There's a good chance you've heard a song written by Integrity Music newcomer Corey Voss. He has been involved in writing and singing several standout songs, including Selah's "I Got Saved" and "God Who Moves the Mountains" by Jaci Velasquez along with his own songs "Canyons," "How Great" and "Nothing but the Blood." Corey's songs have blessed me in my time of worship. My Pastor read the lyrics of "How Great" to end our Good Friday church service: "Your Blood that stained the ground is where my hope is found, Your scars caused by my sin is where my life begins. How great is Your Love. How great is Your Love for me." Amen.

Corey's new album Songs of Heaven and Earth recently released, and I've been worshipping with this album in my personal time of praise and adoration with the Lord. Every thought and lyric in this album is rooted in Scripture, which I admire. I had the chance to speak with Corey Voss about his song "Praise the King."

Please tell me the personal story behind the song.

I've led this song a number of times, and I love leading the song as it's one of my favorites. Every time I lead the song, I feel like I get a new perspective on it. I wrote "Praise the King" three years ago with Michael Farren and Dustin Smith on a songwriting retreat. I brought the chorus idea with me to the retreat without verses or a bridge. Michael and Dustin loved it, and we decided to finish the song together. 

Michael sat at the piano and came up with the opening, "there's a reason why the curse of sin is broken." Instantly we knew we were going somewhere. We felt excitement to keep going, and we wrote the verses. Dustin had the idea for the bridge, which was something he was working on for another song. I made the comment that this sounded like an Easter song, and Michael said it's an everyday song. We got to lead the song the same day we wrote it at the house where we were staying. It was an instant connection, and everyone caught on to it really quickly. I had originally recorded the song for my first album, and we recorded a new live version of the song for this album.

Which Bible verses connect to the message of the song? 

Romans 8:35 (VOICE): "So who can separate us? What can come between us and the love of God's Anointed? Can troubles, hardships, persecution, hunger, poverty, danger, or even death? The answer is, absolutely nothing."

Romans 8:11 (VOICE): "If the Spirit of the One who resurrected Jesus from the dead lives inside of you, then you can be sure that He who raised Him will cast the light of life into your mortal bodies through the life-giving power of the Spirit residing in you."

1 Corinthians 15:54-55 (NKJV): "So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: 'Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death where is your sting?"

Mark 16:6 (NKJV): "But He said to them, "Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him."

Matthew 28:6 (NKJV): "He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay."

Luke 24:6 (VOICE): "He is not here. He has risen from the dead. Don't you remember what He told you way back in Galilee?"

1 Corinthians 15:12 (VOICE): "Now if we have told you about the Anointed One (how He has risen from the dead and appeared to us fully alive), then how can you stand there and say there is no such thing as resurrection from death?"

1 Corinthians 15:13-14 (NKJV): "But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty."

2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV): "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."

What is the takeaway message?

The Gospel accounts of when Mary is told, "He is not here. He is risen," is where the chorus is drawn from. The bridge comes from 2 Corinthians 15 where it says "O death, where is your victory? O death where is your sting?" That is so powerful to declare. I've read that passage many times, and I honestly didn't really feel like I had grasped the full reality that Jesus has defeated death. That's something I think of consistently when I lead this song. The power of His resurrection and the same power that raised Jesus from the dead is the same power that lives in us. 

One of the themes on the album is the promises of God. The last song on the album is "You Promised." Honestly I was going through a very hard time in my life when I wrote that song. It was the song I needed to sing in that season where I was struggling to see the outcome of God's promises. I know what God has promised, and I hadn't been seeing those promises. I've received a lot of good feedback about that song. It's a reminder that God is all-sufficient, and He will surely be the same. We can take Him at His Word. 

There's power in words. The more I declare the truths of these songs, the more I've lived them out in my life. The love of God won't let me stay the same. Every time I have a failure or challenge, God is helping me learn to overcome. When we sing these words, it starts to sink in from your head to your heart.

Lyrics:
There's a reason why the curse of sin is broken
There's a reason why the darkness runs from light
There's a reason why we stand here now forgiven
Jesus is alive

There's a reason why we are not overtaken
There's a reason we sing on through the night
There's a reason why our hope remains eternal
Jesus is alive

Praise the King, He is risen
Praise the King, He's alive
Praise the King, death's defeated
Hallelujah He's alive
Hallelujah He's alive

There's a reason why our hearts can be courageous
There's a reason why the dead are made alive
There's a reason why we share His resurrection
Jesus is alive

Praise the King, He is risen
Praise the King, He's alive
Praise the King, death's defeated
Hallelujah He's alive
Hallelujah He's alive

The grave could not ignore it
When all of heaven's roaring
Hell, where is your victory
Death where is your sting
The world could not ignore it
When all the saints are roaring
Hell, where is your victory
Death where is your sting

The grave could not ignore it
When all of heaven's roaring
Hell, where is your victory
Death where is your sting
The world could not ignore it
When all the saints are roaring
Hell, where is your victory
Death where is your sting

Praise the King, He is risen
Praise the King, He's alive
Praise the King, death's defeated
Hallelujah He's alive
Hallelujah He's alive
Hallelujah He's alive
Hallelujah He's alive

The album is filled with catchy and inspirational songs for the Church. Although traditionally worship songs are written in first person thanking God for what He has done for us, in Old Testament Psalmist style, Voss has written and recorded many of these songs based on New Testament Scripture references and theology. These "Songs of Heaven and Earth" bless me in my personal and corporate times of worship. This song and album offer glimpses of the authentic reality of life and our experiences and the highs and lows of life. Things don't always go as we want or even how we pray for God to work in our lives. The message of this song challenges us to think about our own doubts and how Jesus calls us to rely on Him and the power of His resurrection, to remember that He has overcome death and fear. That's cause to celebrate!

Many of us feel that we're not worthy of being near God and that He's using a checklist to determine our worthiness. That's not the Gospel. The Good News of the Gospel, which this song perfectly portrays, is that God accepts us despite what we feel about ourselves. Fear is how the Enemy tries to keep us from truly living in Christ. This song beautifully captures the freedom we can have from fear and death by assenting to what we know is true as followers of Jesus: "There's a reason why our hearts can be courageous. There's a reason why the dead are made alive. There's a reason why we share His resurrection, Jesus is alive." The song sings about some reasons we can live free from the bondage of sin, aligning with the biblical phrase from Isaiah, "Come, let us reason together," by joining in sharing the Good News that Jesus is alive!

This song is a great way to thank Jesus for the undeserved gift of grace which we celebrate at Easter. Grace could stand for God's Riches At Christ's Expense. "He became sin Who knew no sin, that we might become His righteousness." As we celebrate Resurrection Day, you can believe these words when you sing along and proclaim with all of your heart, "He is risen!" There's something about this great song that immediately ushers in a Spirit-filled and anointed offering and response to Jesus. It is a song which the worldwide church can sing along with and loudly proclaim to each other, and to Jesus: "Praise the King, He is risen, Praise the King, He's alive, Praise the King, death's defeated, Hallelujah He's alive, Hallelujah He's alive." Amen to that!

Watch the music video below.