Sing in the Assembly
That first verse of Psalm 149 says, "Praise the Lord, sing to the Lord a new song, His praise in the assembly of His faithful people." Sing with other people, sing in a group, sing in an assembly or congregation.
Worship In Community
And this has been a challenge for us during COVID, right? We've been isolated, social distancing and all that. A lot of people haven't even come back to church. They've just decided to stay in their homes and worship online. And there's nothing wrong with that — and we'll talk about that a bit later in the week. But I do think there is something particularly powerful about worshiping with others in an assembly or in a group.
Power Of Togetherness
You know, some of the most moving moments I've ever had have been in corporate worship when we're worshiping as a group. In fact, I remember just at the end of last year, I did a ladies' breakfast at eMseni, and the ladies sang so loudly, so passionately that it actually took me by surprise when we started singing and everybody chimed in passionately as they did.
It was very moving for me. And you know how much easier it was for me to worship with everybody singing along? There was this great sense of unity, of togetherness, of a shared sense of being loved by God.
Really, that's why we gather to worship, friends. It's to be in a family environment where together we feel that sense of belonging and that shared sense of being loved by God.
Biblical Worship Gatherings
It's something that is almost mysterious — the way that the Spirit moves in a group compared to just by ourselves. And all throughout the Bible, we see God calling His people together to worship. In the Old Testament, Moses was always assembling the people to worship. David and Solomon did it too in the temple. In the New Testament, we see a great sense of community among the believers. They were family.
Even Jesus — think about this. In Matthew 26:30, He sings a song of praise with the disciples. Can you imagine Jesus leading a song in a group? What a wonderful moment that must have been for them.
And so, friends, sing with others. Get into a church and sing songs of worship together. Don't worry about what you sound like. Don't worry about what the person next to you sounds like. But give God the glory alongside your brothers and sisters in Christ. It's a very powerful thing to do.
Constance M. Cherry said this in her book Worship Like Jesus: “How would Jesus worship if He were here among us today? He would enter in as a full participant within a local fellowship of worshippers. He would invest totally in worship as one of the community, but also for the sake of the community, contributing to the rich experience of all.” Then she says this: “Do you hear the call, the call of Jesus? Come follow Me by participating fully in the community of worshippers where God has placed you.”
I hope, friends, that you will get stuck into a singing community. Learn the joy of singing in the assembly of believers.