A New Old Song: Holy Holy Holy

I love music.  New music.  Different music.  Music that I didn’t listen to yesterday.  Yesterday it was Andrew Bird.  Today Zero 7.  Last week it was Credence Clearwater Revival; this week it is Apocolyptica.  While, like anyone, I tend to gravitate towards particular genres, I also like to expand my musical horizon, being open to new sounds and rhythms that have previously been foreign to me.

In the Psalms, we are repeatedly instructed to sing a new song to the Lord.  What a valuable command!  I can hardly imagine how boring church would be if we were still singing the same “contemporary” songs I sang in my church in the 90’s.

It is exciting to know that as we pass into new life, we will have new songs also.  The book of Revelation mentions new songs multiple times (Rev. 5:9, 14:3).

But I often wonder if I have a fair picture of heaven in my head.  Does heaven captivate me as it should?  Does it motivate me to persevere, to invite others to join me, to love?

Sometimes in my limited view of heaven, it doesn’t seem very interesting.  Why would I want to go to heaven, and give up my Daft Punk or Sonata Arctica?  As we look ahead to the future presented in the Bible, it may sometimes seem like the musical variety of this world seems to fade.  Those in God’s presence seem to only be able to sing one thing: holy holy holy . . . holy . . . holy.

Won’t it get old?

We’ve recently been singing the Revelation Song in the Sunday morning worship services at my church.  The lyrics are not new at all.  In fact, they are as old as the Bible itself, taken from the Book of Revelation.  But as I sing these familiar words crafted in a fresh melody, the presence of God moves through me in a fresh way as well.  The old, the familiar, the worn, has been made new and exciting.

Worthy is the Lamb who was slain

Holy, holy is He

Sing a new song to Him who sits on

Heaven’s mercy seat

Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty

Who was and is and is to come

With all creation I sing praise to the King of kings

You are my everything and I will adore You

Confronted with God’s presence, all creation in Revelation is aware of God’s immense apartness.  He is holy, holy, holy.  And everyone in his presence is so captivated by his holiness that singing about anything else seems trivial.  Imagine how trivial it would feel to sing about failed love, frustrated relationships, unexpected hardships, when confronted with the holy holy God Almighty.  He makes love perfect.  He restores relationships.  He wipes away the tears of our hardships.  Why sing about anyone or anything else?

Now imagine having that future vision of God today.  Jesus repeatedly proclaimed that the kingdom of heaven is near.  In one sense, it is already here now.  Why wait until all the future pieces are put together before starting to celebrate the holiness of our creator in a new and powerful way?  Through prayer and the presence of the Holy Spirit, we can experience God’s humbling holiness right now.  So sing a new song.

Sing a new old song:

Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty

Who was and is and is to come.