Bethel Music has introduced and developed several amazing worship leaders, including Brian and Jenn Johnson ("Holy Forever"), Kristene DiMarco ("It is Well"), Paul and Hannah McClure ("Jesus We Love You"), Josh Baldwin ("Made for More"), and Melissa and Jonathan David Helser. They have introduced churches to their songs "One Thing Remains," "Forever," "You Make Me Brave," "No Longer Slaves," "Seas of Crimson" and "This is Amazing Grace."
From my first listen, I was worshipping along with Bethel Music's song "The Church." Bethel's songs are a great way to invite listeners into a place of worship. The new album, We Must Respond, is sonically and lyrically refreshing. God is exalted and the depth of His love is celebrated in every single song. This is truly soul-nourishing worship. The engaging musical arrangements are among the many attractions to savor about this soothing and sincere worship song. I had the chance to speak with Jenn Johnson about her infectious new worship song, "The Church."
Please tell me the personal story behind this song.
"The Church" is about God's heart for the global church. It highlights the importance of the church as a collective body, rather than just an individual building or organization. This song was inspired by a desire to capture and communicate God's presence. This involves a call to ascend to a higher place to encounter God, and then to come back down and share that encounter with others. "The Church" is also musically inspired by the beauty of God's creation, reflecting a sense of awe and wonder. The song's purpose is to encourage people to respond to God's call and participate in the global church.
We wrote this song at a songwriting retreat in Dallas with a few members of UPPERROOM and Passion City Church. We didn't plan on writing this song. As they are both beautiful expressions of the church, I suggested we write a song together. As friends, sitting in a room together as worship leaders, it became obvious that we have learned to love each other and each other's church movements, and this song was birthed and the lyrics flowed out from us and it is an echo of what's already in God's heart, the beauty of His Church. The body of Christ, with Jesus as the head, has its parts, and our joke is that Bethel is probably the armpit, but we are all needed. Jesus is the head and we all can work and celebrate together.
Which Bible verses connect to the message of the song?
1 Corinthians 15:3-4 (VOICE): For I passed down to you the crux of it all which I had also received from others, that the Anointed One, the Liberating King, died for our sins and was buried and raised from the dead on the third day. All this happened to fulfill the Scriptures; it was the perfect climax to God's covenant story.
John 15:4-5 (VOICE): Abide in Me, and I will abide in you. A branch cannot bear fruit if it is disconnected from the vine, and neither will you if you are not connected to Me. I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you abide in Me and I in you, you will bear great fruit. Without Me, you will accomplish nothing.
John 17:21 (VOICE): Father, may they all be one as You are in Me and I am in You; may they be in Us, for by this unity the world will believe that You sent Me.
Romans 15:6 (VOICE): In this unity, you will share one voice as you glorify the one True God, the Father of our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One, our Liberating King.
Ephesians 4:3 (VOICE): Make every effort to preserve the unity the Spirit has already created, with peace binding you together.
Hebrews 10:10 (NKJV): "By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all."
John 3:11 (VOICE): "I tell you the truth: we speak about the things we know, and we give evidence about the things we have seen, and you choose to reject the truth of our witness."
Colossians 1:24-26 (NKJV): "I now rejoice in my sufferings for you and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God, the mystery which has been hidden from ages and generations, but now has been revealed to His saints."
What is the takeaway message?
Something that prevents people from seeing the full beauty of God and His Church is pride. Thinking they have the corner on the market of what God is doing keeps us from unity. We cried together and celebrated the beauty of what we all believe. We are calling for unity for the greater Church. The Bible verse that says "if they are not against you, they are for you" is found in Mark 9:40 and that connects to the message of this song. The heart posture of helping the body of Christ is what this song is about.
We Must Respond is a declaration -- the believer's commitment to live active, surrendered lives that reflect the glory of God. This relationship of response is breathtakingly beautiful. We bring everything to the Lord -- our joy and our pain, our victories and our struggles. Ezra 3:11 reminds us of the sacred rhythm of response: "And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord, 'For He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever.'" In moments of joy and triumph, our response is praise. But even in moments of brokenness, we are invited to draw near. This is who we are, and this is the privilege of responding. We must respond when we think about His presence, His goodness, love, mercy, salvation, and the simple fact that we're breathing, our hearts are filled with gratitude He is our everything, and we can't help but respond to Him and give Him our worship.
Lyrics
For the different ways we see You, for all the ways You move
All the colors and expressions, oh the beauty of Your Church
What a masterful reflection, when we are unified
Truly celebrate each other and let go of our pride
That You would have a spotless bride
Oh praise the Father, praise the Son
Holy Spirit, make us one
Every nation, tribe and tongue
This is our cry, Your Kingdom come
We surrender our agendas, our preferences, our plans
Would You help us work together to be Your feet and hands
Our heart is just to know You, to show them who You are
The Gospel's still the answer for every searching heart
Brothers, sisters under the banner of Your Name
Mothers, fathers under the banner of Your Name
All Your children, all for the glory of Your Name
For every story of revival, every miracle we've seen
It's a glimpse of what is coming, so by faith help us believe
And we know the day is coming when we will see Your face
Every knee will bow before You and every heart will say
Lord hear our cry, Your will be done
This is our cry, Your Kingdom come
Closing Thoughts
Clearly, some truths that we can rally behind as believers in Christ together is that God is Our Father sent His Son Jesus to die for our sins, and He rose again and defeated death. We can all say Hallelujah and celebrate those truths together while singing along, "For every story of revival, every miracle we've seen/It's a glimpse of what is coming, so by faith help us believe/And we know the day is coming when we will see Your face/Every knee will bow before You and every heart will say."
The enthusiasm and energy of this song is infectious. The message challenges listeners 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 reason to celebrate and gives Christians everywhere the faith to believe and tell the world, "Brothers, sisters under the banner of Your Name/Mothers, fathers under the banner of Your Name/All Your children, all for the glory of Your Name."
If you've ever felt that lack of peace and uneasiness, you know that God often works through that uneasiness in order to disturb us, unsettle us, and open us up to something new. So many believers still struggle with the idea that we have to prove ourselves worthy before God. Paul tells us in his letter to the Colossians that we need to rejoice in our sufferings as they bring us closer to Christ.
Christians are new creations on the inside. The Holy Spirit gives us new life, and we don't have to live any more with our guilt, fears, or worries. We are born again, and we need to live as children of God. Too often we get wrapped up in our circumstances and get down on ourselves with negative thoughts, allowing the Enemy to define self-worth. Jesus died on the Cross to set us free from the battle of our minds, from sin and death, and He wants us to have abundant life in Him. What a wonderful, encouraging truth. I find myself frequently singing the unifying chorus: "Oh praise the Father, praise the Son/Holy Spirit, make us one/Every nation, tribe and tongue/This is our cry, Your Kingdom come."
These songs were written from a place of reflecting on what it means to be one body of Christ as Christ is One with the Father and Holy Spirit. The project is intended to lead listeners to that place also. I'm both challenged and entertained, and I love hearing Scripture proclaimed in fresh and exciting ways. Every song is emotionally stirring and rooted in the Truth of God's Word.
This worship anthem is just the type of infusion that the church needs with its honesty and bold lyrics. This song is all about the celebration of God's mercy in forgiving us and as Christians, we need to pay it forward.
If the spirit of mercy is a basic element in Christian faith, then the expression of mercy is an integral part of faith. This expression of mercy constitutes faith in action. Once we acknowledge the words of this song and say yes, and Amen, we shouldn't think highly of ourselves because we are saved by the blood of Jesus, but instead we should lower ourselves to serve others and help be the hands and feet of our Savior in our words and actions.
What if we lived as though we believe the sincere words of this song? Jesus loves us so much that He came down and took our punishment so that we can be with Him forever. We can rest on Hebrews 10:10 (NKJV): "By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." Be free and know with certainty: "We surrender our agendas, our preferences, our plans/Would You help us work together to be Your feet and hands/Our heart is just to know You, to show them who You are/The Gospel's still the answer for every searching heart." Amen to that.
NRT lead contributor Kevin Davis is a longtime enthusiast and dedicated collector of Christian music. He attributes the message of Christian music to guiding him to Christ. He lives in Pennsylvania with his wife and three daughters.
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