time I will deal with all your oppressors. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth. At that time I will bring you in, at the time when I gather you together; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes,” says the Lord. (Zephaniah 3:14-20 ESV).

Singing has been practiced by people in virtually every culture throughout history. Have you ever wondered why the act of singing has such universal appeal? One important reason is that words that are sung can have a much greater impact on us than words that are only spoken. This is why so much of the praise we offer God is done in song. I love the quote from Augustine, who once said that “whoever sings prays twice.” It is no wonder that there is a large portion of the Old Testament devoted to the songs of worship for Israel. We know this “hymnbook” as the Psalms. Today’s reading gives us a slightly different perspective. We see God doing the singing. We might think that the reference today showing God singing is not meant to be taken literally, but I have a feeling it is. God told Moses, “Write down this song and teach it to the Israelites and have them sing it” (Deuteronomy 31:19). Most of the following chapter contains the song God taught Moses so that the people could learn it too. The heavenly choir depicted in the book of Revelation also sings, and it draws from that old song of Moses as it sings “the song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb” (Revelation 15:3-4). Today is Palm Sunday in the Christian calendar. The people of in Jerusalem for Passover lined the road when Jesus began his ride into the city. The praise was exuberant and filled with anticipation at the coming salvation they believed Jesus would bring to them. He did bring salvation, even though many did not understand the means through which He would accomplish it. He had to sacrifice his life for the debt to be paid. The great good news is that he did. It is done. This finished work now should allow us to sing! I hope that is your song! He sings for us… can you sing for Him?