Photo by Levi Jones
Paragraph
Sovereign Grace Music, much like Hillsong, Bethel, and Elevation Worship, is a church-based organization that releases their own music. Beginning in 1984, They released more than 50 albums!
Also, check out my reviews of All I Have Is Christ, Show Us Christ, He Is Worthy, Lord, Have Mercy, Let Your Kingdom Come, and Turn Your Eyes.
Lyrics can be found at https://genius.com/Sovereign-grace-music-o-come-all-you-unfaithful-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?
The entire song can be summarized in three simple words: “come and see”. It is the same invitation that Jesus gave to two disciples of John the Baptist in John 1:38-39, when they asked where Christ was staying. It is the same invitation that Sovereign Grace Music offers to all of us in regard to Christ’s birth and death. They want us to come and see. Come with all our questions and doubts. Come with all our guilt and shame. Come with our brokenness and spite for others. Come with our problems and unfaithfulness. Come as you are. Just come. Observe. Watch. See what Jesus has done for us. Gaze upon His birth and death. Yes, He promises peace for those who believe. Yet, Sovereign Grace Music isn’t asking us to believe. They just want us to come.
Side Note: Inviting someone to church is a great way to get someone to come and see, especially a place where the Gospel is preached and where they will learn about the cost of following Jesus.
Score: 10/10
2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?
The entire song completely aligns with God’s inspired Word.
[Verse 1]
Lines 1-3: That is, people who are weak and prone to sin against God who are not completely faithful to God. In other words, all of us. What are they coming to do, and what has God done for them? Chorus and Bridge tell us.
[Verse 2]
Lines 1-3: Sovereign Grace Music offers the same invitation to the praying barren women.
[Chorus]
Lines 1 and 2: The shepherds heard it from the angels, saw Jesus for themselves, then spread it to the streets (Luke 2:8-20). In a figurative sense, Sovereign Grace Music is doing the same: inviting us to “come and see” baby Jesus, the subject of our Christmas celebration.
[Verse 3]
Lines 1-3: Bitten, broken, and fear-filled people are also invited. What is this “perfect love” that Sovereign Grace Music speaks? Bridge answers that.
[Verse 4]
Lines 1-3: The guilty and hiding are also invited. God has done something that will cause them to cease running. What is it? Again Bridge answers this.
[Bridge]
Lines 1-4: This is the meat of this song. God sent Jesus to become the slain Lamb (Isaiah 53:7, John 1:29, John 1:36, Acts 8:32, 1 Peter 1:19, Revelation 5:6-8, Revelation 5:12-13, Revelation 6:1, Revelation 7:9-17, Revelation 12:11, Revelation 13:8, Revelation 14:1-10, Revelation 15:3, Revelation 17:14, Revelation 19:7-9, and Revelation 21:9 ) who makes the forgiveness of sins possible (Hebrews 9:22) and brings peace to the Father through Himself (Romans 5:1). This covers Verses 1 and 2.
To connect this back to Verses 3 and 4, according to 1 John 4:16-19, Christ’s sacrifice is His perfect love realized, available for us to receive and imitate. Finally, rather than running away from God, they will run from God in guilt like Adam and Eve did in Genesis 3:8, they can run boldly to God (Hebrews 4:16).
Lins 5-8: Repeats lines 1-4.
[Verse 5]
Lines 1-3: My Spiritual Formations pastor did a sermon a while back on the Hebrew word Hesed, which is difficult for translators to convert to English. He offered Michael Card’s definition of this word, which is “When the person from whom I have a right to expect nothing gives me everything”. What a great summary of this amazing word! We who are dead in sin do not deserve God’s forgiveness, yet, He offers to make us alive in Christ (Romans 6:1-11, Romans 7:4-6, Galatians 2:19-20, 2 Timothy 2:11, and 1 Peter 2:24). Hesed summarizes this entire Verse.
Score: 10/10
3. How would an outsider interpret the song?
Those who do not yet know Jesus will think they are invited to see Jesus’ birth and death, alongside their significance. They aren’t asked to commit, but to gaze. For many, this is the first step towards belief.
Score: 10/10
4. What does this song glorify?
It glorifies God that this song asks others to come and see Jesus. Though not stated in the song, this will inevitably lead to some who believe and receive Jesus.
Score: 10/10
Closing Comments
Sovereign Grace Music’s O Come, All You Unfaithful is invitational. It asks the broken, hurting, faithless, barren, and, well, all of us, to come and see Jesus. Why? Because He was born to die; He came to pay the penalty for our lawbreaking by dying on the cross, bringing Him glory. Unbelievers will feel led to observe these things, but that is it. This is fine, because seeing brings about the possibility of understanding and, eventually, salvation.
This song doesn’t seem appropriate for corporate worship given that the main thrust of this song is for us to come and see. However, it could be useful during a Sunday service as part of an altar call after the Gospel is given.
Final Score: 10/10
Artist Info
Track: O Come, All You Unfaithful (listen to the song)
Artist: Sovereign Grace Music
Album: Heaven Has Come
Genre: Christmas, Contemporary Christian Music (CCM)
Release Year: 2020
Duration: 3:53
Agree? Disagree? Don’t be shy or have a cow! Calmly and politely state your case in a comment, below.
Comments
Chris Hall
The first line triggered me a bit, but after that it seems uncontroversial. “O come all you unfaithful..” it starts. What about the person who is unfaithful by having had multiple children by multiple mothers, and sees nothing wrong in it. Are they invited to behold the baby Jesus? Perhaps beholding the crucified Jesus they might see the gravity of their sin and turn from it. To be fair, the song does imply we need pardon, at the cost of the slaying of the Lamb. It was to the weary and heavy laden that Jesus said come, and not just come but take His yoke. Having come, those who were knew they were sick could be healed. For those who thought they had no need of a doctor, the only benefit of coming might be they realise they badly do need a doctor.
It seems to me that there is a gap between the message that Lord helps us in the trial and troubles of life (which He is willing to do) and the message that our greatest need is to turn from our sin and therefore be translated from darkness into His glorious light. I’m not sure there are many songs these days that bridge that gap. Perhaps, “Come and See (We Worship at Your Feet)” by Graham Kendrick, though it’s not that recent.
Harold Geern
I think it means unfaithful as in unfaithful to Christ, not to a spouse or partner. That being said, who were the first to behold the glory of Jesus? Shepards. The lowest of lows, hated by society. Were they worthy to see baby Jesus? They had most likely never even heard of the God of the Jews, and if they had they most likely didn’t follow Him.