Photo by israel palacio
Contemporary Christ artist Phil Wickham was 18 years old when he began his career in 2002. Since then, he released nine albums, including:
- Give You My World (2003)
- Phil Wickham (2006)
- Cannons (2007)
- Heaven & Earth (2009)
- Response (2011)
- The Ascension (2013)
- Children of God (2016)
- Living Hope (2018)
- Christmas (2019)
He received a Dove award in 2019 for Worship Recorded Song of the Year for his song Living Hope.
Also, check out my reviews of Tethered, The Secret Place, Messiah / You’re Beautiful, Christ Is Risen, Your Love Awakens Me, Great Things, Living Hope and This is Amazing Grace.
Lyrics can be found at https://genius.com/Phil-wickham-battle-belongs-lyrics.
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?
Wickham sometimes focuses on the wrong things. He will think about his circumstances where he’s in darkness, and without hope. By praying, he reorients his focus on God instead of issues, allowing God to become the victor for him. He is Wickham’s spiritual fortress and defense who trades Wickham’s lawbreaking for His uprightness.
One minor concern is Wickham’s statement that God will “win every battle”. While it’s true that God is victorious over many things, including sin, death, disease, and a host of other things, that doesn’t mean that we won’t struggle. We should expect to experience tribulation and hardship on account of Christ. Yes, He will be there with us, and yes, He will help us wade through the dark shadows of life. On some occasions, He will heal by faith. However, He says “no” to others, which could be seen as a “lost battle” instead of a fight where God chose not to participate.
Score: 9/10
2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?
All of it is Biblical.
[Verse 1]
Lines 1 and 2: While Wickham often focuses on his problems, God sees people who are more than conquerors (Romans 8:37) whose faith can move mountains (Matthew 17:20, Matthew 21:21, and Mark 11:23).
Lines 3 and 4: Psalm 23:4 speaks of those who are fearless walking through the valley of the shadow of death because God is with them. Wickham should not fear his circumstances because God is on his side (Genesis 15:1, Joshua 1:9, Deuteronomy 31:6, 1 Chronicles 28:20, Psalm 23:4, Psalm 27:1, Psalm 34:4, Psalm 56:3-4, Psalm 94:19, Psalm 115:11, Psalm 118:6, Isaiah 35:4, Isaiah 41:10-13, Isaiah 43:1, Isaiah 54:4, John 14:25-27, Romans 8:15, Romans 8:38-39, 2 Timothy 1:7, Hebrews 13:5-6, 1 Peter 3:13-14, 1 Peter 5:6-7, and 1 John 4:18).
[Chorus]
Lines 1 and 2: That is, prayer is Wickham’s weapon of choice (2 Corinthians 10:4 and Ephesians 6:18). His eyes are fixed on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2).
Line 3: God is the victor of warfare (Romans 8:37, 1 Corinthians 15:57, 2 Corinthians 2:14, 1 John 5:4-5, and Revelation 12:10-11).
Lines 4 and 5: Wickham experiences sorrow in the night, expecting joy to come in the morning when he prays (Psalm 30:5).
Line 6: Repeats line 3.
[Verse 2]
Line 1: Quotes from Romans 8:31, substituting “us” for “me”.
Line 2: As written in Genesis 18:14, Jeremiah 32:17, Jeremiah 32:27, Zechariah 8:6, Matthew 19:26, Mark 10:27, and Luke 1:37 with the understanding that logical contradictions don’t count (e.g.; a married bachelor).
Line 3: Though Wickham often sees an ugly heart that is deceitful and desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9), God sees a heart worth saving, trading beauty for ashes (Isaiah 61:3). This is a prophecy that points to Jesus’ great exchange, that is, Wickham’s sin for His righteousness (Romans 6:1-11, Romans 7:4-6, Galatians 2:19-20, 2 Timothy 2:11, and 1 Peter 2:24).
Line 4: While Wickham often focuses on the death of Christ, God’s focus is on the resurrection. Outside the resurrection, there is no hope for mankind (1 Corinthians 15:14-17).
[Bridge]
Line 1: That is, God is our spiritual defense (Ruth 2:12, 2 Samuel 22:3-4, Psalm 3:3, Psalm 5:11, Psalm 18:30, Psalm 27:1, Psalm 32:7, Psalm 34:22, Psalm 41:2, Psalm 46:1, Psalm 57:1, Psalm 59:1, Psalm 61:3, Psalm 91:1-16, Psalm 118:8, Psalm 121:7-8, Psalm 138:7, Proverbs 18:10, Proverbs 30:5, Nahum 1:7, 2 Thessalonians 3:3, and 1 John 5:18).
Line 2: See Verse 2, line 1.
Line 3: God 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).
As for the second part, yes, in every battle that God engages in, He won’t lose (see Verse 1, lines 1 and 2); However, just like Psalm 103:3 doesn’t mean everyone will be healed now, God winning every battle doesn’t mean that God will participate in all fights at the moment. Eventually, us Christians will experience victory, when we are taken into New Jerusalem and will no longer experience pain (Revelation 21:4).
Line 4: Repeats line 2.
Lines 5-12: Repeats lines 1-4.
[Outro]
Line 1: Repeats Chorus, line 3.
Score: 10/10
3. How would an outsider interpret the song?
Despite its heavy reliance on Biblical imagery, unbelievers should arrive at the same basic conclusion, that God brings victory to those who pray and trust in Him. The cross and empty tomb are dead giveaways that it’s a Christian song.
My concerns about “Win every battle” in section 1 are more pronounced for unbelievers, who may walk away from Jesus when their prayers (battles) aren’t answered in the affirmative (won).
Score: 8/10
4. What does this song glorify?
While this song glorifies God as the victor of spiritual battles, some can take it the wrong way, that God lost when He doesn’t say “yes” to prayer, veiling His glory.
Score: 9/10
Closing Comments
Phil Wickham’s Battle Belongs is a good song with a small concern. I applaud Wickham’s message of fighting battles through prayer, surrendering control to God allowing Him to win out fights. This brings God glory. However, for some, it may cause them to reconsider Christianity when God doesn’t answer their prayers with a “yes” that they expected, that He “wins their battle” on their terms.
I can recommend this song for corporate worship provided there’s an explanation on the meaning of “win every battle”.
Final Score: 9/10
Artist Info
Track: Battle Belongs (listen to the song)
Artist: Phil Wickham
Album: PW*7
Genre: Rock
Release Year: Song released in 2020, album unreleased
Duration: 4:48
Agree? Disagree? Don’t be shy or have a cow! Calmly and politely state your case in a comment, below.
Updates:
02/08/2022 – Per conversation with Jake and Steve Barhydt, I updated my review based on a different understanding of God winning every battle. This raised the overall score, from 8/10 to 9/10, with recommendation for corporate worship changed from “No” to “Perhaps”. I also removed the song’s format in section 1 as it does not pertain to the song’s message.
Comments
Worshipismorethansinging
I think you are spot on with this. I really respect Phil Wickham. However, like your comments in other artist reviews, some are starting to almost offer a false hope – un-answered prayer is a massive issue. Pete Greig has just launched the prayer course 2 that looks at this.
This song and your review on the bridge wording reminds me of a Lyric from Brenton Brown / Paul Baloche – Hosanna ‘In Your Presence all our fears are washed away’.
My biblical knowledge is no where near yours. This maybe a biblical quote. However, I know in my life my fears have not been washed away. Maybe I am misunderstanding this line 🤷🏻♂️
The title of this song also remind me of ‘ The Battle Belongs To The Lord’, which has some similarities.
Thanks 🙂
Vince Wright
Worshipismorethansinging,
Thank you for your comments! I appreciate your compliments.
-Vince Wright
racefangurl
In heavenly armor, we’ll enter the land. The battle belongs to the Lord. Is that the song you mean?
worshipismorethansinging
Yup, Noel Richards used to sing it years ago 👍🏻😂
anie
hi God answers all prayers in His way , if you get this reply know that He has a plan for all. About song give kid a break ! 😉
vgettys583785
He is approaching 40. He’s not a kid anymore. 🙂
Reverent
I agree with your review and wouldn’t recommend this for congregational singing either. There is a big prosperity/word of faith flavour in the lyrics. May I ask why you score it so highly then?
Vince Wright
Reverent,
Great question! It’s because the majority of the song contains a good message that is Biblical and inherently glorifies God. In my opinion, only a small portion of the song is inherently prosperity/word of faith.
-Vince Wright
David Lee
I came upon your site looking for the song’s lyrics; interesting view(s). May I offer an additional. The opening lines of V1 and the closing lines of V2 (“When all I see…, You see…”) instantly brought to mind Isaiah 55:8-9, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” I didn’t see this as PW, himself, focusing on his own struggles, but rather, a reminder that God sees all of our individual circumstances, whether they be triumphs or struggles, so differently than we do and that, ultimately, they are all just “one piece” in God’s plan. I also found it interesting that, from an exegesis perspective, they bracketed [some of] the characters of God: love, security, omnipotence.
Regarding your biggest concern, those are two separate issues: God will “win every battle” and mankind experiencing hardships. God does win every battle; we, with our limited [temporal] perspective, are unable to see it (1Co 13:12 and, again, a reference back to Isa 55). The hardship(s) we experience, whether on account of Christ (persecution) or not (disease), is a reminder of the fallen world we currently live in. Those who see “lost battle(s)” or “unanswered prayers” are the very reasons why we are called (1Pe 3:15); we need look no further than recent well-known worship leaders who “walked away”, clearly not getting their questions answered and/or concerns addressed.
Curiously, what part of the song do you believe leans towards “prosperity”?
Vince Wright
David Lee,
Thank you for your comments!
Isaiah 55:8-9 is a fine passage that enters this discussion! I don’t think it’s necessarily an “either-or”, but a “both-and”. Wickham’s ways are to only think about the battles (his problems). God’s ways transcend those problems in a victorious way (Wickham’s victory). What does that look like? It could be healing. It could be a better character from Wickham’s struggle. Whatever it is, it will glorify God! However, there’s a good chance that, unfortunately, many people will only interpret this as “healing”, which is my chief concern.
As for “prosperity”, I apologize for being as unclear as Reverent. I knew what he meant and simply copy/pasted what he wrote. What he and I mean is “Prosperity Gospel”. It is a synonym for Word of Faith.
-Vince Wright
David Lee
Definitely not an “either-or”; although one meaning, we all experience God’s Word based on our life’s experiences.
I’m familiar with the “prosperity gospel”; I wasn’t aware the term “word of faith” was another reference to it. Learn something new every day! My apologies, I’m still unclear as to what verse(s) may be a reference to the “prosperity gospel”.
[I find it interesting that the notion of a “prosperity gospel” seems to contradict Mat 6:19-20, not to mention that God says that this world will go away, Rev 21:1]
Appreciate the feedback.
Ryan Engelbrecht
This article ignores and distorts some Biblical truths.
God is all-powerful and does whatever He wants.
God wants to be involved in EVERY aspect of our lives.
Yes, He promised we would have trials in this world, but He OVERCAME THE WORLD.
Without the shedding of blood, sin cannot be forgiven. In order to rise again, He had to die first. We thank Him for His death, and we then rejoice that He rose again.
The author seems to focus on what people think, when the Bible says not to do that. We should focus our eyes on God, not on ourselves. If we want to please people, we stop pleasing God.
The author instead should have written an article on the love and grace and miracles of God, instead of criticizing someone else’s work (which the Bible says not to do).
If the author wants to recommend a boycott, God has a way of doing the same thing to the author.
Does Phil Wickham know this article exists?
Vince Wright
Ryan,
Thank you for your comments! My responses are below.
“This article ignores and distorts some Biblical truths.
God is all-powerful and does whatever He wants.
God wants to be involved in EVERY aspect of our lives.
Yes, He promised we would have trials in this world, but He OVERCAME THE WORLD.
Without the shedding of blood, sin cannot be forgiven. In order to rise again, He had to die first. We thank Him for His death, and we then rejoice that He rose again.”
That doesn’t mean that God “wins every battle”. Some trials we face are not overcome, making us better people. For example, the death of my unborn son. He didn’t win that battle. He died. But, it made me a better person.
“The author seems to focus on what people think, when the Bible says not to do that. We should focus our eyes on God, not on ourselves. If we want to please people, we stop pleasing God.”
Does this comment focus on what I think? Where does the Bible say not to do that? It says in Matthew 7:1-5 to avoid judging hypocritically. It also says in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 that Scripture is profitable for rebuke and correction so that we’re complete and equipped for every good work. Rebuke and correction involve a disagreement with what others think.
“The author instead should have written an article on the love and grace and miracles of God, instead of criticizing someone else’s work (which the Bible says not to do).”
Should your comment have been a comment on love and grace and miracles of God, instead of criticizing my work?
“If the author wants to recommend a boycott, God has a way of doing the same thing to the author.”
How is not offering a recommendation for corporate worship recommending a boycott?
“Does Phil Wickham know this article exists?”
Probably not. If he does, I’m not aware of it.
-Vince Wright
AL
This is a “newer” song which my church has heavily introduced for the past couple months, and I knew I had to beeline to see how it stood on The Berean Test! One thing which irked me about the song was the constant focus on “I/my”. On one hand, musical worship is definitely an outward expression of our inward realities, and the song is a good reminder to ourselves of God’s truths. On the other hand, similar to some of the other “hyper-personal” songs you’ve reviewed, the focus on self may be a bit heavy in comparison to attributing praise to God, which makes me feel it’s a great song for personal worship time but not so much congregational worship.
Nathan Boyd
Just ran across your site looking for verses to read before we sing (corporately) “Battle Belongs” by Phil Wickham this coming Sunday. I see that you do not “recommend for corporate” worship despite the high score given with your test. My question, is there a list of songs that you do recommend for corporate worship that I could review? If so, how? If not, why?
Vince Wright
Nathan Boyd,
Great question! At the moment, I don’t have a listing. The Song Review Index contains a list of songs sortable by rating, but it doesn’t say which songs I recommend for corporate worship. Why doesn’t it contain this column? I hadn’t thought about it.
Now that it’s brought to my attention, it shouldn’t take me too long to create a new column entitled “Corporate Worship?” with “yes” or “no” as possible entries. Maybe a few hours to do both the regular and Christmas lists.
-Vince Wright
Angelica Catalan
Hi. We are interested in including this song in our Praise & Worship line up. I guess what we can do to tweak the line 3 of the Bridge, instead of “You win every battle”, is “You can win every battle”; it might be more accurate and less “problematic”. What do you think? Instead of declaring it as a definitive “God wins every battle”, we could say “can win” every battle, like saying He allows battles to win, but not every battle…my apologies for not being very articulate, but I do hope you get my point. Also, I really do appreciate this website especially when I needed to evaluate songs to be played at our church. May you continue to be inspire, bless and be blessed, and be guided by the Holy Spirit with wisdom from the Lord!
Vince Wright
Angelica,
I like it!
-Vince Wright
Jake
First things first, I love your reviews, they have been a major blessing! Just a few thoughts here on this review:
In regards to your critique on the bridge, I wonder that’s being a bit nit-picky. It seems as though your standards would eliminate some of the Psalms from being read/sung in church; Psalm 145, Psalm 34:18, Psalm 103:2-3, etc.
I agree that some songs/Psalms that we sing in church need clarification beforehand, but that doesn’t necessarily warrant them to not be sung in a corporate setting. I understand these are your convictions and I respect that, I just think that every now and then the critiques are over-analyzed to the point where scripture would not even hold up to the standard. Just an observation. Keep up the good work, these reviews really do help.
Vince Wright
Jake,
Thank you for your comments and compliments!
My concern is that, left unexplained and unqualified in this song, stating “you win every battle” has the ring of Word of Faith, which you are probably aware I am vehemently against. There’s likely some bias on my part because I’ve seen what happens to people who believe God “heals every disease” and they are left unhealed. They tend to walk away from Christianity. The last thing I want Christians to do is to walk away based on false hope!
I’m not sure how Psalm 145 and Psalm 34:18 fit into this, but I see why Psalm 103:3 does. It literally says “God heals all your diseases”. I’ve looked at what a few commentators had to say about this. Some believe that its placement right after “Who pardons all your iniquities” qualifies the statement, that “God heals all your diseases” is about spiritual sickness and healing. Others think that it means God has the power to heal all diseases. Others think it’s specific to a specific event where David’s audience was all healed of their diseases, but not understood as a universal truth. Still, others believe that it references a future event, where there will be no more pain or suffering (Revelation 21:4). I only saw one comment that presented the possibility that God heals all corporate diseases.
Given how many people would interpret “God heals all your diseases” literally, perhaps it would be best to avoid singing this line unless it’s qualified in some way. But, that’s an issue with its message and not necessarily its Biblical accuracy. After all, it does show up in Psalm 103:3!
I’ll pray about this. Should I update my review, it would only be in section 2, alongside any other review where I’ve criticized “all/every” in reference to healing. I’m also interested in what other people think as well.
-Vince Wright
Steve Barhydt
Vince,
As you know I love your website and reviews but I have often thought that you were overly critical of the “all / every” as being tied to Word of Faith (WOF).
There are a number of scriptures that use the words “all, shall, every” with little to no caveat.
Phil 4:19 (KJV)
19 But my God SHALL supply ALL your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
James 5:14-15 (KJV)
14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
15 And the prayer of faith SHALL save the sick, and the Lord SHALL raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
Luke 11:9-10 (KJV)
9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it SHALL be given you; seek, and ye SHALL find; knock, and it SHALL be opened unto you.
10 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
! John 5:14-15 (ESV)
14 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask ANYTHING according to his will he hears us.
15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we KNOW THAT WE HAVE the requests that we have asked of him.
Matthew 21:21 -22 (KJV)
21 Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.
22 And all things, WHATSOEVER ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye SHALL receive.
Mark 9:22-23 (ESV)
22 And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”
23 And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE for one who believes.”
PSALM 34:17-20 (KJV) (This is a Messianic Psalm but David did not know that when he was writing it. To him it was autobiographical.)
17 The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of ALL their troubles.
18 The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them ALL.
20 He keepeth ALL his bones: not one of them is broken.
John 15:7 (KJV)
7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye SHALL ask what ye will, and it SHALL be done unto you.
There are more but these will make my point.
All of the above scriptures, in the context of the verse / book that they are written, have little to no attempt by the author / speaker to “qualify” what is meant by “all”.
We, as 21st Century believers, have the context of the WHOLE Word of God (i.e. The Bible) and, therefore, can understand when our prayers are NOT answered (There are several Biblical reasons: not God’s Will, our own lust, lack of faith, etc.) . However, if we limit ourselves to the context of the above mentioned verses we could come to a different conclusion.
Since the Holy Spirit did not think it necessary to insert a lengthy explanation into each and every one of these passages, is it fair-minded to expect songwriters to?
Let me be absolutely clear, I DO NOT support Word of Faith (WOF) theology!!! I find that it turns God into a cosmic “vending machine” and I have all the quarters.
My complaint about WOF is NOT that they believe that God answers prayers or that we should go to God expecting Him to answer prayer,
It is WHY they believe that God answers prayers that I vehemently disagree with.
Quoting from https://www.gotquestions.org/Word-Faith.html
***Begin Quote*** (emphasis mine)
At the heart of the Word of Faith movement is the belief in the “force of faith.” It is believed words can be used to manipulate the faith-force, and thus actually create what they believe Scripture promises (health and wealth). Laws supposedly governing the faith-force are said to operate independently of God’s sovereign will and that GOD HIMSELF IS SUBJECT TO THESE LAWS. This is nothing short of idolatry, turning our faith—and by extension ourselves—into god.
***End Quote***
It is the belief that we, as humans (or even “little gods” as WOF sometimes teaches) can force God to move that is in error.
There is a vast difference in believing and teaching that God WANTS to bless His children and God MUST bless His children.
Psalm 37:4 (ESV)
Delight yourself in the Lord, and he WILL give you the desires of your heart.
Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV)
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Matthew 6:33 (ESV) The context of this verse IS material necessities. (food and clothing)
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and ALL THESE THINGS will be added to you.
I completely understand your concern that some “tend to walk away from Christianity.”
However, Jesus Himself said this would happen…
Luke 8:11-15 (KJV)
11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
13 They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and IN THE TIME OF TEMPTATION.
14 And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are CHOKED WITH CARES and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.
15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.
From David Guzik on Blue Letter Bible https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/guzik_david/StudyGuide2017-Luk/Luk-8.cfm?a=981014
***Begin Quote***
But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away: As seed falling on the thin soil on top of the rocky places quickly springs up and then quickly withers and dies (Luke 8:6), so some respond to the word with immediate enthusiasm yet soon wither away.
i. They had good seed, they had a warm environment, they had a joyful reception of the word, and they received it eagerly. None of those things were the problem; they failed because the seed lacked moisture (Luke 8:6) and therefore had no root to endure the time of temptation.
ii. There was something that they did not have in connection with the spirit of God, who waters the word. “When we speak of spiritual dew, we refer to the operation of the Holy Spirit. When we talk of the river of the water of life, we mean those sacred things which come streaming down to us from the throne of God through the working of the Spirit of God.” (Spurgeon)
iii. Spurgeon detailed some indications of this lack of moisture:
· Doctrine without feeling.
· Experience without humiliation.
· Practice without heart-love.
· Faith without repentance.
· Confidence without reservation.
· Action without spirituality.
· Zeal without communion.
iv. “We need the Holy Spirit; and if the Lord does not water us daily from the living springs on the hilltops of glory, we shall certainly die. So take heed, brothers and sisters, that you do not lack the moisture of the Holy Spirit’s gracious influence.” (Spurgeon)
***End Quote***
The word ‘cares” in verse 14 from Vine’s Expository Dictionary https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g3308/esv/mgnt/0-1/
***Begin Quote***
probably connected with merizo, “to draw in different directions, distract,” hence signifies “that which causes this, a care, especially an anxious care,”
***End Quote***
The above in no way eliminates the responsibility of the proponents of WOF who, undoubtedly, contribute to this “anxious care” with false hope.
We must, however, be cautious that in an effort to oppose “false hope” that we don’t quench “weakened hope” or foster “no hope” and, thereby, introduce doubt into someone’s heart and mind.
James 1:5-8 (NASB) speaks of asking God specifically for wisdom but concludes that doubt will keeps use from getting “anything from the Lord”.
5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and [h]without reproach, and it will be given to him.
6 But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.
7 For that person ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord,
8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
By expressing too many qualification and caveats, we risk becoming overly concerned that God may not answer a prayer in the way we wish Him to and all of the disappointment and heartache that that can cause, and, thereby, be tempted to stop asking Him at all
James 4:2b (KJV)
2b yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
From David Guzik https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/guzik_david/StudyGuide2017-Jam/Jam-4.cfm?a=1150002
***Begin Quote***
e. Yet you do not have because you do not ask: The reason these destructive desires exist among Christians is because they do not seek God for their needs (you do not ask). James reminds us here of the great power of prayer, and why one may live unnecessarily as a spiritual pauper, simply because they do not pray, or do not ask when they pray.
i. We might state it as a virtual spiritual law: that God does not give unless we ask. If we possess little of God and His Kingdom, almost certainly we have asked little. “Remember this text: Jehovah says to his own Son, ‘Ask of me and I will give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.’ If the royal and divine Son of God cannot be exempted from the rule of asking that he may have, you and I cannot expect the rule to be relaxed in our favor. Why should it be?” (Spurgeon)
ii. “If you may have everything by asking, and nothing without asking, I beg you to see how absolutely vital prayer is, and I beseech you to abound in it…. Do you know, brothers, what great things are to be had for the asking? Have you ever thought of it? Does it not stimulate you to pray fervently? All heaven lies before the grasp of the asking man; all the promises of God are rich and inexhaustible, and their fulfillment is to be had by prayer.” (Spurgeon)
***End Quote***
I will admit that it is, at times, a “fine line to walk”. I, for one, would rather ask God and be told “No” then to not ask and receive a “No” by default.
In summary (finally :)), in my opinion, the use of the words “all” or “every” in a song should not automatically be connected (directly or by conjecture) with the WOF movement even though the artist may be associated with a WOF church (whether the church is falsely accused of this or not is another discussion for another time.)
As I have repeatedly said, my appreciation of what you are doing with this website is in the fact that each song stands alone on it’s own merits.
Since there are scripture passages that, when “standing alone”, put forth a more “all encompassing” generosity of our Heavenly Father without (or nearly so) qualifications, isn’t it fair to allow songs and songwriters to do the same thing?
I believe that it is 100% fair to MENTION that the song COULD be taken to support WOF, but I do not feel that it is justifiable to ASSUME that it WILL be and, therefore, reduce it’s score and appropriateness for congregational “singability”.
That said, if a song starts saying that “God MUST move because WE pray” or “The power of miracles lies within US”, come down on that song like the proverbial “ton of bricks” and I’ll be behind you all the way.
Vince Wright
Steve,
Thank you again for complimenting my work and providing yet another wonderful and thought-provoking collection of thoughts!
I didn’t respond right away because you gave me a lot to chew on. I’ve been praying about this, reading the Scripture you provided.
As you’re aware, my chief complaint is about the word “all” meaning “the whole amount, quantity, or extent of”. In other words, “all” includes everything without exception. In the context of healing, “all” means “all people will be healed”. However, my father and I had a conversation about this last Thursday. He made me realize that for Christians, we are all healed! When we die, we will enter God’s Heavenly Kingdom, where there will be no more mourning, pain, or tears (Revelation 21:4). No, we may not have experienced physical healing in this life, but we will be rid of our ailment in the next one.
The whole thing reminded me of Hebrews 11:39, where the “heroes of faith” didn’t receive what they were promised in their earthly life. They, alongside us, will receive something greater: eternal life with Jesus!
I’m going to spend some time next week going through my reviews to discern between songs using “all” when referencing Psalm 103:3 vs. a song that, as you said, “God MUST move because WE pray” or “The power of miracles lies within US”. I also agree that “it is 100% fair to MENTION that the song COULD be taken to support WOF”, so I’m leaning towards a minimal penalty in sections 1 and 3 for its possibility toward WOF, especially if it does not contain a lyrical explanation on what “every disease is healed” means. I’ll also potentially change my congregational recommendation from “no” to “maybe”, based on congregational understanding of these concepts.
It may not be completely what you want, but it’s much better than my present reviews that carry a much stiffer sentence.
-Vince Wright
Steve Barhydt
It’s an equitable, if not perfect, solution.
If I may be so bold, may I suggest that instead of looking for “a lyrical explanation on what ‘every disease is healed’ means”, (which probably isn’t there or we would not be having this discussion), ask the following four questions when examining the lyrics….
1) Are the words meant to BOOST the faith of the singer or BOAST of the faith they already have?
We all need our faith booted from time to time (I Samuel 30) https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/guzik_david/StudyGuide2017-1Sa/1Sa-30.cfm?a=266006
Word of Faith (WOF) is more about what I can cause to come to pass by MY FAITH.
A Biblical song will encourage and strengthen faith IN GOD not rely on the faith itself.
2) Where does the POWER for the miraculous come from in the song?
WOF teaching has faith IN faith (the power comes from within me) as opposed to faith IN God (I, in myself, am powerless. God can do anything, Therefore, I can do all things though Christ Phil. 4:13).
https://g3min.org/errors-word-of-faith-preaching/
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According to the Word of Faith movement, If you speak it, your words have power to create, heal, and in a negative manner—to destroy and kill. Therefore, they major on the power of the spoken word. Regarding sickness, you will hear people who embrace the Word of Faith system talking about “not speaking” about sickness as if the words matter. In sermons by Word of Faith teachers, you will hear them instructing their congregations to “declare” certain words in order to gain their victory or receive their happiness.
****End Quote****
A Biblical song will ascribe ALL the power to God.
3) To Whom does the GLORY and PRAISE in the song go to?
WOF also shifts the focus of glory from God to us.
https://www.gotquestions.org/Word-Faith.html
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Simply put, the Word of Faith movement exalts man to god-status and reduces God to man-status.
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A Biblical song will ascribe ALL the glory to God.
4) Is the inclusion of the “all / every” INCIDENTAL or INTEGRAL to the meaning of the song?
In Psalm 103:3b, for example, the word “all” is not the focus of the verse let alone the whole Psalm.
A Biblical song, while not ignoring what God can DO, will focus on Who God IS (His love, His goodness, His longsuffering, His mercy, His grace, etc. Not necessarily all of these in the same song of course:))
When taken together, I believe that these four questions can help determine if a song truly does promote WOF or if WOF must be “read into” the lyrics.
When a song passes these questions, I, personally, believe that a mention of potential WOF is sufficient and no penalty to the score should be given for the way a lyric MIGHT be interpreted.
It is, of course, your website. I will continue to support you either way.
Continue to pray about it before making any changes. Seek council from wise people (if you’re blessed the way I have been, ask your wife.)
I truly appreciate and admire your ability and desire to reevaluate your position on these topics and change as the Holy Spirit leads you. In today’s world, inside and outside of the Church, that is a rare quality indeed!
Steve
Vince Wright
Steve,
Thanks! These are helpful questions that will guide me when reexamining my reviews. I also appreciate that you recognize that I am following Proverbs 19:20.
-Vince Wright
Josiah Deal
Would it not be correct to say that the song inaccurately says in line 1 that God sees MY victory, and really ought to say that He sees HIS victory?
Vince Wright
Josiah,
Great question!
According to 1 Corinthians 15:57, we are given the victory through Jesus. Yes, it’s His victory. None of us could attain victory on our own steam. That would be works righteousness. However, this passage tells us that God gives us this victory. Thus, it belongs to us, even though God earned it.
-Vince Wright
Joe Wingard
I really like this song. My concern is how singable is it musically for a congregation regarding some of the octave jumps? Phil sounds great when he sings it. Even changing it to a lower key (B) does not seem to help. Many songs that are great on the radio do not transfer over to a church for congregational singing.
Steve Barhydt
I have notice the same trend in a lot of Contemporary Christian Music and I am not a fan of it.
I tried to explain to my worship leader at church that when he’s ‘singing in the rafters’, I, as a tenor, am ‘singing in the clouds’ Alas, to no avail.
I believe that it is done for emphasis, to give the song a ‘punch’.
However, very few of us (including every worship leader I have ever served under) have the vocal range and talent of someone like Phil Wickham.
Consequently, the song either starts so low that people with normal voices can’t reach it or gets too high where people can’t reach it.
My preference would be to pick a key that most everyone can reach (high or low) and forget the ‘jump’.
Unfortunately, I think the trend is here to stay until something new comes along.