Let the Word Dwell Richly — Colossians 3:16–17
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. (Colossians 3:16)
Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly. I looked at six different translations and every one of them made use of the word dwell. Dwell means “to live in” or “to be at home.” We must allow the Word of God to live in us and have a home in our hearts and minds.
John MacArthur connects this verse with Ephesians 5:18 “Do not get drunk with wine, which will only ruin you; instead, be filled with the Spirit.” As you continue on in both Colossians 3 and Ephesians 5, we are shown that letting the Word (Col 3) and Spirit (Eph 5) dwell in our lives have the same results, which led MacArthur to say that “the two are the same spiritual reality viewed from two sides.”
We are told to teach and admonish. What does that mean? We are to teach others the Word of God through message and song. To admonish someone is to warn or reprimand them. We must warn people of what is to come if they do not accept Christ and his teachings. Both teaching and admonishing must come from the wisdom we gain by allowing the Word of God to dwell within us.
What of Worship?
Warren W. Wiersbe talks briefly on the subject of worship in his commentary of the book of Colossians 3:16.
There is (according to Paul) a definite relationship between our knowledge of the Bible and our expression of worship in song. One way we teach and encourage ourselves and others is through the singing of the Word of God. But if we do not know the Bible and understand it, we cannot honestly sing it from our hearts.”
Singing praise to God is not just for others to hear. If we sing from our lips but not our hearts then we are not really worshiping God.
“As a believer grows in his knowledge of the Word, he will want to grow in his expression of praise.” The Hymns and Psalms are an important part of any church that wants to worship the Lord in song. At the same time the gospel and spiritual songs are important as well. We are commanded to sing spiritual songs just as we are commanded to sing psalms and hymns. While they convey different things as long as they are from the Word of God they should be used as praise to Christ.
Wiersbe said “A singer has no more right to sing a lie than a preacher has to preach a lie.” Worship in song is an important part of a believer’s life in Christ. If we as leaders are not familiar with the Word of God that our music should be based on than how can we “lead” others in praise to him? Without the knowledge of the word in our minds and hearts we can not truly worship!
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (Colossians 3:17)
It is difficult to discuss verse sixteen without also looking at seventeen. Whatever we do we must do it in the name of the Lord Christ Jesus. When we sing Psalms we must do it in the name of Christ. When we sing Hymns we must do it in the name of Christ. When we read and study the word we must do it in the name of Christ. When we go to work we must do it in the name of Christ. Every aspect of our life must be done to give thanks to God for what he has done and will do for us in our lives.
