Photo by Mika Brandt
Israel Houghton started his career in 1997 with the release of his first album Whisper It Loud, credited as Israel & New Breed. He has 16 albums credited to his name, including Real, A Timeless Christmas, and The Power of One. Many of them are live, including Live From Another Level, Alive in South Africa, and A Deeper Level.
Houghton received several awards for his work, including eleven Dove’s, six grammy’s, and two Stellar’s.
Check out my reviews of Friend of God and Going To Another Level.
Darlene Zschech is a former Hillsong worship pastor. She is best known for her hit song Shout to the Lord. It received numerous Dove nominations and was performed on American Idol in 2008 and for Pope Francis in 2015.
She also released several solo albums, including:
- Make the Choice (1987)
- Pearls & Gold (1993)
- Kiss of Heaven (2003)
- Change Your World (2005)
- Simply Darlene (2011)
- You Are Love (2011)
- Revealing Jesus (2013, live)
- Here I Am Send Me (2017, live)
Also, check out my reviews of Worthy is the Lamb, Victor’s Crown, and Shout To The Lord.
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. I strongly encourage you to consider the potential blessings and dangers of this artist‘s theology by visiting Resources.
1. What message does the song communicate?
Christ fights and defeats the darkness within us. He also carries our load, grants us resurrection power, gives us an unshakable Kingdom, and heals us spiritually.
Houghton and Zschech err when they state Jesus’ sacrifice covers over sin. According to Scripture, it is animal sacrifices that cover sin and Christ’s that remove transgressions.
Although Houghton and Zschech do not explain what Jesus overcame, many Christ-followers will put the pieces together to ascertain He overcame death and that “darkness” is lawbreaking.
Score: 8/10
2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?
Most of it aligns with God’s inspired Word. Houghton and Zschech are incorrect when they say Jesus’ sacrifice cover over shame. His crucifixion removes it.
Lyrics posted with permission.*
[Verse 1]
God is fighting for us
God is on our side
He has overcome
Yes He has overcome
What is God fighting and what has God overcome? The first question is addressed in Bridge. The second is not addressed in the lyrics; However, Christians will understand that Jesus overcame 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), connecting this to Chorus, line 2.
We will not be shaken
We will not be moved
This is so because we depend on the solid rock foundation that is Jesus (Deuteronomy 32:4, 1 Samuel 2:2, 2 Samuel 22:47, Psalm 18:31, Psalm 28:1, Psalm 62:2, Psalm 94:22, Psalm 118:22, Isaiah 28:16, Matthew 7:24-27, Matthew 21:42, Acts 4:11, 1 Corinthians 3:10-11, Ephesians 2:20, 2 Timothy 2:19, and 1 Peter 2:6).
Jesus You are here
This is so because Jesus is omnipresent (1 Kings 8:27, Psalm 139:7-12, Proverbs 15:3, Jeremiah 23:23-24, Colossians 1:17, and Hebrews 4:13).
[Verse 2]
Carrying our burdens
Christ asks us to cast our burdens onto Him (Matthew 11:28-30).
Covering our shame
This is incorrect. Under the Old Testament, sins were covered through animal sacrifice. According to Leviticus 4:20, the Hebrew word for “atonement” is transliterated as “kaphar”, which means “to cover over”. This is confirmed in Hebrews 10:4, which teaches us that sins were not removed by animal sacrifices. Jesus’ sacrifice does not cover our shame, but removes it completely (John 1:29 and 1 John 3:5).
He has overcome
Yes He has overcome
We will not be shaken
We will not be moved
Jesus You are here
Repeats Verse 1, lines 3-7.
[Chorus]
I will live, I will not die
The resurrection power of Christ
Alive in me and I am free
In Jesus’ Name
The same power that rose Jesus from the dead (Matthew 28:1-20, Mark 16:1-20, Luke 24:1-12, John 20:1-29, Acts 1:3, Acts 3:15, Acts 4:33, and 1 Corinthians 15:3-8) will raise Houghton and Zschech out of our spiritual deadness into His freedom (Romans 6:1-11, Romans 7:4-6, Galatians 2:19-20, 2 Timothy 2:11, and 1 Peter 2:24). There is no other name other than Jesus by which this transformation is possible (Acts 4:12). Also, He lives within Houghton and Zschech (Galatians 2:20).
NOTE: These next four lines begin during Chorus’ second iteration.
I will live, I will not die
Repeats line 1.
I will declare and lift You high
Christ revealed and I am healed
Houghton and Zschech will tell others about how God changed them, fulfilling the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).
In Jesus’ Name
Repeats line 4.
[Bridge]
God is fighting for us
Repeats Verse 1, line 1.
Pushing back the darkness
Lighting up the Kingdom
That cannot be shaken
This answers the first question posed in Verse 1. Jesus’ light fights the darkness within us and bring us (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). He brings us unto an unshakable Kingdom (Hebrews 12:28).
In the Name of Jesus
Enemy’s defeated
What is the enemy? Judging from the rest of these lyrics, it could either be death or darkness. If it’s death, I commented on it in Verse 1, lines 3-4. If darkness, see commentary on lines 2-4.
And we will shout it out
Shout it out
See Chorus, lines 6 and 7.
God is fighting for us
Pushing back the darkness
Lighting up the Kingdom
That cannot be shaken
In the Name of Jesus
Enemy’s defeated
And we will shout it out
Shout it out
Repeats lines 1-8.
Score: 8/10
3. How would an outsider interpret the song?
Unbelievers will immediately recognize this song as Christian. It explicitly uses the words “Jesus”, “Christ”, “God”, and “resurrection”, all of which are pointers to the Christian worldview. While Christians ascertain the Gospel, that Jesus came to bring a new Kingdom and through Christ’s sacrifice and subsequent resurrection, we may enter, these pieces aren’t laid out in an accessible format that will make sense to those outside Christianity. Jesus carrying our burdens and that we’ll live are attractive to those considering Christianity; However, to an unbelieving audience, this song could explain better that darkness is man’s lawbreaking.
Score: 6/10
4. What does this song glorify?
While Christ is glorified through His resurrection power that shifts us out of darkness and into His Kingdom, it could improve by correcting its error that Jesus’ sacrifice removes sins rather than merely covers over them.
Score: 8/10
Closing Comments
Israel Houghton & Darlene Zschech’s In Jesus’ Name has room for improvement. While it glorifies Jesus as it describes His power to raise us out of darkness, errs when it states that Jesus’ sacrifice covers sin rather than removes it. Unbelievers will also find it easier to ascertain the Gospel of the Kingdom of God that Jesus preached to the masses if darkness were explained as lawbreaking.
These reservations make it difficult for me to recommend this song for corporate worship.
Final Score: 7.5/10
Artist Info
Track: In Jesus’ Name (Live) (listen to the song)
Artist: Israel Houghton & Darlene Zschech
Album: Revealing Jesus
Genre: Rock
Release Year: 2013
Duration: 9:59
Agree? Disagree? Don’t be shy or have a cow! Calmly and politely state your case in a comment, below.
*Copyright © 2013 Integrity Worship Music (ASCAP) Darlene Zschech Co-Pub (APRA) Integrity’s Praise! Music (BMI) Sound Of The New Breed (BMI) (adm. at CapitolCMGPublishing.com) All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Updates:
09/14/2021 – Per Artist Theology announcement, I expanded the red text to encourage others to study Darlene Zschech’s theology via Hillsong.
03/23/2021 – Updated per repetition announcement.
Comments
racefangurl
If the worship leader said removing instead of covering, is it easier to recommend it for non seeker sensitive worship?
Vince Wright
racefangurl,
Great question! Probably not.
-Vince Wright
racefangurl
So somebody should sing it in their personal retreat/private praise whichever you prefer to call it with my tweak (covering swapped for removing), due to the vagueness regarding the darkness?
Vince Wright
racefangurl,
Thank you for your comment!
I think you’re combining two different ideas. My chief complaint is about the wrong word chosen for what Christ did for us, that is, His sacrifice removed our sins. Sin covering is an Old Testament concept under an old covenant system, which no longer applies to us.
Jesus overcoming darkness and what that means is something that Christians will immediately recognize, but the way Houghton laid it out, I thought that unbelievers wouldn’t “get it” without a deep study of the Bible.
These are two separate issues; However, if you want to (in your mind) change “cover” for “remove”, then go ahead! Not everyone is spiritually mature enough to take the meat and spit out the bones, which is why I hesitate to recommend it for corporate worship, although if “cover” is changed to “remove”, then I might have a different opinion.
-Vince Wright
Derek Keener
Can covering be considered as something that refers to payment, considering the previous line.
Carrying our burdens
Covering our shame
Christ died to carry our burdens and to cover the payment required to remove our sin (shame).
Vince Wright
Derek,
Thank you for your comment!
I see where you’re going with this. This word has a similar application in the stock market, where shares are shorted (sold without owning them) and bought back to repay the debt. If that is what the artist meant, perhaps they could have used a more clear word or phrase such as “Paying for”.
-Vince Wright
Derek Keener
When I made my earlier comment, I’m thinking of Psalm 85:2, where cover is used as another word for forgiveness of sins, as in covered by the blood of Christ.
Quoting Clarke’s Commentary, “As thou hast freely FORGIVEN it, its offensiveness and abominable nature no longer APPEAR. The whole is put OUT OF SIGHT; and, as we are restored from our captivity, the CONSEQUENCES no longer APPEAR.”
Meanwhile in Whedon’s Commentary, “Covered – A Levitical term signifying to atone, expiate; for when God covers sin he cancels it. This view presents sin in its legal answerableness.”
Vince Wright
Derek,
Thank you for your response!
This commentary is fascinating!
Psalm 85:2 uses two different words in the same Verse.
The first is “nasa or nasah”, which means “to lift, carry, take”, according to Strong’s Concordance. NASB translate it to “forgive” in several places, including Genesis 50:17, Exodus 10:17, Exodus 32:32, Exodus 34:7, Numbers 14:19, Joshua 24:19, and 1 Samuel 25:28 (among other places).
The second is “Kasah”, which means “to cover”, according to Strong’s Concordance. The NASB translates it in many different ways, including closed, clothed, conceal, cover(s), engulfed, hidden, overwhelmed, and take refuge. Only once does it translate it to “forgive”, and that’s in Nehemiah 4:5 (see https://biblehub.com/hebrew/strongs_3680.htm for the entire listing).
Psalm 85:2 tells us that God both covered and forgave sin. He concealed it and removed it. As we both know, removing it was on the basis of Christ’s sacrifice, which, for the Psalmist, hadn’t happened yet. However, according to Hebrews 10:4, animal sacrifices do not remove sin, implying that it merely covers overit.
My contention is that by stating “covering”, it points us back to the Old Testament sacrifices which only cover over sin. By saying “Covering our shame”, the artist is unwittingly saying that Jesus’ sacrifice covered over sin and does not remove it.
Perhaps I’m overthinking this or overreacting based on my studies on Old Testament Vs. New Testament covering/removal of sins, but hopefully, my explanation helps you understand why I maintain my criticism.
-Vince Wright
Michael Ramsey
Where did you get the lyrics from? I could be wrong, but I though the line was “THE enemy’s (enemy is) defeated”. With that in mind, at some level that she could be referring to both death and darkness.
Vince Wright
Michael,
Thank you for your comment!
I got it from Genius; However, when hearing the link that I provided, I don’t hear the word “the”, not that its omission changes anything in terms of my review.
-Vince Wright