I love finding new music for the church. The dilemma, though, is that there is SO much of it to sift through. The other dilemma is that so much of it is actual really good now! But, I don’t want to settle for “really good.” I want to settle for the best new music for the church possible. I wanted to spend some time each week introducing you to a new song that I’ve found that I think is one of the best to introduce to the local congregation. Here’s the criteria I use when I’m evaluating new songs:
- First, and most importantly, do the lyrics teach and proclaim specific truths of God’s nature and His Word? And, as a follow-up, does it fill any holes in our current hymnody that we might be missing (such as songs specifically about the Holy Spirit, the Trinity, etc)
- Secondly, is it singable by the average attender? (this might be answered differently, depending on the make-up of your church body)
- Third – and this is very important to us as a congregation – can it be sung by a multi-generational church body? I want our songs to be able to be sung easily by four-year-olds to ninety-four-year-olds
- Third – can my team(s) play it? (again, this will be answered differently based on what your worship teams look like)
So, with those in mind, here’s my favorite new (or new-to-me) song I’ve come across recently, and it is fantastic.
Confession of Sin, Declaration of God’s Mercy, Wrapped in One
But God, written by Michael Bleecker, Hunter Hall and Lauren Chandler, begins with a strong confession of sin:
“Oh, how great the weight of sin that lured my wicked soul, bound with chains and numb to every hope…my hell-bound home assured.”
The worshiper is faced with the declaration that we are hopeless in our sin. Then, however, there are these two wonderful words: “But God.”
“But God, rich in mercy, made a way. By grace I have been saved, through faith I have been raised, only by the blood of Christ.”
The song goes on to then repeat the declaration of “We were called from the dark, and now we stand in glorious light: Jesus, Savior, King.
I love the combination of law and Gospel within this song, and the ability to strongly declare that God’s love is stronger than our sin.
Recordings and Charts
Purchase the song on iTunes here or enjoy listening to the full recording on Spotify below. You can find the chord chart for the song zipped up with the rest of the songs from the album here.
Question: What new songs have you discovered recently that you think should be introduced to the Church?