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Music & Worship

A Biblical Call to Praise: Part 10

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

"Singing with Grace..."

We come to the capstone of our theme verse: "Singing with grace in our hearts..." In all of our singing, the foundation for it all is the grace of God.

Commentators are divided on whether the Greek word "chariti" (grace/thankfulness) should be translated as "thankfulness" as it is in many versions or as "grace" as it is in the King James Version. We can look at it both ways--and perhaps that is what we should do:

Sing out of thankfulness
for God's grace.

At this time of the year, it is good to meditate on the spirit of thankfulness in general. The following is a brief article on "being thankful," a quality of which we can never have too much.

Rev. George Matheson, the blind Scottish pastor and hymn writer ("O Love That Wilt Not Let Me Go") penned this prayer:

"My God, I have never thanked Thee for my 'thorn!' I have thanked Thee a thousand times for my roses, but never once for my 'thorn.' I have been looking forward to a world where I shall get compensation for my cross as itself a present glory. Teach me the value of my cross: teach me the value of my 'thorn.' Show me that I have climbed to Thee by the path of pain. Show me that my tears have been made my rainbow.

Rev. Matheson also wrote these words in the wonderful hymn, "Make Me a Captive, Lord":

Make me a captive, Lord
and then I shall be free;
Force me to render up my sword
and I shall conqueror be;
I sink in life's alarms
when by myself I stand;
Imprison me within Thine arms
and strong shall be my hand.

As we sing of God's grace this Thanksgiving, may we be thankful that whether in thorns or roses, God's grace has kept us safe in his arms.

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