Unspoken – Start a Fire

Unspoken is an American band.  They became active in 2002 and released seven albums and one EP, including:

• Unspoken (EP, 2006)
• Get to Me (2012)
• The World Is Waking (2013)
• Unspoken (2014)
• Follow Through (2016)
• Just Give Me Jesus (2018)
• Reason (2019)
• Good News (2020)

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1. What message does the song communicate?

Unspoken drops subtle hints that this song is Christian.  He speaks of:

• Letting your light shine
• Little faith
• Only “You” can save
• Spirit

The totality of such statements drives Christians away from thinking of this as mere worldly advice.  Thus, Christians will likely think that this song is Unspoken’s advice for Christians to let the light of the Holy Spirit shine within them, enabling them to spread the good news about Jesus and His salvation to the masses.  Unspoken asks the Holy Spirit to rekindle the spark that drives them.

Score: 10/10

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

This song aligns with God’s inspired Word.

Lyrics posted with permission.*

[Verse 1]

This world can be cold and bitter
Feels like we’re in the dead of winter

More specifically, it’s a spiritually dead world devoid of obedience to Christ (John 3:36, Romans 5:12-15, Romans 8:13, Ephesians 2:1-3, Ephesians 2:1-2, Ephesians 4:18, Ephesians 5:8, Colossians 2:13, 2 Thessalonians 1:9, 1 John 5:12, Revelation 2:11, Revelation 20:6, Revelation 20:14-15, and Revelation 21:8).

Waiting on something better
But am I really gonna hide forever?

A rhetorical question with an obvious answer: no.

Over and over again
I hear Your voice in my head
Let Your light shine, let Your light shine for all to see

This is the voice of God that reminds Unspoken of Matthew 5:16.

[Chorus]

Start a fire in my soul
Fan the flame and make it grow
So there’s no doubt or denying
Let it burn so brightly
That everyone around can see
That it’s You, that it’s You that we need

That is, a burning desire to tell others about Jesus (Matthew 28:18-20).

Start a fire in me

Essentially repeats line 1.

[Verse 2]

You only need a spark to start a whole blaze
It only takes a little faith
Let it start right here in this city
So these old walls will never be the same

Small faith can move mountains (Matthew 17:20, Matthew 21:21, and Mark 11:23).

Over and over again
I hear Your voice in my head

Repeats Verse 1, lines 5 and 6.

They need to know
I need to go

See commentary on Chorus.

Spirit won’t You fall on my heart now

That is, Unspoken’s desire for the Holy Spirit to guide them (Psalm 143:10, Luke 12:11-12, Acts 20:22, Romans 8:14, Romans 8:26-27, 1 Corinthians 2:13, Galatians 5:16-18, and Galatians 5:25).

[Bridge]

You are the fire You are the flame

Points to Acts 2:3.

You are the light on the darkest day

He is the light that drives out darkness (Psalm 107:10-16, Luke 1:79, John 1:1-13, John 12:46, Ephesians 5:8, Colossians 1:13, and 1 Peter 2:9).

We have the hope we bear Your name
We carry the news that You have come to save
Only You can save

The hope that Unspoken has in Jesus is the Gospel (Matthew 11:28-30, Romans 5:1-8, Romans 8:24-39, Romans 15:13, 1 Corinthians 15:54-58, and 1 Peter 1:3-6) that they spread to others (see commentary in Chorus).

[Outro]

You are the fire You are the flame
You are the light on the darkest day

Repeats Bridge, lines 1 and 2.

Start a fire in me

Repeats Chorus, line 7.

Score: 10/10

3. How would an outsider interpret the song?

I’m struggling to decide if it’s likely that unbelievers will see this as Christian or merely spiritual.  Unspoken speak of “faith” and the “Spirit”, which are both religious terms.  This makes mere worldly interpretation difficult to justify.

The phrase “let Your light shine” is where I’m on the fence.  Will they recognize this as Christian?  I’m not sure.  Then there’s the matter of saving.  What are we being saved from and to?  Verse 1 answers this partially.  We are saved apart from carnal living.  What are we saved to?  The song doesn’t tell us.

Finally, there is the matter of “You”.  Who is it and why do we need them?  Unless unbelievers somehow recognize “let Your light shine” from Scripture or that “Spirit” is the Holy Spirit, it’s more likely they will see “You” as a spiritual guide and not the Holy Spirit.

Score: 5/10

4. What does this song glorify?

It glorifies the Holy Spirit as Unspoken’s guide who magnifies the spark that will cause Unspoken to preach Jesus to the masses.

Score: 10/10

Closing Comments

Unspoken’s Start a Fire is best for believers. Unspoken uses subtle clues such as “let Your light shine”, faith, and the Spirit that allows Christians to piece together its interpretation. Namely, Christ-followers should desire to tell others about Jesus. Unbelievers will struggle to interpret similarly unless they happen to be familiar with Christian terminology.

This song is inspirational, but not appropriate for corporate worship.

Final Score: 9/10

Artist Info

Track: Start a Fire (listen to the song)

Artist: Unspoken

Album: Unspoken

Genre: Pop

Release Year: 2014

Duration: 3:05

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*Copyright © 2013 Centricity Music Publishing (ASCAP) CentricSongs (SESAC) (adm. at CapitolCMGPublishing.com) All rights reserved. Used by permission.