Psalm 96 tells us to, “Sing to the Lord a new song” (Ps. 96:1).

We sing old songs because our faith has roots in an old gospel. We sing new songs because the living God is saving sinners and the living Christ is building his church. 

Today we welcome Keith and Kristyn Getty and their team of musicians to Heritage Bible Church for Sing! Greenville. You can still register. We’re honored to host this event in partnership with four area gospel-preaching churches, two sister churches, Grace Bible Church in Moore and Emmanuel Bible Church in Mauldin, as well as two neighborhood churches, Suber Road Baptist Church, and Grace Baptist Church.

As we head into the day together, here are a few reminders, helps, and resources to peruse. 

Schedule

Area church and music leaders will start the day with us for a Summit with Keith and Kristyn, an interactive seminar that will unfold in three parts: 

• 9:00 AM – “Singing and the Church,” with Keith Getty
• 10:00 AM – “Singing and the Family,” with Keith and Kristyn Getty
• 11:00 AM – “Singing and the Church’s Mission,” with Keith Getty and Zach White

During that third session, at 11:00 AM, a children’s workshop will take place in The Cave. This will be a one-hour interactive time with Kristyn and some of the Getty musicians. The kids will learn about some of the Irish instruments, and hear from Kristyn and her experiences growing up in Ireland. 

Then, in the evening we come together for an evening of congregational singing.

• 6:00 PM – Paid Early Seating Access
• 6:30 PM – Doors Open
• 7:00 PM – Evening of Congregational Singing

Parking 

For both the Summit and the evening event, please use the tower courtyard entrance at the back of the building and be prepared to show your ticket when you arrive. A handicapped entrance will be available under the portico on the Old Spartanburg Road side of the building.

Resources

The Merchandise Hall will be hosted in the Fellowship Hall, the building opposite the auditorium. Getty music and albums will be available for purchase at a discount. 

• “Music for the Church: Mark Dever Interviews Keith Getty,” a one hour podcast interview spanning the role of singing in the church, hymn writing, technology in corporate worship, and the history of the church’s song curation.
• “Facing a Task Unfinished: Story Behind the Song,” where Keith and Kristyn tell the story behind a recent project to refresh a hymn used of God to propel the church to the nations. 
• “We Will Wait for You,” a new song we’ll learn on Friday night based on Psalm 130 from Keith Getty, Jordan Kauflin, Matt Merker, and Stuart Townend.

Join us on Sunday Morning

If you are participating with us in this Sing! event and don’t have a church home, we welcome you to join us on Sunday mornings at Heritage. We give ourselves to the simple, ancient, and biblical things: singing, praying, reading Scripture, the Lord’s table, and the preached Word.

This past week we began a two part preaching series, titled, Sing!. Pastor Stratton preached from Psalm 95, “Come, Let Us Sing,” a sermon calling God’s people to song. This Sunday, I’ll preach from Psalm 96, “Sing, All the Earth,” a call for the whole earth to sing. 

At Heritage we’re committed to spreading the unsearchable riches of Christ broader in the world and deeper in the church. It is our prayer for this event to do both. Singing drives the Word of Christ deeper into the church as we “[let] the word of Christ dwell in [us] richly … singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” (Col. 3:16). Singing also spreads God’s wonders wherever his people are heard, which is why Psalm 96 doesn’t just say, “Sing to the Lord a new song,” but continues, “Sing to the Lord, all the earth” (96:1). 

If you have any questions or needs across the day, look out for someone with a gold lanyard and an Event Staff badge. We’re glad to be of help.

Our region is brimming with Bible-promoting, God-honoring, and church-unifying events. One of those is an annual conference held at Second Presbyterian Church, The Greenville Conference on Reformed Theology. As you learned a few Sundays back, this year’s conference will take place from October 12–14, a Friday through Sunday.

Rick Phillips, senior minister at Second Presbyterian Church, was kind to invite me to speak at the conference. Pray for me as I prepare messages from 1 Peter 2:4–10 and from Psalm 121.

Besides these wonderful Scriptural texts, here are three reasons why I’d be so glad if you came.

First, come for the conference theme, “The Sovereignty of God.”

There are few biblical doctrines that revolutionize our understanding of God and his ways more than the doctrine of God’s sovereignty. That is, the truth that God is before all things, over all things, and working in and through all things. There is no atom of space and no minute of time that is outside of his providential control. This is, of course, a doctrine that raises a host of questions. What does it mean when the Psalmist writes, “Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases” (Ps. 115:3)? What does it mean for my own salvation? What does it mean for our evangelism of our neighbors? What does it mean for our prayers? These are the kinds of questions we’ll address at this year’s conference. The conference talk titles and schedule are available on the conference website.

Second, Kevin DeYoung and Rick Phillips are rare gifts to the church. 

Friends, I commend these brothers to you. They are faithful pastors, preachers of God’s Word, and allies for the gospel in our region. Many of you are familiar with Rick Phillips, this past year’s men’s retreat speaker. I commend you to his many helpful books. Rick has been a friend to Heritage and a friend to me. As for Kevin, there are few more reliable and readable pastor-writers than Kevin. When someone expresses interest to me in pursuing pastoral ministry, I’ll often point him to Kevin’s blog for regular reading. From children’s books, to a book for the crazy busy, to a book on Scripture, to a book on homosexuality and the Bible, to a book for church leaders on the mission of the church, Kevin is serving the church well. Read the bios on the conference speakers for more information.

Third, the joy of gospel partnership. 

You’ll remember that when Paul wrote to the church at Colossae, he reminded them of the gospel which “is bearing fruit and increasing” throughout the whole world (Col. 1:6). We need the perspective that comes through simple partnerships like a conference weekend such as this. You’ll notice that I’m speaking with two Presbyterian ministers. I share many doctrines in common with these men, but we differ at important points, especially when it comes to, as an example, the question of infant baptism or church polity. For purposes of church life and leadership, it’s good for us to do things apart. But for purposes of the advance of the gospel in our region, it’s great for us to do some things together.

Register for the conference online. College students, special no-cost registration has been set up for you. See you there.