Zephaniah 3:17NLT

ZONING IN ON ZEPHANIAH – Part 2

(June 03, 2024) Brian Bell encourages…

For this my second meditation from the Old Testament prophecy of Zephaniah, I am sharing several additional thoughts from chapter 3.

God’s Prerogative  
In my May article we shared how Zephaniah’s messages had brought a stern rebuke to a spiritually cold or backslidden people.

However we also saw how God in His grace gave Zephaniah a word of encouragement as he reminded the wayward people of the certainty of God’s presence telling them ‘… the Lord is still there in the city and He does no wrong’ (Zephaniah 3:5NLT).

As we come to look at verse 16 there is no rebuke, indeed quite the opposite as we read, ‘Cheer up, Zion! Don’t be afraid.’

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SING! SING! SING!

(April 09, 2024) Brian Bell encourages joyful praise of God with our Christian music…

In his letter to the Ephesians, chapter 5:18-19 (NLT), Paul gives us some advice about living in the Spirit – ‘…let the Holy Spirit fill and control you. Then you will sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, making music to the Lord.’

And in Colossians 3:16NLT, Paul also encourages our worship along the same lines – ‘Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use His words to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.’

Singing – a Heritage
From my earliest childhood, I was brought under the sound of Christian music. I sang in the children’s choir and later in the church choir. This influence grew when I became a Christian in my mid-teens and began to take a keen interest in the Christian music of my generation.

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