Worship Songs with Biblical Truth that have Made Me Worship to Tears
Today, there are thousands of beautiful worship songs with biblical truth available right in our hands. Every now and then God uses one of these songs to remind me of his presence or to teach me about himself. Here are just a few of those melodies and the scripture they are rooted in.
This song is one that leads us into personal worship by singing about how great God is and that he deserves all our praise. The first line of the chorus, “I won’t let the rocks cry out”, refers to the passage of scripture in Luke 19. During Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, when the disciples began praising God and recognizing him as the Messiah, the Pharisees instructed Jesus to rebuke his disciples because their praise made the religious teachers uncomfortable. Jesus tells the Pharisees in verse 40, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.” The stones were silent that day because the multitude was praising Jesus. The lyrics written by Jordan Smith, winner of The Voice season 9, imply that we should sing praise to the messiah so that the rocks can stay silent.
O Come to the Altar - Elevation Worship
This song serves as an invitation for sinners to come to Jesus as the relief and freedom from sin. O Come to the Altar is flooded with biblical truth and specific scripture references. Vince Wright outlines the biblical references in this song thoroughly and beautifully in this article: The Berean Test-Elevation Worship (O Come to the Altar). Wright states, “This song is an invitation for all who are broken, weary, and overwhelmed by sin to leave their regrets and mistakes by turning to the altar. Forgiveness came at the cost of the blood of Jesus. Jesus rose from the dead. Those who are forgiven may worship Jesus, bear their cross, and tell others about Him.”
Jesus, You Alone - Highlands Worship
I find that the most beautiful songs of worship are the ones that sing the name of Jesus. This song references Psalm 24:8 when singing of the Lord’s glory. references to the Lord’s mercy and compassion can be found in Luke 6:36, Romans 9:15-16, 1 Peter 1:3 and many others in scripture. It is stated that every knee shall bow and every tongue confess Christ is Lord in Romans 14:11 and Philippians 2:10-11. The list of references could continue throughout this entire song. This song celebrates and praises many incommunicable attributes of God the Son like Christ as ruler, creator, ultimate sacrifice, worthy of praise. While also highlighting the traits of Jesus that believers should also posses: resurrected, compassion, mercy, set apart, and holy. The last stanza contains lines of surrender to Christ that imply freedom when done so, “Worthy, I lift my voice and sing; Worthy, I bow my life to exalt Thee; Jesus, You alone”
Highlands (Song of Ascent) - Hillsong United
The parentheses in the title of this song are important for providing context for the song. Songs of Ascent are sung by pilgrims as they journey towards Jerusalem for important religious observations. Examples can be found in Psalms 120-134. These were sung on their pilgrimage to remind Jewish travelers of Spiritual Truths. An article published by Tawa Baptist Church does a great job of outlining the framework themes of this worship song into the hunger for God, the river of Grace, and the centrality of Christ. Hunger for God is addressed in the Lyrics “I would search and stop at nothing, You’re just not that hard to find.” Believers in Christ should be familiar with this hunger for Christ’s nearness that we thankfully do not have to starve for. In order to fill the God shaped hole in our heart, Grace is necessary and freely given. More importantly, grace is extended to us, not hidden for us to find or earn. The Lyrics, “you’re neither more or less inclined” indicated that God is not swayed to give grace by anything we do or don’t do. Because of this grace, He is worthy of our praise no matter what our circumstances are.
I cry nearly every time this song is played in a corporate worship setting. The themes of this song according Passion are commitment, dedication, prayer, & renewal. For me, this is a song of surrender. It a song about putting ones sinful self to death so that Christ can dwell within the heart of a believer. The main Scriptures referenced in this song are Romans 12:2, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Ephesians 2:10, Ephesians 5:1-2. More Like Jesus is about coming to Jesus, the perfect sacrifice, with a desire to be like him in every communicable way. We must understand that we are presented before the Father as holy and blameless not because of our perfection but because of the perfection of the Lamb who died in our place. The sacrifice was completed with His resurrection, so that we might serve a living God.
Soccer on the beach in Southern Madagascar following worship and Baptism in the Indian Ocean.
