hymns

Common Myth: Church Hymns Are Deeper

Common Myth: Church Hymns Are Deeper

I have heard for many years people in churches or on social media say something like this: “we need to sing more hymns because they are deeper than modern songs.”

'How Great Thou Art' Celebrates 75th Birthday with New Fifth Verse from Matt Redman & Friends

'How Great Thou Art' Celebrates 75th Birthday with New Fifth Verse from Matt Redman & Friends

To celebrate the beloved hymn's birthday, Integrity Music invited Christian powerhouse songwriters Matt Redman and Mitch Wong to create a collaborative tribute of the song, calling in other well-known Christian performers like Chris Tomlin, Matt Maher, Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes, and Naomi Raine.

The 6 Hymns Sung at Pastor Tim Keller's Memorial Service

The 6 Hymns Sung at Pastor Tim Keller's Memorial Service

Tim Keller, an influential author and pastor known for his dedication to urban ministry, died on May 19, 2023, after a years-long battle with pancreatic cancer. A memorial service was held at Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City in his honor on Tuesday, August 15.

During the service, Keller, the long-time pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, was remembered as a humble servant and a dedicated student of God’s Word.

In an article written by the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center Director Francis Collins for Christianity Today, Collins recalled asking Keller one Saturday in April near the end of his chemotherapy treatment stint at the NIH hospital if he’d like to hold an impromptu service in the hospital’s atrium. Keller said yes. Collins then asked Keller if he had any favorite hymns to suggest. Again, Keller said yes.

“Let’s sing six hymns in a particular order, because they tell the whole story of Christian faith and God’s care for us,” Collins recalled Keller saying.

Those same hymns were sung at Keller’s memorial service earlier this month.

Here are the six hymns sung at late pastor Tim Keller’s memorial service:

Photo courtesy: ©Wikimedia Commons/Frank Licorice Flickr/Creative Commons, image cropped and resized.

Tis the Season for Christology: How the Hymns of Christmas Teach Right Doctrine

Tis the Season for Christology: How the Hymns of Christmas Teach Right Doctrine

 In recent years, Ligonier Ministries and LifeWay Research have documented the theological decline among evangelical Christians. According to the most recent edition of the survey, a stunning 43 percent of today’s evangelical Christians believe that “Jesus was a great teacher, but not God.” Like in 18th-century England, Arianism is alive and well today in our a-theological approach to faith. Neither cultural darkness nor theological apathy is new. Often at the darkest times, God chooses to renew His people and light the world. 

Keith Getty Urges Pastors to 'Love Your People Enough to Care about What They Sing'

Keith Getty Urges Pastors to 'Love Your People Enough to Care about What They Sing'

Keith Getty of the Irish-born Christian duo Keith & Kristyn Getty is stressing the importance of biblically sound hymns in equipping the next generation of believers.

Contemporary Worship Fails to Worship God With 'Reverence and Awe', Florida Pastor Argues

Contemporary Worship Fails to Worship God With 'Reverence and Awe', Florida Pastor Argues

A Florida pastor recently argued that today's contemporary worship style fails to praise God with "reverence and awe."

Did You Know 'This Little Light of Mine' Was a Protest Anthem during the Civil Rights Movement?

Did You Know 'This Little Light of Mine' Was a Protest Anthem during the Civil Rights Movement?

Though the song's origin is unknown, 'This Little Light of Mine' has a rich history as a protest anthem during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.