The Choir in Worship
The history of the choir in worship go all the way back to the old testament. I’m reminded of the story of King Jehoshaphat. In 2 Chronicles 2:17 we learn that King Jehoshaphat was a good King in Judah. “His heart was courageous in the ways of the Lord.” I’m reminded when he was threatened by war, how he sought the Lord and fasted in earnest prayer. Then in his fasting and praying he’s reminded that the battle is not his but it’s the Lord’s. Jehoshaphat had cried to the Lord saying, “O God, we are powerless! Help us.” And God responded, “Fear not, the battle is mine!”. Verse 15, the prophet Jahaziel says “Thus says the Lord to you, “Fear not, and be not dismayed at this great multitude; for the battle is not yours but God’s” . . . You will not need to fight in this battle; take your position, stand still, and see the victory of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem. Fear not and be not dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, and the Lord will be with you.” Jehoshaphat’s response to this word is to fall on his face to the ground and worship. Verse 18 says, “Then Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord, worshiping the Lord.” The key point to why I’m sharing this story comes after this moment. While everyone is bowed down low on their faces before the Lord, a group of people stand up. And together they begin to praise the Lord. Verse 19 says, “And the Levites, of the Kohathites and the Korahites, stood up to praise the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.”
In 1 Chronicles 6:31, the writer is listing the different families in the tribe of Levi. In the context, these were the men that David put in charge of the Service of Song in the house of the Lord. In other words, this group who stood up to praise the Lord in 2 Chronicles 20:19 is the Choir of Israel. They are the group who ever since the time of David had been appointed to do the ministry of song in Israel. 2 Chronicles tells us that they stood up while everybody else was bowed before God and they led the people and helped the people praise the Lord for his promised victory. This is such a powerful story of God’s faithfulness in defending His people. But also, it’s a beautiful picture of one of the first choirs in biblical history.
I grew up in a church that had a fairly large choir and we would sing every week. As you would suspect, it included weekly choir rehearsals. I enjoyed being in many different church choirs growing up because it was an awesome experience to learn how to sing with people at a young age. I loved to sing and still do. In choir I developed my voice and learned how to control it. I would recommend that every child should participate in choir at some point in their childhood. There are many valuable things we can learn when singing in a large group with a band.
The worship leading choir has a couple different forms. I grew up in a church where the choir would sometimes lead worship for service or there would be a smaller praise team like choir. Nowadays, there’s typically a few worship leaders on front stage and a worship choir is singing along with them towards the back of the stage. I’ve seen this at various school chapels and conventions usually when it’s a special day. It’s always an encouraging sight to see as well as experience to be a part of in singing all together in unity to our Lord, Jesus.
Many of the very popular Christian bands and artists are incorporating this concept of the worship choir in their productions and services. Elevation Worship recently released a new album entitled Graves Into Gardens that was live recorded and incorporated a huge choir full of young adults. I believe it’s become a normal practice for the church and various artist groups.
Overall, choirs in worship bring unity within the church and should continue being a practice in the church.