Joel Vaughn – Love Has Come

It’s that time of year again, when we resist the urge to overindulge (again), attempt to avoid overspending on Christmas gifts, and remember that Jesus is the reason for the season.  It also means a fresh slew of Christmas reviews.  I’m starting with Joel Vaughn’s Love Has Come, requested by one of its producers.

Joel Vaughn is an American Christian artist, whose musical genres are diverse.  He’s done Contemporary Christian, pop, electronic dance music, and rock.

He became active in 2005, though not releasing his first work until 2009.  He released three albums and four EPs, including:

• Bigger Than Me (EP, 2009)
• Don’t Give Up (2010)
• In the Waiting (2014)
• Joel Vaughn (EP, 2015)
• Kinetic (EP, 2016)
• Surrender (EP, 2017)
• Control (2018)

The lyrics to this song are currently unavailable.  I’ll add them once they are online.  In the meantime, try listening to the audio.

Note to new users: This is a different kind of review site!  Read About the Berean Test and Evaluation Criteria prior to reading this review.

1. What message does the song communicate?

Vaughn finds it incredible that the Sovereign Lord thought that we were worth His sacrifice.  He became one of us and died for sinners who don’t deserve His favor.  Yet, Vaughn is grateful for Jesus’ wonderful acts of grace, praising Him for it.

Score: 10/10

2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?

The entire song aligns with God’s inspired Word.

[Verse 1]

Lines 1-5: Though not recorded in Scripture, the night is called “Holy” (or set apart) because Christ was born on it.

Vaughn cannot comprehend why the King of the universe would step down from His throne to become one of us (Philippians 2:5-7), except to say that it was His plan from the beginning (Isaiah 9:6).

[Verse 2]

Lines 1-3: Unlike Saul and David, who both had glorious coronation ceremonies (1 Sam 10:17-27 and 1 Chronicles 12:1-40), Jesus’ birth did not contain a large gathering of men.  Instead, there was the heavenly hosts who praised God (Luke 2:13-14) and shepherds who visited Jesus (Luke 2:8-20).  The Magi didn’t visit Jesus until He was older (Matthew 2:1-12).  Based on Matthew 2:16, Jesus was most likely 2 at this time.

Lines 4-6: See Verse 1, lines 1-5.

[Pre-Chorus (1)]

Lines 1-4: While it was love that drove Jesus to pay for sinners (Romans 5:6-8), much less become one of us to make the payment, Vaughn finds this incredible.  By “I can’t believe”, Vaughn is not saying he doesn’t believe it, but that he can’t comprehend it.

[Chorus]

Line 1: Latin for “Glory in the highest to God”. These are the words the angels say in the first half of Luke 2:14.

Line 2: This is so, because God is love (1 John 4:8).

[Verse 3]

Line 1: Undeserved favor is offered to us based on the shedding of Christ’s blood (Hebrews 9:22), requiring Jesus to humble Himself (Philippians 2:8).

Line 2: Jesus practices what He preaches in Luke 14:25-33.

Lines 3 and 4: Vaughn shows gratitude for the great exchange offered to him (Romans 6:1-11, Romans 7:4-6, Galatians 2:19-20, 2 Timothy 2:11, and 1 Peter 2:24), which started with His birth and ended with His sacrifice.

[Pre-Chorus (2)]

Lines 1 and 2: Vaughn surrenders to God (Psalm 43:5, Isaiah 64:8, Matthew 10:38, Matthew 11:28-30, Matthew 16:24, Mark 8:34-38, Mark 10:28, Luke 9:23, Luke 14:27, John 15:1-11, Romans 6:13, Romans 12:1-2, Galatians 2:20, Philippians 2:5-8, Hebrews 11:6, James 4:7-10, and 1 Peter 5:6).

Lines 3 and 4: Savior is a title of Jesus (Isaiah 45:21-22, Hosea 13:4, Luke 1:47, Luke 2:11, Acts 13:23, 1 Timothy 2:3, Titus 2:13-14, and 1 John 4:14).

Line 5: This is the message that Vaughn sings.

Score: 10/10

3. How would an outsider interpret the song?

Those outside the camp of Christ will see words like “sinner”, “stable”, “cross”, and “Christ”, and conclude that it’s a Christian Christmas song with elements of Easter.  They should easily draw similar conclusions as I’ve stated in section 1, except that the word “sinner” has a different meaning in unbelieving circles.  Most think it means “people who make mistakes” as opposed to “people who violated the laws of a holy God”.  This makes it more difficult for them to connect their lawbreaking as the reason why Jesus needed to die for them.

Score: 8/10

4. What does this song glorify?

It glorifies God that, though Vaughn is perplexed by Jesus’ sacrifice, is grateful that Jesus loved him enough to go through with it.

Score: 10/10

Closing Comments

Joel Vaughn’s Love Has Come is Biblical.  I always appreciate it when artists tie the Christmas story to the cross, showing that Easter is really the reason for the season, not the mere birth of the Savior.  Though Christ’s humble birth and death on the cross bewilders Vaughn, he ultimately believes the message and surrenders to God, bringing Him glory.  While some believers might not understand this connection, they will see that this song is a Christian message important to followers of Jesus.

This song is appropriate for corporate worship.  Seeker-sensitive churches should consider explaining what “sinner” means before worshipping with this one.

Final Score: 9.5/10

Artist Info

Track: Love Has Come (listen to the song)

Artist: Joel Vaughn

Album: N/A

Genre: Christmas, Contemporary Christian Music (CCM)

Release Year: 2022

Duration: 4:34

Agree?  Disagree?  Don’t be shy or have a cow!  Calmly and politely state your case in a comment, below.