Sovereign Grace Music – Lord, Have Mercy

Church-lead worship albums seem to be popular these days.  Most are familiar with Hillsong, Bethel, and Elevation Worship.  However, much like Hillsong, Sovereign Grace Music started in the 1980’s!  They released a ton of albums throughout their 30+ year tenure (I counted 52).

Also, check out my reviews of Let Your Kingdom Come and Turn Your Eyes.

Side Note: During this review, I was curious about their Statement of faith and read all 60 pages.  This work of art is the most beautiful, sophisticated, and clear statement of faith that I’ve laid eyes on!  It is a breath of fresh air to those immersed in our present political landscape.

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?

We come before God’s throne, prostrated and contrite.  We confess sin and recognize our desperate need for a Liberator.  We ask Jesus, our God, Savior, and King, for forgiveness because only His sacrifice can erase our lawbreaking. Recognizing our undeserved mercy, we focus on Jesus and offer His praises, whose glory and lovingkindness are immeasurable and unmatched.

Score: 10/10

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

All of it lines up with the Bible.

Lyrics posted with permission.*

[Verse 1]

O God, we come before Your throne
And in our weakness, we confess
We go astray and sin each day
We cast ourselves upon Your grace

Sovereign Grace Music recognizes that we’re sinners in desperate need of God’s grace (Psalm 14:1-3, Psalm 53:1-3, Job 15:14, Ecclesiastes 7:20, Jeremiah 17:9, Romans 3:10, Romans 3:23, and 1 John 1:8-10).

I cannot argue for or against the claim that we sin daily.  However, Paul states that there’s a constant spiritual battle against sin.  He practices the sin that he hates (Romans 7:14-25).

[Chorus 1]

O Lord, have mercy on us
Sinners in need of grace
Forgive us our transgressions
And lead us in Your righteous ways

A prayer of contrition that includes repentance and faith in the atoning work of Christ to receive forgiveness (Matthew 3:2, Matthew 4:17, Mark 1:15, Luke 24:47, Acts 2:36-38, Acts 3:19-21, Acts 20:21, and 2 Timothy 2:25-26).  Sovereign Grace Music also asks Him to guide us towards righteousness (Psalm 5:8, Psalm 23:3, Psalm 143:8-10, Proverbs 3:6, Ephesians 2:10, and James 1:5).

God, lead us in Your righteous ways

Essentially repeats line 4.

[Verse 2]

The blood You shed has paid our debts
Jesus, You’ve washed our sins away
We trust Your grace, believe by faith
In You, we have all righteousness

This describes both portions of the “great exchange”.  Those who trust in Jesus, that His shed blood erased our certificates of sin-debt (Colossians 2:14) and washes it away (Ephesians 1:7, Hebrews 9:22, 1 Peter 1:2, and 1 Peter 1:18-19) receives the righteousness of God (Romans 6:1-11, Romans 7:4-6, Galatians 2:19-20, 2 Timothy 2:11, 1 Peter 2:24).

[Chorus 2]

O Lord, You’ve shown us mercy
Sinners are washed as saints
You’ve shown Your loving-kindness
Sons of disgrace are righteous made
Sons of disgrace are righteous made

Statements of gratitude for the things Christ did in Verse 2.

[Verse 3]

We fix our eyes on You, our prize
Jesus, the Author of our faith
Till You return or bring us home
You strengthen us to run the race

Combines Hebrews 12:2 with Philippians 3:14 and 1 Corinthians 9:24-27.  The race will continue until physical death.

[Chorus 3]

O Lord, forever faithful

As stated in Numbers 23:19, Deuteronomy 7:9, Psalm 33:4, Psalm 91:4, Psalms 119:90, Lamentations 3:22-23, 1 Corinthians 1:9, 1 Corinthians 10:13, 2 Thessalonians 3:3, 2 Timothy 2:13, Hebrews 10:23, 2 Peter 3:9, and 1 John 1:9.

All glory to Your name!

We magnify the name of God (Psalm 79:9-10, Psalm 115:1, Isaiah 48:11, Matthew 6:13, and Revelation 4:10-11).

We have no other Savior
Our great Redeemer, God and King
Jesus, Redeemer, God and King

Only Jesus can save us (John 14:6, Acts 4:12, 1 Corinthians 3:11, and 1 Timothy 2:5-6), who is our God (Isaiah 9:6-7, Isaiah 43:10-11, Matthew 1:23, Matthew 9:1-8, Mark 2:1-12, Luke 5:17-26, John 1:1-3, John 1:14, John 5:17-18, John 8:23-25, John 8:28, John 10:30-33, John 14:9, John 20:28-29, Philippians 2:5-6, Colossians 1:16-19, Colossians 2:8-9, Titus 2:13, 1 Timothy 6:14-16, Hebrews 1:10-12, Revelation 1:8, and Revelation 22:13) and King (
Isaiah 9:6, Isaiah 11:10, Micah 5:2, Matthew 2:1-6, John 12:15, John 18:37, 1 Timothy 6:13-16, Revelation 17:14, and Revelation 19:11-16).

O Lord, forever faithful
All glory to Your name!
We have no other Savior
Our great Redeemer, God and King
Jesus, Redeemer, God and King

Repeats lines 1-5.

Score: 10/10

3. How would an outsider interpret the song?

This song is thick with Christianese language and references to God, Jesus, Savior, and sinner, all of which easily point to a Christian worldview.  Yet, it’s everyday enough for unbelievers to easily comprehend it.  While the word “sin” might be seen as error, Chorus 2’s line “Sons of disgrace” explains what it means, making it difficult to misinterpret.

Score: 10/10

4. What does this song glorify?

It glorifies Jesus as our Savior, whose sacrifice makes forgiveness of sins possible.

Score: 10/10

Closing Comments

Sovereign Grace Music’s Lord, Have Mercy is amazing.  Its language is sophisticated, beautiful, and theologically deep, describing mankind’s need for salvation, Jesus’ offering of forgiveness through His blood, and our response to worship Christ as Redeemer, God, and King, bringing Him glory.  Yet, it’s simple enough that those who are not yet followers of Jesus can easily follow its message.  This rare combination of obvious Biblical references understood by Christians and non-Christians alike is the gold standard for modern worship.

I recommend it for corporate worship in the highest way possible.

Final Score: 10/10

Artist Info

Track: Lord, Have Mercy (listen to the song)

Artist: Sovereign Grace Music

Album: Prayers of the Saints (Live)

Genre: Contemporary Christian Music (CCM)

Release Year: 2017

Duration: 5:51

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

*Copyright © 2017 Sovereign Grace Worship (ASCAP) Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI) (adm. at CapitolCMGPublishing.com) All rights reserved. Used by permission.

Updates:

03/25/2021 – Updated per repetition announcement.