Episode Transcript
Keith Lancaster
Every time that Christians meet together, there should be a recounting and declaration of the gospel. And I'm not talking about preaching. I'm talking about singing the gospel. The gospel means good news. It's our privilege and the privilege of every believer to declare the gospel through song. Well, what exactly is the gospel?
We find the answer in 1 Corinthians 15: 1 through 4. "Now brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved if you hold firmly to the word I preach to you. Otherwise you have believed in vain. For what I received I pass on to you as of first importance." Here it is. Here's where he defines the gospel. "That Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures. That he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures". There you have it. The gospel simply is the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
May we continually declare the Good News by reminding ourselves and through singing the gospel.
I'm Keith Lancaster of Acappella Ministries. We'd appreciate it if you'd sign up for our newsletter so you can know when we're gonna be in your area and also learn about special events that you may wanna be a part of to sing with us, record with us, join us for special trips.
(Singing:) "Tell me the story of Jesus. Write on my heart every word. Tell me the story most precious. Sweetest that ever was heard."
There are so many classic hymns that declare the gospel. I'm thinking of, "Christ the Lord is risen today." Powerful lyrics in that old hymn:
"Death in vain forbids Him rise. Hallelujah! Christ has opened paradise. Hallelujah!" Lives again our glorious King, where, O death, is now thy sting? Once He died our souls to save, where's thy victory boasting grave?"
Another powerful hymn is Hallelujah What a Savior! "Lifted up was he to die, it is finished was his cry. Now in heaven exalted high, hallelujah! What a Savior!"
As followers of Christ, it's not only a privilege to tell the story, but also to sing the story, which is indeed a wondrous mystery.
Darrell Tippins tells about the earliest known hymnal and how surprisingly it included instructions for believers to use hand gestures when they sing. I'm reminded of being at youth rallies and hearing the song, Lord, I lift your name on high, as the gathering used hand movements for the gospel message.
IN a previous podcast episode entitled, Variety is the Spice, I talked about how implementing high dynamic contrast can accentuate and underscore the message of song. One of the techniques involves singing a soft passage followed by a very loud and bold passage. That works perfectly when you're singing about the gospel. You sing about the death and the burial in a very somber tone and soft tone, followed by the opposite volume when singing the glorious resurrection. Check out this classic hymn and how it lends itself to these dynamics so beautifully.
Jerry Rushford was featured on the CBS News in an interview, and he spoke of what he referred to as the greatest hymn of the century, in Christ alone. The lyrics clearly and eloquently proclaim the death, burial, and the resurrection of Jesus. "There in the ground his body lay, light of the world by darkness slain. Then bursting forth in glorious day, up from the grave He arose again." Notice the dynamic contrast.
Listen how Dr. Mike Rogers skillfully directs the praise and harmony singers who are volunteers from all over the country. And this is one of our annual recordings.
Singing can impact our hearts and touch our emotions like nothing else. I'm so grateful for the new worship songs like Living Hope.
We sing the wondrous mystery of how Jesus was resurrected from the dead and how He promised that death is not the end of our story. But through His power, we will be resurrected. And that is good news that resonates to our very core. Come, behold our wondrous mystery.
If you would like to learn these songs and hundreds and hundreds of others and easily learn how to sing harmony,
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I invite you to join me as I will praise the Lord all my life and I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
