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“Sing, Sing, Sing” By Chris Tomlin
Sing, Sing, Sing
By Chris Tomlin
Reviewed by Tom Arthur
tom[at]saraharthur[dot]com
Lyrics
Chris Tomlin
Sample Music
When I first heard this song by Chris Tomlin, what jumped out at me immediately was not so much the song itself but where it could be used in the worship service. It was being used as one song amidst many of the opening praise music. But I thought it could be used even more fruitfully in another place: communion.
Generally I’m thinking about the Great Thanksgiving, and specifically I’m thinking about the Sanctus. In my church’s tradition, we always come to the part of the Great Thanksgiving when the pastor says, “And so, with your people on earth and all the company of heaven we praise your name and join their unending hymn…” So far so good. But then the congregation joins in to say, not sing:
Holy, holy, holy Lord,
God of power and might,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
Why do we always say the Sanctus rather than sing it? Especially given that the pastor has just said we’re joining an unending hymn? It seems such a waste when we’ve heard about how we’re joining in a heavenly song that has been going on since the beginning of time and will continue until the end of time. And we grace this moment with what often ends up being a monotonous corporate response.
In the United Methodist Hymnal there are musical settings for the Sanctus. But I’ve only been in one place where I’ve ever heard them used – seminary (well, I did attend a charismatic Episcopal church in college that always sang the Sanctus). But in seminary we didn’t use the musical settings in the hymnal. We used a beautiful musical setting written especially for Duke Divinity School by David Arcus. Why don’t we use these musical settings? Probably because they’re not familiar or we’re not confident in our ability to pull them off well.
Insert here: Sing, Sing, Sing.
I probably just stepped on a lot of liturgical toes. Let me explain what makes me think I can make such a bold substitution of a Chris Tomlin song for the Sanctus. I was taught in my seminary worship class to focus on the pattern of worship as described in ancient documents such as the Didache, Justin’s Apology, or the Apostolic Tradition, and not to be overly focused on the exact wording. Thus, I’m looking for the pattern of the Sanctus rather than the exact words.
Here it is worth pointing out the parallels between the Sanctus and Sing, Sing, Sing. There’s the triple recitation of “sing, sing, sing.” Now certainly “sing” doesn’t have all the rich resonance of “holy”, but I think its triple recitation alludes and points to the same passages that the Sanctus is pointing to:
And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory” (Isaiah 6:3).
And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and inside. Day and night without ceasing they sing, “Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God the Almighty, who was and is and is to come” (Revelation 4:8).
Perhaps someone more musically talented than I am could advise us on whether Tomlin’s song might be adapted singing, “We sing holy, holy, holy” instead of “we will sing, sing, sing.”
Then there’s the Sanctus’ “Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory.” Sing, Sing, Sing twice reflects on the heavenly nature of what we’re doing in worship. In the first verse Tomlin writes, “And make music with the heavens” and in the second verse he writes, “Heaven and earth adore you.”
Third, there’s the Sanctus’ “Hosanna in the highest” which can be compared to Tomlin’s “When we shout your praise.” I have always imagined that “Hosanna” is a word that should be shouted rather than just spoken.
Lastly, the Sanctus says, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” Tomlin focuses most of the rest of the song on Jesus, the one who comes in the name of the Lord. Tomlin writes, “You are the love that frees us. You are the light that leads us.” If this song is used within the communion liturgy, then certainly it seems appropriate that it concludes by bringing our attention fully upon Jesus, the one who gave himself up for us that we might be delivered from sin and death.
Conclusion: Highly Recommended
Sing, Sing, Sing is a strong song all around. It uses first person plurals and focuses more on who Jesus is rather than how Jesus makes me feel. There are significant echoes in this song with scripture and communion liturgies. And it is well crafted to be a communion song in place of the Sanctus, perhaps with a modified introduction. Maybe you won’t use this song during communion, but I encourage you to consider it. It’s certainly a lot more familiar than most of the Sanctus musical settings in our hymnals.
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