Photo by Ravi Roshan
It is interesting to see how various artists’ Berean Test reviews congregate.Ā Given that this is my seventh Elevation Worship review, some of you must really like them!Ā Or, perhaps, you like what I have to say about their music.Ā Whatever the case, your request to review Resurrecting will join the ranks of Hallelujah Here Below, Jesus I Come,Ā Do It Again,Ā Here Again,Ā Yours (Glory and Praise), and O Come to the Altar.Ā
Also, they recently released their new project At Midnight, which includes their single See A Victory.Ā It might be worth checking out!
Note to new users: This is a different kind of review site!Ā ReadĀ About the Berean TestĀ andĀ Evaluation Criteria prior to reading this review.Ā IĀ strongly encourageĀ you toĀ considerĀ theĀ potentialĀ blessings andĀ dangersĀ ofĀ this artistās theology by visitingĀ Resources.
1. What message does the song communicate?
Elevation Worship chose to pair historical events with its figurative usage on many occasions.Ā It is a beautiful contrast of thought, with obvious references to Scripture that I discuss in more detail in section 2.
The two primary subjects of this song are Christ and man:
- Christ, who served man and humbled Himself on the cross, paid for our penalty and defeated death via resurrection.Ā He was, is, and will be glorified.
- Spiritually dead man are made alive, worshipping Jesus for His sacrifice because He is worthy.Ā We depend on Him for our internal peace and His Holy Spirit lives within us.
Score: 10/10
2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?
All of it agrees with God’s inspired Word.
Lyrics posted with permission.*
[Verse 1]
The head that once was crowned with thorns
Historically, Jesus was crowned with thorns by the Roman soldiers (Matthew 27:27-29, Mark 15:16-17, and John 19:2-5).
Is crowned with glory now
Figurative usage to describe Christ’s glory, as quoted in Hebrews 2:9.
The Savior knelt to wash our feet
Personalizes Jesus’ washing of His Apostles’ feet in John 13:1ā17.Ā It shows Christ’s attitude as a servant, to which was His purpose (Matthew 20:28 and Mark 10:45).Ā The way Christ “washes our feet” is through the cross.
Now at His feet we bow
We, along with every other knee (Philippians 2:10).
[Verse 2]
The One who wore our sin and shame
He paid the penalty for our lawbreaking (Isaiah 53:1-12, Matthew 20:28, Mark 10:45, John 1:29, John 3:16, John 19:30, Acts 4:12, Acts 20:28, Romans 5:6-10, Romans 6:23, 1 Corinthians 1:30, 1 Corinthians 6:20, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Galatians 1:3-4, Galatians 3:13, Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 2:14, 1 Timothy 2:6, Titus 2:14, Hebrews 9:12, Hebrews 9:15, Hebrews 9:22, Hebrews 9:26, 1 Peter 1:17-21, 1 Peter 2:24, 1 Peter 1:18-19, 1 John 1:7, 1 John 2:1-2, and Revelation 5:9).
Now robed in majesty
Quotes from Psalm 93:1 and applies it to Jesus, who is God, and…
The radiance of perfect love
Now shines for all to see
…God is light (Psalm 27:1, Psalm 119:105, Psalm 119:130, Matthew 4:16, John 1:1-8, John 8:12, Ephesians 5:14, James 1:17, 1 Peter 2:9, 1 John 1:5-7, and Revelation 21:23).
[Chorus]
Your name, Your name
Is victory
That is, it is through the name of Jesus by which all men may be saved (Acts 4:8-12).Ā The victory is over death (Isaiah 25:8, Hosea 13:14, Luke 20:35-36, 1 Corinthians 15:24-26, 1 Corinthians 15:55-57, 2 Timothy 1:10, and Hebrews 2:14).
All praise, will rise
To Christ our king
See Verse 1, line 4.
Your name, Your name
Is victory
All praise, will rise
To Christ our king
Repeats lines 1-4.
[Verse 3]
The fear that held us now gives way
The wages of sin is death; eternal separation from God (Romans 6:23, Revelation 2:11, Revelation 20:6, Revelation 20:14-15, and Revelation 21:8).
To Him who is our peace
Is is through Him by which we may attain internal peace (John 14:27, John 16:29-33, Romans 5:1, Ephesians 2:14-15, and Colossians 3:15).Ā Christ did not come to give us external peace (Matthew 10:34-36), but the manner in which we may have it depends on us (Romans 12:18) as an outward expression of our internal peace.
His final breath upon the cross
Is now alive in me
The same Holy Spirit who lived in Jesus (Matthew 12:22-32) lives in us (Acts 6:5, Romans 8:9-11, 1 Corinthians 3:16, 1 Corinthians 6:16-19, Galatians 4:6, Ephesians 5:18, and 2 Timothy 1:14).
[Bridge]
By Your spirit I will rise
From the ashes of defeat
Acknowledges Christ as the source of victory.Ā See commentary in Chorus, verse 1 and 2.
The resurrected King, is resurrecting me
Christ rose from the dead (Matthew 28, Mark 16, Luke 24, John 20, Acts 1:3, Acts 3:15, Acts 4:33, and 1 Corinthians 15:3-8) and reactivates life within spiritually dead people (Romans 6:1-11, Romans 7:4-6, Galatians 2:19-20, 2 Timothy 2:11, and 1 Peter 2:24).
In Your name I come alive
To declare Your victory
Our purpose in having our spiritual light awakened is, in part, to tell others about Jesus (Matthew 28:18-20).
The resurrected King, is resurrecting me
Repeats line 3.
By Your spirit I will rise
From the ashes of defeat
The resurrected King, is resurrecting me
In Your name I come alive
To declare Your victory
The resurrected King, is resurrecting me
Repeats lines 1-6.
By Your spirit I will rise
From the ashes of defeat
The resurrected King, is resurrecting me
In Your name I come alive
To declare Your victory
The resurrected King, is resurrecting me
Repeats lines 1-6.
[Verse 4]
The tomb where soldiers watched in vain
Was borrowed for three days
Jesus’ lifeless body was buried in Joseph of Arimathea’s tomb (Matthew 27:57-61 and John 19:38-42).Ā Borrowed is a great word!
His body there would not remain
Our God has robbed the grave
Our God has robbed the grave
He rose from the dead (Matthew 28, Mark 16, Luke 24, John 20, Acts 1:3, Acts 3:15, Acts 4:33, and 1 Corinthians 15:3-8)!Ā This line often comes with thunderous applause.
Score: 10/10
3. How would an outsider interpret the song?
The various references to Christ, resurrection, and cross makes it easy for outsiders to Christianity to conclude a Christian message intended for believers.Ā However, it also contains heavy usage of christianese, which may somewhat bog down the more general concepts for unstudied unbelievers.
Score: 8/10
4. What does this song glorify?
Jesus, through their proclamation of the Gospel message.
Score: 10/10
Closing Comments
Elevation Worship’s Resurrecting comes loaded with a poetic, theological goody bag.Ā It provides explicit details of the Gospel message, both from the perspective of Christ and man, and how they relate to one another.Ā Though it does contain an extra, unecessary Bridge and may be hard at times for unbelievers to follow, its message is clear for believers and bring God glory.
This song is better suited for churches that do not identify as “seeker-friendly”.Ā Its heavy theological terminology might be confusing to the unstudied.Ā Also, given the controversial nature of God “robbing the grave”, for the sake of unity, worship leaders may want to look elsewhere.
Final Score: 9.5/10
Artist Info
Track: Resurrecting (listen to the song) (buy the song)
Artist: Elevation Worship
Album: Resurrecting (EP) (buy the album)
Genre: Contemporary Christian Music (CCM)
Release Year: 2019
Duration: 4:24 (studio), 7:47 (live)
Agree?Ā Disagree?Ā Don’t be shy or have a cow!Ā Calmly and politely state your case in a comment, below.
*Copyright Ā© 2016 Music by Elevation Worship Publishing (BMI) (admin at EssentialMusicPublishing.com). All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Updates:
04/23/2024 – Updated commentary on conclusion by adding a new sentence at the end.
09/14/2021 ā Per Artist Theology announcement, I expanded the red text to encourage others to study Elevation Worship’s theology.
03/24/2021 ā Updated perĀ repetition announcement.Ā I increased section 1’s score.Ā This did not affect my overall rating.
Comments
Peter T
Scripture does not teach that he is “resurrecting” us, but rather that we are already raised in Christ (Eph 2, Col 3, Rom 6), though not yet bodily (1 Cor 15). We are raised in the inner man, but not yet in the outer man (2 Cor 4). Nowhere does the Bible use the word “resurrecting”. Certainly, we are being sanctified (you can say “he is sanctifying me”), but never that I am being slowly resurrected. In fact, the amazing basis of our hope of our ongoing sanctification is that we have already died and been raised! Why not keep sinning that grace may abound (Rom 6)? We already died to it and have been raised (not yet bodily)! Consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus! In other words, it’s not just a small issue, but part of the basis of our hope.
Name required
I take issue with God being called a robber. That is a sin that means to take unlawfully. The scripture is clear we are bought and paid for with the precious blood of Christ. My God is not a robber, and I would wonder who they are referring to when they claim that their god is.It is very concerning how many Christians this passes with. It should really stick out like the sore thumb it is, and it implies a lack of knowledge of God and His spirit that we want see this. Thank you for your reviews, although I do not agree with this one. Popular often means wide path, not narrow.
Johnny
This some sounds great, but in actuality it is at best theological wrong, at worst itās heresy. Jesus did NOT rob the grave he conquered it. Do imply otherwise is to demean his sacrifice and itās meaning in redemption.
patK
I like your site. This is my first comment, and maybe the first time I’ve disagreed with you.
It’s certainly true that believers are HAVE BEEN raised with Christ (Col 3:1) and that we WILL enjoy a FUTURE resurrection (Heb 6:1-2), but talking about resurrection as a CURRENT process is – at best – strange wording for being alive in Christ.
I also agree with the others who don’t prefer colloquialisms like “robbed the grave” in songs that are otherwise mostly straightforward. It undermines the theology.
Tim
I agree with PatK. I can’t in good conscience sing that Jesus “is resurrecting me”. There’s no scriptural basis for resurrection being an ongoing process. As Pat explained with scriptural references, resurrection is both past and future, and we currently experience new life with Jesus seated with him in the heavenly places (Eph 2:6). But none of that means that we are currently being resurrected in any sense of the term. I think your review needs an update.
Vince Wright
Patk,
Sorry for the late response! I missed this one until Tim replied and I realized I hadn’t responded.
According to 1 Corinthians 15:31, it says that Paul “died daily”, referring to dying to sin. To Paul, putting sin to death is a daily process, where he sometimes fails (Romans 7:14-25). In sin’s place is the newness of life, where we carry our cross daily and follow Jesus (Luke 9:23). This latter piece of the sanctification process is where I think Elevation Worship references “resurrecting me”.
See https://penningtonagvoice.wordpress.com/2016/05/03/the-resurrected-king-is-resurrecting-me/ for more information.
-Vince Wright
patk
Vince, I think that’s a fair response, but it points to what brought me to your site in the first place. With so much current music (especially Elevation) I continuously find myself saying, “Gosh, it depends what they mean by that.(e.g. “you didn’t want Heaven without us”). It’s entirely possible that the songwriter was thinking as you suggest but it’s also possible that he/she liked the sound of the lyrics, or ran out of good ideas, or a dozen other things.
I find Steven Furtick to be theologically sloppy so my starting point with Elevation Worship is skeptical (maybe unfairly so). In writing his thoughts on “Reckless Love,” Piper reminded me that, Wesley penned that Christ “emptied himself of all but love,” which isn’t exactly true but that hymn has been a favorite of mine since my early days as a Christian.
I suppose my very strong bias is for Getty/CityAlight stuff – plain, true, clear.
Daniel Konatham
So I see some people arguing about how the rising up from the ashes is a free-mason term and that this song is satanic, can you clarify what they mean, and what would you say to someone who says this?
Vince Wright
Daniel,
Great question! I admit that I don’t know anything about freemasonry or about what they teach today. To make that argument could potentially be a case of the genetic fallacy, depending on the focus on its origins or modern-day context. I would be at a disadvantage and simply ask the questioner what they meant and some source material to examine for myself.
According to dictionary.com, it means “Emerge as new from something that has been destroyed, as in A few months after the earthquake large sections of the city had risen from the ashes. This expression alludes to the legendary phoenix, a bird that supposedly rose from the ashes of its funeral pyre with renewed youth.” This seems to be the “modern-day context” that Elevation Worship uses rather than freemasonry.
This would be my immediate thought process to anyone who makes that argument. I regret that I cannot explain the freemason version of “rising up from the ashes”.
-Vince Wright
mrodi
I think there is a major issue with verse 4. God did not rob the grave, He defeated it. Robbery or stealing is sin, and God definitely cannot sin.
Also, the soldiers guarding the tomb were paid to say the disciples stole the body of Jesus.
I would substitute this line for āOur God has conquered the graveā to make it much more theologically sound.
Vince Wright
mrodi,
Thank you for your comment! This about it this way.
Stealing in the literal sense is about property, whether physical or intellectual. It is taking that which does not rightfully belong to you, without the expressed permission of the owner. Jesus’ soul is not property is it? At least, not literally.
What, then, does it mean to “rob the grave”? This is figurative statement describing a resurrection. Under normal circumstances, death and the grave gets to “keep” the souls of those who are dead. Yet, it was “robbed” of at least one, namely, Jesus. There is no sin involved.
I am uncertain what the soldiers becoming paid to lie has to do with them watching the grave of Jesus in vain. Perhaps you could help?
-Vince Wright
mrodi
That is a helpful way to think about it.
I didnāt do a good job of explaining my point about the soldiers.
The soldiers were paid to lie and say that the disciples stole the body. That story was spread among the people. The song says that God ārobbed the grave.ā I think people could associate God ārobbing the graveā with the disciples stealing Jesusā body. For that reason, I think ārobbedā is a clumsy word that doesnāt fit the situation well. Of course, the disciples did not steal the body. Jesus was resurrected from the dead.
Vince Wright
mrodi,
Thanks for your clarification! I understand your perspective; However, the song explicitly states that God was responsible for it, not the Disciples. I can’t imagine that many people would associate “God robbed the grave” to mean that the Disciples were acting on God’s behalf to steal it. It’s an interesting possibility, but I doubt its commonplace existence.
-Vince Wright
jmitch
I also take issue with verse 4 and this idea of God robbing the grave. It also comes up in Citipointe Worship’s song “Mover of Mountains.” I agree with the earlier comment that robbing does indeed imply stealing, which is a sin. But a further issue I have is that God robbing the grave seems to also imply that He somehow cheated death. There is a good article here (https://gospelreminders.org/2018/02/05/did-god-rob-the-grave/) that discusses this issue further and better than I can here. If Jesus somehow cheated death then the resurrection has been cheapened. The author of the mentioned article also brings up the comment that using the word “rob” can categorized as “unhelpful speech.” It’s not edifying in any way.
I was really surprised to see you were okay with this type of speech after reading several other reviews of yours. You took issue and gave great thought to the use of “reckless love” and you brought in some great comments from Keith and Kristyn Getty about lyrical integrity. I thought for sure you would also bring in a more thoughtful discussion about this terminology and am a little disappointed you didn’t!
Vince Wright
Jmitch,
Thank you for your challenge and forgive me for disappointing you!
In one sense, you are right. If we were to interpret this as “cheated death”, then it would certainly cheapen the resurrection and completely compromise the entire Christian faith. However, in another sense, death was cheated not in a compromising fashion. As I had stated to mrodi, death didn’t get to keep Jesus. It was “robbed” another soul to which it has claimed for three days.
I agree with mrodi that “ārobbedā is a clumsy word that doesnāt fit the situation well”, so I should have taken some points away then. But, now that this came up again, I won’t let the opportunity pass by a second time!
Expect an update within the next week or so.
-Vince Wright
Steve Barhydt
There is another definition in the Merriam-Webster dictionary of “robbed” that no one has mentioned and is not so negatively orientated but I believe could apply to the phrase “Our God has robbed the grave”
2: to deprive of something due, expected, or desired
For example, “my neighbor’s noisy party ROBBED me of my sleep last night.”
I was expecting to sleep but was unable to because of my neighbor’s actions. Sleep was not something I “owned” but rather the anticipated outcome at the end of the day.
I Corinthians 15 explains that ever since Adam, death (and hence the grave) has been the expected outcome of every man…
22a For as in Adam all die
Even those who were miraculously raised from the dead died again. Life was temporary. Death eternal.
But with the resurrection of Christ, Who will never die again, those who put their faith in Him find that it is death that is temporary and Life that will be eternal.
22b even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
That is why Paul reaches his climax in 1 Cor.15
54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
To quote Benjamin Franklin “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” But in Christ death has been deprived of it’s expected sting and the grave deprived of it’s expected victory. One could go as far as the say that “Death and the grave has been robbed of their expected outcomes.”
Therefore, I don’t have a problem with the phrase, “Our God has robbed the grave” I don’t see that it in any way implies that Christ somehow “cheated death” In fact, the entire song is a testament to the reality of His death, burial, and resurrection (After all, the name of the song is ‘Resurrecting”) The phrase IS somewhat poetic but not without linguistic and scriptural support.
Vince Wright
Steve,
Thank you once again! This makes sense and aligns with my original argument, that death was “deprived of something due, expected, or desired”. Now that there’s good support for it, I’ll quietly reverse my update and leave the argumentation in the comments.
-Vince Wright
Deborah Meek
I cannot sing the phrase “our God has robbed the grave”. All meanings in the dictionary are negative including “to deprive of something due, expected, or desired”.
Robbed is an action verb depicting a negative outcome. I cannot say “our God has deprived me of the expected outcome of the grave”. I can sing “our God has conquered”. I find it interesting that the only phrase in the song I struggle with is the one that they put on the back of t-shirts for kids to buy. Their made-up phrase is a money maker.
Steve Barhydt
Deborah,
Two thoughts came to me from reading your comment…
First,
Had the songwriter used your phase “our God has conquered” and Elevation made t-shirts from it, would it still deserve your criticism “Their made-up phrase is a money maker.”?
Secondly, and far more importantly, I think you are missing the point.
The song is not saying āour God has deprived me of the expected outcome of the graveā.
I was not robbed, the GRAVE was!.
The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus makes it possible for the death, burial, and resurrection of everyone who has put their faith in Him.
Again from the Apostle Paul in 1 Cor. 15
54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
As the writer of Hebrews states in chapter 2 (ESV)
14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil,
15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.
YES, to borrow your words, “Robbed is an action verb depicting a negative outcome.” A negative outcome from the viewpoint of death and the grave! And a very negative outcome from Satan!!
If you cannot sing the phrase āour God has robbed the graveā, by all means, don’t sing it. I would never want someone to violate their own conscience (Romans 14:22-23)..
I would ask you, however, to make an honest and unbiased attempt to consider the offending phase, not in isolation, but in the context of the whole song; where, in my opinion at least, there is nothing linguistically or scripturally wrong with it.
Jeremy C. McKinney
You canāt rob what you already paid for in full and defeated.
Tyree Brown
This is exactly what I was thinking. I used to sing this song to the top of my lungs but when it gets to the part of saying āour God has robbed the graveā, my spirit doesnāt sit well with the song anymore
Durai Swamy
I agree that our God did not rob the grave. āOur God has conquered the graveā. saying āour God has robbed the graveā, my spirit doesnāt sit well with the song anymore.
Neal Cruco
Steve Barhydt made an excellent case for this line in an above comment, saying that “robbed” is used in the sense of “deprived of something due, expected, or desired”. That seems to be Biblical.
Allen Dill
As worship leaders, do we really want to depend on our congregation to dig for secondary definitions in Merriam-Webster to justify a song we like? Any time you hear of a grave robber, do you think of the grave being deprived of what it is due? No. You think about a person who has dug up and stolen a body that does not belong to them. In no way do I think Elevation is implying that God is a thief. I just think they used sloppy language in an effort to create a dynamic lyric.
David Huff
Isn’t it a bit outside your mission for criticizing can songs having two bridges instead of only one? What does 5hat have to do with sound aaa26064@gmail.com doctrine?
Vince Wright
David,
In section 2, yes, that would be outside the scope of a doctrinal review. In terms of sections 1, 3, and the implicit use of 4, no, I do not believe it is outside of scope in these sections.
-Vince Wright
David Huff
It’s a beautiful song that glorifies the Lord. I doubt if He’s anything but thrilled with the lyrics and those souls who come to know Him. Be blessed this Resurrection Day!
pathosbill
I really like this song. Quick comment: I notice you tend to look down upon a repeated bridge. (Of course, it depends on what version you listen to – Elevation Worship and some others lately are releasing multiple versions of the same song with different permutations of verse, bridge, instrumental, etc.) Personally, I often will repeat the bridge when I lead worship. I find that in congregational worship, people sing the bridge less, simply because they don’t know it – choruses are repeated, and verses at least share the same melody. The bridge becomes, in effect, a worship leader solo when it is not ever repeated. I would rather repeat more and have greater participation rather than an extra 60 seconds of self-expression. I know not everyone feels this way but wanted to throw in my two cents. š
Vince Wright
pathosbill,
Yes, I understand. When the Holy Spirit moves, sometimes a repeated Bridge (planned or spontaneous) is in order. However, from a purely academic standpoint, I find it annoying. But, I get where you are coming from.
Perhaps this is a good instance of “take the meat and throwaway the bones”. I hope to have provided some meaty substance to chew.
-Vince Wright
Steve Kuhn
A nice review tasteywallet. It’s a wonderful song, and it ticks all of your boxes. I had added this to my playlist a few months ago, so I was ahead of you for a change. š
Vince Wright
Steve,
I see, thanks!
-Vince Wright
Robert Benson
At the end of verse 2 it says āHis final breath upon the cross is now alive in me.ā Iām not sure how āHis final breath upon the crossā means the Holy Spirit. Could you explain how you came to that conclusion?