passion

DiM | “Unbroken Praise” by Matt Redman

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Evangelical Worship Edition.

January 28, 2016. In this edition we are going to be taking a look at the next song on the top new song list for 2015 found at Worship Together. Today’s song is “Unbroken Praise” by Matt Redman.

I’m not happy with the idea of this song being included in corporate worship. It’s an empty song. It’s a bit self-seeking, actually. Nowhere in this song is there any actual praise to God for Who He is or what He has done.

Matt Redman VEVO (Lyric Video)

 

Lyrics (via Worship Together)

Verse 1
Praise unbroken
Praise unending be Yours
Be Yours forevermore
Praise untainted, praise unfading
Be Yours, be Yours forevermore
Be Yours, be Yours forevermore

Chorus
Unbroken Praise be Yours, God, forever
All my praise be Yours, God, forever
Lord take this life, let it become Your throne
Unbroken praise be Yours

Verse 2
My surrender
My devotion be Yours
Be Yours forevermore, be Yours
Be Yours forevermore

Chorus

Bridge
So let my deeds outrun my words
And let my life outweigh my songs
2x
Chorus
2x

Writer(s): Jonas Myrin, Matt Redman
Theme(s): Adoration & Praise , Call to Worship , Commitment & Dedication
Ministry(s): Passion , ThankYou Music
CCLI #: 7043173
Scripture Reference(s): Jude 1:25; Psalm 86:12

Discussion

Okay, so the song doesn’t say very much. It uses the word “praise” a lot, but the focus doesn’t seem to be on God being worthy of all praise; rather, it seems more focused on how we are committing ourselves to praising Him. Let’s begin with the cited references.

Jude 25 (ESV) 25 to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

Now lets look at it in context:

Jude 17-25 (ESV)

17 But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. 18 They said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.” 19 It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit. 20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. 22 And have mercy on those who doubt; 23 save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh. 24 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, 25 to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

The context of the close of this letter is that of eternity. Perseverance in the faith until the Day of Christ’s Return, the day of His mercy on all who believe in Him, when we will be resurrected to eternal life in Christ. Let’s look at the second reference.

Psalm 86:12 (ESV) I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever.

Now lets look at the Psalm:

Psalm 86 (ESV) | Great Is Your Steadfast Love
A Prayer of David.

86 Incline your ear, O Lord, and answer me,
    for I am poor and needy.
2 Preserve my life, for I am godly;
    save your servant, who trusts in you—you are my God.
3 Be gracious to me, O Lord,
    for to you do I cry all the day.
4 Gladden the soul of your servant,
    for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
5 For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving,
    abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.
6 Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer;
    listen to my plea for grace.
7 In the day of my trouble I call upon you,
    for you answer me.

8 There is none like you among the gods, O Lord,
    nor are there any works like yours.
9 All the nations you have made shall come
    and worship before you, O Lord,
    and shall glorify your name.
10 For you are great and do wondrous things;
    you alone are God.
11 Teach me your way, O Lord,
    that I may walk in your truth;
    unite my heart to fear your name.
12 I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart,
    and I will glorify your name forever.
13 For great is your steadfast love toward me;
    you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.

14 O God, insolent men have risen up against me;
    a band of ruthless men seeks my life,
    and they do not set you before them.
15 But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious,
    slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.
16 Turn to me and be gracious to me;
    give your strength to your servant,
    and save the son of your maidservant.
17 Show me a sign of your favor,
    that those who hate me may see and be put to shame
    because you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

The cited verse comes toward the end of a stanza that began with actual praise to God and closed with God having delivered David’s soul from the depths of Sheol… again, this is in eternity. David is praising God for his Salvation, and confessing that he will glorify the Name of the Lord in eternity.

Now, getting back to the Matt Redman song, there is not a single confession of the worthiness of God to be praise. He is Worthy, absolutely worthy, but the song didn’t bother to name a one. That’s odd. That’s a problem. King David prayers and his psalms praised the LORD God for who He is and what He has done and what He has Promised to do. If this song is to be considered a song of worship and praise to the Living God, then the Living God should be worshiped and praised in the lyric. At best… at the very best… giving a lot of grace to the song… it is a song about the idea of praise and worship to a Living God.

Verse 1. This is a verse about the kind of praise God should have in eternity. Okay. But you know… in seeker-sensitive, “worship experience”, “presence inviting” churches… this verse is sung as if we are offering this sort of praise in the here and now. But we aren’t. It’s like singing about giving the LORD a shout… but no one is shouting. Or singing about bowing down before God… but not bowing down. Pretty words bereft of meaning. If the intended context of this verse is eternity, that’s fine but why not start with confessing the faith in the One Who secures our entrance into eternal life?

Chorus. Well, it starts off seemingly in the same context of “forever”… a bit of a speed bump with the sudden shift to “all MY praise”… and then we’ve left the rails with the odd request, Lord take this life, let it become Your throne (cue vinyl-record-scratch). What the heck does that even mean? The LORD is seated on His throne now… with Our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ at His Right Hand. This isn’t praise, this is requesting special favor, special position, to be the throne of God. There were a couple of Apostles whose mother had asked for similar honors… didn’t get the response she was aiming for.

Matthew 20:20-28 (ESV) | A Mother’s Request

20 Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something. 21 And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” 22 Jesus answered,“You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” 23 He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” 24 And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. 25 But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, 28 even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

The point being, God has His throne, and we aren’t worshiping Him to be made into something uniquely special ourselves. He has already done everything for us… our praise flows from our thanksgiving for what has already been delivered and what has been promised as though it were already delivered… because His promises are assured.

Verse 2. Oh, well, why not just go all-in with the self-promotion. Let’s praise God by pointing out our devotion, and our surrender to Him. I’m sure He will be pleased/impressed by how devoted we are to Him (/sarcasm_font) . The song hasn’t actually Praised God for anything…. but it has asked of God a special place in recognition for the praise the song is suggesting will come to Him.

Bridge. And now I’m just throwing up my hands in despair. After not actually Praising God for anything, we are revisiting the idea of God making our lives His throne by granting us the special favor of great works that exceed our words, and a great life that outweighs our songs? Is the song an attempt to secure temporal prosperity and fame in exchange for eternal, unbroken praise in the afterlife? My mind keeps jumping toward the Osteens, with Victoria Osteen saying, “So I want you to know this morning: Just do good for your own self. Do good because God wants you to be happy. When you come to church, when you worship Him, you’re not doing it for God really. You’re doing it for yourself, because that’s what makes God happy. Amen?” Read more. No, Victory, we cannot “amen” that statement.

Conclusion

The visible church has been tolerating people-pleasing, ear-scratching preachers for so long, that we’ve gone the extra mile to write people-pleasing worship songs. Songs that praise the people for their good work of singing praises… or rather, singing along with the emotionally mystical songs played by the band. Matt Redman is the celebrity… because he writes songs that make the people singing them feel good, not because he is gifted at praising God. He’s a gifted musician and singer… but these lyrics don’t lead people in praise or worship of a Living God. The song is empty and self-seeking.

Hebrews 13:20-21 (ESV)

Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

DiM | “How Can It Be” by Lauren Daigle

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Presentation1Today is “Discernment in Music” (DiM) day here at Faithful Stewardship.

2 Corinthians 10:4-6 (ESV)
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, 6 being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.

There has been a lot of movement in the Top 20 Charts. Today we will be taking a look at the #7 song “How Can It Be” by Lauren Daigle. Overall I think the song is okay for Christians with solid Biblical foundation but it is sufficiently vague in all the right places to be dangerous for one whose doctrine is incomplete or shaky.

VEVO Lyric Music Video

Lyrics (via KLove Website)

How Can It Be

Lauren Daigle from the album How Can It Be (Single)

I am guilty
Ashamed of what I’ve done, what I’ve become
These hands are dirty
I dare not lift them up to the Holy one

Chorus
You plead my cause
You right my wrongs
You break my chains
You overcome
You gave Your life
To give me mine
You say that I am free
How can it be
How can it be

I’ve been hiding
Afraid I’ve let you down, inside I doubt
That You could love me
But in Your eyes there’s only grace now

Chorus
You plead my cause
You right my wrongs
You break my chains
You overcome
You gave Your life
To give me mine
You say that I am free
How can it be
How can it be

Bridge
Though I fall, You can make me new
From this death I will rise with You
Oh the grace reaching out for me
How can it be
How can it be

Chorus
You plead my cause
You right my wrongs
You break my chains
You overcome
You gave Your life
To give me mine
You say that I am free
How can it be
How can it be

Publishing: © 2014 Sony ATV Timber Publishing (SESAC) / Sony ATV Timber Publishing & Open Hands Music (SESAC) / Ponies Riding Shotgun (ASCAP
Writer(s): Words and Music by Paul Mabury, Jason Ingram and Jeff Johnson

Positive Elements

Okay, so for the Christian with solid Biblical foundation, this song points to a lot of Truth. If your doctrine is flawed, you’ll still find it very comforting but the “why” might be askew (I’ll expand on that later). For now, let us look at all of the great inferences that can be made by those who know what Scriptures say.

I am guilty. Confession. We are guilty. This guilt isn’t limited to what we’ve done, but extends to who we are as descendants of Adam, born into his sin. We are fallen, born dead in sins and trespasses.

Ephesians 2:1-3 (ESV) 1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath,like the rest of mankind.

Romans 3:20-25 (ESV)20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. 21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.

I dare not lift [these dirty hands] up to the Holy One. This line is more of a lie the enemy tells us, the condemnation he tries to lock us down in. As we saw in Romans 3:20, through the law comes knowledge of sin. There is a portion of scripture that the enemy might use to levy his condemnation on Christians, “I desire that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands”, thus blocking Christians from praying due to their unholy hands. But remember, the enemy is a liar and he twists scripture. Let’s turn to 1 Timothy 2.

1 Timothy 2:1-10 (ESV) | Pray for All People
1 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. 3 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. 7 For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth. 8 I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling; 9 likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire,10 but with what is proper for women who profess godliness—with good works.

Chorus. This is a positive because the song moves from this condemnation from the enemy right into the chorus where the singer is declaring the Truth of the Gospel (if we are assuming the “You” is Jesus Christ). I highlighted the Gospel portion in the passage above. You plead my cause (…there is one mediator between God and men), You gave your life (who gave himself as a ransom for all). The message of the Gospel is that Christ paid the penalty of our sin, and He who had no sin became sin in our place.

2 Corinthians 5:20-21 (ESV) 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

The second verse falls back into sharing some of the shared struggles we have with condemnation again, for the sins we commit. Again, the enemy seeks to break our worship and prayer by keeping us in despair thinking we’ve let God down. God knows our hearts… and His Word makes clear that He loved us even when we were lost sinners. Since our salvation is not a result of our works, it cannot be undone by our lack of perfection… it wasn’t our doing to begin with.

John 3:16-18 (ESV) | For God So Loved the World
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

By Grace we are saved, through faith. Whoever believes in Jesus Christ is not condemned. The bridge reflects back the availability of forgiveness and restoration when we fall. The “How Can it Be” reflects the Mystery of the Gospel.

1 John 1 (ESV) | The Word of Life
1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2 the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— 3 that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.

5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

Colossians 1:24-29 (ESV) | Paul’s Ministry to the Church
24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, 25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, 26 the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. 27 To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 28 Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. 29 For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

For the Christian who is firmly planted in the Word of God, this song brings to mind many a great promise of the work of Christ on the cross. However… for the one who lacks knowledge found only in the Scriptures…

Concerns

This song is vague. The Name of Jesus isn’t named. The only non-pronoun reference is “the Holy One”. Now, the line “you gave your life” helps narrow it down to a Christian message, for only Christianity grants the message of God laying down His life to save creation. While we pointed to several Gospel texts and asserted that various lines in the song made inferences to them, the song itself doesn’t explain any of it.

There is no repentance. The only hard claim is the first line I am guilty. Any subsequent reference to sin is emotive (a feeling of dirty, disappointment, shame) or softened (I fall, let you down). The only reference to the Holiness of God is couched in a sense of condemnation. In fact, if you throw out the sound doctrine of penal substitutionary atonement, you lose sight of the fact that Jesus took the full brunt of the Wrath of God as payment for our sin. What remains is a language of sin as though it is a person and our enemy directly, apart from the Holiness of God. You get a Joel Osteen-esque language of sin being a system of “mistakes” or “blemishes” that Christ died to clean up for us. An improper view of sin (Law) undermines the Mystery of the Grace of God in the Gospel.

Conclusion

I wish the song had been written more explicitly, naming the Name of Jesus and calling for repentance. The song is written vaguely enough to suggest that everyone is forgiven already because of Christ, and that our biggest problem is the feeling of guilt/condemnation. It is so close to the Truth… but not quite there. For the Christian, particularly the one with sound doctrine filling in the blanks, this song is great. I believe it only needed some minor additions or adjustments to stand on its own. The problem comes when we encourage Christians (and unbelievers) declaring them forgiven without calling them to repentance. This is a major problem in the visible church and a common issue with these top-20 songs.

To God be the glory, Amen.
In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

DiM | “Jesus Loves Me” by Chris Tomlin

Faithful Stewardship 2 Comments

Presentation1Today is “Discernment in Music” (DiM) day here at Faithful Stewardship.

2 Corinthians 10:4-6 (ESV)
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, 6 being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.

There has been a lot of movement in the Top 20 Charts. Today we will be taking a look at the #5 song “Jesus Loves Me” by Chris Tomlin. Overall, I think this is a nice chorus for Believers, but not a great song for evangelism to the unbeliever.

Official Music Video

Lyrics (via KLove Website)

Jesus Loves Me

Chris Tomlin from the album Love Ran Red

I was lost
I was in chains
The world had a hold of me

My heart was a stone
I was covered in shame
When He came for me

I couldn’t run, couldn’t run from His presence
I couldn’t run, couldn’t run from His arms

Jesus, He loves me, He loves me, He is for me
Jesus, how can it be, He loves me, He is for me

And it was a fire
Deep in my soul
I’ll never be the same

I stepped out of the dark
And into the light
When He called my name

I couldn’t run, couldn’t run from His presence
I couldn’t run, couldn’t run from His arms

He holds the stars and He holds my heart
With healing hands that bear the scars
The rugged cross where He died for me
My only hope, my everything

Publishing: © 2014 Worship Together Music / sixsteps Songs / S.D.G. Publishing (BMI) / 9T One Songs / Ariose Music (ASCAP) / SHOUT! Music Publishing (APRA)
Writer(s): Chris Tomlin, Reuben Morgan, and Ben Glover

Positive Elements

The Love of Jesus. The first thing that stands out in this song is that it is unambiguously declaring that Jesus Loves us. It begins with a confession that we are born with hearts of stone, covered in shame, and chained to the world.

Ephesians 2:1-10 (ESV) | By Grace Through Faith
1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Paul is reminding the Ephesians of what Christ has done for them and who they were before the Gospel of Jesus Christ came to them, they were dead. Similarly, Chris Tomlin’s song starts as a reminder for what we all were before we heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ and before that hearing granted us saving faith in Christ Jesus.

Now, yes, Jesus does love us and there is no running from His presence nor His arms. The context here is odd, because there is a past-tense “couldn’t” of being in His arms and in His presence that suggests this was a positive truth prior to conversion/salvation/Gospel of Jesus Christ. The fact that we cannot escape the presence of God is a comfort to Christians walking in Grace, but it’s not a comfort for those walking in darkness of rebellion. We’ll explore the concern side of this later. For now, let’s look at the assurance we have once we’ve encountered the Grace of God in His Gospel.

John 3:16-21 (ESV) | For God So Loved the World
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

John 10:24-30 (ESV) 24 So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 25 Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, 26 but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.”

Notice in the underlined portions point to the negative side of the inescapable presence of God. For the unbeliever, this is a judgement in that the one who rejects the Gospel stands condemned already, for we were all born condemned… dead in sins and trespasses. That is not to say that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is a mere litmus test whereby we can make a one-time check to see if someone is saved by God, but by God’s Grace those who believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ will be saved and those whose hearts are never penetrated by the Truth of God’s Word will continue in their condemned state and receive the due penalty of sin.

The Cross of Jesus. I was relieved to hear in the bridge the reference to the rugged cross of Jesus, where He died for our sin. On that cross, He atoned for the sin of mankind, so that all who believe in Christ might be saved.

Concerns

In this song, part of the message of the Gospel, the “brothers, what shall we do?” portion, is coded. Let’s look in Acts to see to what it is I’m referring, and then we’ll flesh it out in the song.

Acts 2:36-41 (ESV) 36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” 37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” 40 And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” 41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.

What is missing from the song is the call to Repentance. The conversion of the singer is coded in the second verse of the song

I stepped out of the dark
And into the light
When He called my name

Now the “when he called my name” can be lined up to Acts 2:37, “…when they heard this they were cut to the heart…”. The “I stepped out of the dark and into the light” is where I get concerned, do we do this? Is this the answer Peter gave? Repent and be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins… There are a couple of doctrines that attempt to explain what goes on “behind the scenes” of salvation that point to the “automaticness” of salvation based on election, but even those doctrines acknowledge the call to repent.

Luke 24:44-48 (ESV) 44 Then [Jesus] said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things.

Conclusion

Chris Tomlin writes many songs, choruses of praise and worship that are used in corporate worship. He is a premier figure in the Passion Conferences which focus on teens and college youth. Tomlin writes songs that are easy to sing along with as a congregation. He has written so many songs, all tend to be short and focused on an area of encouragement, worship, praise, or attitude. For corporate worship, the songs are not bad, but they rarely carry a full Law & Gospel message. If you are singing his songs in a church that teaches sound doctrine, where both Law and Gospel are rightly preached, then this song is a song of encouragement. But this song, on it’s own, doesn’t give the full Gospel, in that it doesn’t give the call or encouragement to Repent. When played on the radio, there is no reason to expect a context of balanced theology (although, I’d love it if more Christian Radio DJs intentionally balanced the song play for more complete theology), so outside of the Church setting, the song gives an incomplete picture, particularly to the unbeliever. You can’t “sell” the Gospel to the unbeliever by focusing on “all of the benefits” without presenting the Truth of the Law of God. That they are a sinner, born dead in sins and trespasses, and that they must repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand.

1 Peter 4:1-11 (ESV) | Stewards of God’s Grace
1 Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God. 3 For the time that is past suffices for doing what the Gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry. 4 With respect to this they are surprised when you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery, and they malign you; 5 but they will give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 6 For this is why the gospel was preached even to those who are dead, that though judged in the flesh the way people are, they might live in the spirit the way God does.

7 The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. 8 Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. 9 Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: 11 whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

To God be the glory, Amen.
In Christ Jesus,
Jorge