Meredith Mauldin & UPPERROOM (Feat. Abbie Gamboa) – You Gave

Meredith Mauldin is most widely known as Android #18 in the Dragon Ball series.  She also voiced Maria Ross in both Fullmetal Alchemist animes.

She has written music for UPPERROOM and will release her solo debut EP with UPPERROOM , The Turning, on July 29th, 2022.

Also, check out my review of You Remain.

UPPERROOM is a church-based band, much with the same structure as Hillsong, Elevation Worship, and Bethel Music.  Their church of the same name is based in Dallas, Texas.

They released thirteen works, including:

• God You Are (2014)
• Live from Upper Room (2016)
• Made for More (2016)
• Center of Your Love (EP, 2017)
• Moments (2018)
• Moments II (2018)
• Moments: Color 003 (2019)
• Moments: Design 004 (EP, 2019)
• To The One (2019)
• Santo Espíritu (Te Amamos) (2020)
• Land of the Living (2020)
• Arbor (2021)
• Move Your Heart (EP, 2021)

Also, check out my reviews of Rest On Us, You Remain, You Satisfy, I Thank God, Move Your Heart, Getting Ready, and Surrounded (Fight My Battles).

Lyrics can be found at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1yhddI0PBGvgHJTdi3FDMVWDzD9nr3KezBaXsFX9FUx0/edit.

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?

Christ came to take away all our lawbreaking, despite our sinful nature and behavior contrary to His will.  It didn’t matter to Him what anyone else thought of His plan.  This was God’s plan A before the foundation of the world.  Though some think that Christ’s sacrificial scars are gross, Mauldin & UPPERROOM think they are beautiful because they represent His love for mankind.

Side Note: To those annoyed by massive repetition, Bridge and Alt. Bridge both repeat the same line eight times in a row.  Bridge shows up twice in this song, though only repeats six times in its second iteration.

Score: 10/10

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

The whole song is Scriptural.

[Verse 1]

Lines 1-4: Jesus came to take away all sins (John 1:29).  Aside from the unpardonable sin (Mark 3:22–30 and Matthew 12:22–32), which cannot be repeated today.  Chiefly, because it requires Jesus to perform miracles in his mortal body on earth, which won’t occur until He comes again (Matthew 24:43, Acts 1:9-11, 1 Corinthians 11:26, 1 Thessalonians 5:2-4, 2 Peter 3:10, Revelation 16:15, and Revelation 19:11-16).

[Chorus (1)]

Lines 1-3: That is, Jesus died for Mauldin & UPPERROOM while they were sinners (Romans 5:6-8).

[Verse 2]

Line 1: That is, Scripture doesn’t teach that human effort alone could make us perfect people.  If it could, then Jesus died in vain (Galatians 2:21).

Lines 2-4: God wasn’t afraid of what others might think of Him, that He would step down from heaven’s throne, become one of us, die for Mauldin & UPPERROOM (Philippians 2:5-8), and embrace them.  This last point is captured eloquently in Jesus’ Parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:20, where the father goes against cultural norms and embarrasses himself by showing his bare legs and running.  Besides, why should God care about what we think?  Nobody instructs Him (Isaiah 40:13, Romans 11:34-36, 1 Corinthians 2:16).  He planned this from the beginning (Matthew 25:34, Ephesians 1:4, Titus 1:2, 1 Peter 1:19-20, Revelation 13:8, and Revelation 17:8).

[Chorus (2)]

Lines 1-3: Repeats Chorus (1), lines 1-3.

Lines 4-7: Essentially repeats the same concepts as Chorus (1), lines 1-3.

[Bridge]

Line 1: Borrows from Isaiah 52:7 and Romans 10:14-15, that Jesus brings us the good news of the Gospel (Matthew 4:23, Matthew 9:35, Matthew 24:14, Mark 1:14-15, Luke 4:43, and Luke 16:16).

Lines 2-8: Repeats line 1.

[Alt. Bridge]

Line 1: As shown to Thomas in John 20:27, the spear that thrust Jesus’ side and nail marks on His hands are beautiful because they represent His sacrifice for sins (see Verse 1, lines 1-4).

Lines 2-8: Repeats line 1.

Score: 10/10

3. How would an outsider interpret the song?

Unbelievers will think that Jesus came for Mauldin & UPPERROOM, despite their failures.  Mauldin & UPPERROOM are grateful for Christ’s loving sacrifice, calling His scarred body “beautiful”.  Why Jesus? The word “Cross” appears in the song’s opening line.  Also, in the audio portion “You” is explicitly stated as “my Jesus” between Bridge and Alt. Bridge.

Though I normally dock a point when artists don’t explain the meaning of “sin”, Mauldin & UPPERROOM call it “brokenness” in Chorus.  It’s not just mere mistakes as those outside Christianity typically believe.

Score: 10/10

4. What does this song glorify?

It glorifies Jesus, declaring that sin and shame can be forgiven.  Jesus paid a terrible price for redemption, not caring if others mock Him for it.  His message and scarred body are alluring to Mauldin & UPPERROOM, who received them graciously.

Score: 10/10

Closing Comments

Meredith Mauldin & UPPERROOM’s You Gave is a great song.  It reminds us that God values us so much that He was willing to pay a terrible price on the cross.  Though He knew we broke His laws and are unworthy of His forgiveness, He was willing to purchase our redemption.  We love His Gospel message and are grateful for His loving sacrifice.  Unbelievers should easily interpret similarly.

I highly recommend this song for corporate worship.

Final Score: 10/10

Artist Info

Track: You Gave (listen to the song)

Artist: Meredith Mauldin & UPPERROOM (Feat. Abbie Gamboa)

EP: The Turning

Genre: Contemporary Christian Music (CCM)

Release Year:  2022

Duration: 8:55

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Updates:

07/18/2022 – Added missing Final Score section in Closing Comments.