Photo by Dawid Zawiła
Irish worship band We Are Messengers are the new kids on the block. Forming in 2015, they released their first album of the same name the following year. Their hit song Magnify peaked at number 10 on the top Billboard Christian songs. In 2016, they were nominated for the Dove Award “New Artist of the Year”.
Lyrics can be found at https://genius.com/We-are-messengers-magnify-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?
We Are Messengers experiences life issues and struggles, realizing that simply hanging for dear life does nothing to change their situation. It is through readjusting our focus, from ourselves to God, that change can begin. After all, God is bigger than our problems! At least, that is what I could discern through the obscurity present in several lines.
There is a glaring error in Verse 1, which suggests that simply seeing God will remove sin. See section 2 for more details.
Score: 7/10
2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?
Most of it does; however, there is a lot of ambiguity within the lyrics, increasing evaluation difficulty. One particular line is contrary to Scripture.
I took a stab at sectioning verse 1, verse 2, and the bridge. Given that I do not yet have permission to post lyrics, I hope this does not confuse you!
[Verse 1?]
Line 1: What is the cause of sorrow? Is it Godly sorrow that leads to repentance, worldly grief that leads to death (2 Corinthians 7:10), or is it something else entirely? This line is unclear until verse 2.
Line 2: Do they hang onto life with or without Christ (Matthew 16:25 and Luke 9:24)? This is addressed in Verse 2.
Line 3: A taste of what? A cheeseburger? A deep, philosophical truth? The goodness of the LORD (Psalm 34:8)? Unfortunately, later lyrics do not clear the confusion.
Line 4: A glimpse of what? Probably God, which speaks to His attractiveness, especially when other Christ followers set a good example (2 Corinthians 2:15).
Line 5: No, it does not. What destroys sin is the sacrificial, atoning work of Christ (Leviticus 17:11, Isaiah 53:1-12, Matthew 20:28, Mark 10:45, John 1:29, John 3:16, Acts 4:12, Acts 20:28, Romans 5:6-10, Romans 6:23, 1 Corinthians 1:30, 1 Corinthians 6:20, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Galatians 1:3-4, Galatians 3:13, Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 2:14, 1 Timothy 2:6, Titus 2:14, Hebrews 9:12, Hebrews 9:15, Hebrews 9:22, Hebrews 9:26, 1 Peter 1:17-21, 1 Peter 2:24, 1 Peter 1:18-19, 1 John 1:7, 1 John 2:1-2, and Revelation 5:9). Simply looking at Him does nothing for our sin condition. We must repent and put our trust in Christ (Mark 1:15, Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19, Acts 13:24, and Acts 20:21).
Line 6: This is relational language, a longing for more of God, adopted as His sons and daughters (John 1:12-13, John 14:18, Romans 8:14-17, Romans 8:23, Romans 9:1-8, Galatians 3:26, Galatians 4:5-7, Ephesians 1:3-14, Ephesians 2:11-22, Hebrews 9:15, and 1 John 3:1-3).
[Chorus]
Line 1: Take what away? The felt sorrow in Verse 1? That makes sense; however, they could have been more clear on that. If so, see Psalm 23:1-6, Psalm 30:5, Psalm 31:9-10, Psalm 34:18, Psalm 147:3, Isaiah 40:31, Isaiah 53:4-6, Matthew 5:4, Matthew 11:28-30, and 2 Corinthians 1:3-4.
Line 2: Most likely, no other name than God; however, this is yet another unclear statement. Assuming it is God, we can look to God’s commandments, specifically in Exodus 20:3 and Deuteronomy 6:5, as quoted by Jesus in Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, and Luke 10:27. Also, see Psalm 34:3, Psalm 69:30, Psalm 99:9, All of Psalm 145 to 150, Isaiah 25:1, Luke 1:46, Hebrews 13:15, Revelation 4:8-11, and much, much more.
Line 3-4: A prayer to, most likely God, to remove spiritual blindness. See 2 Kings 6:17, Luke 24:31, John 3:3, John 9:39, Acts 26:12-18, 2 Corinthians 3:12-18, 2 Corinthians 4:6, and Ephesians 1:18.
[Verse 2?]
Lines 1 and 2: Connects with Lines 3-4 within the chorus, with an honest look at their expression of God, lacking faith in Him and focusing on their problems instead of Jesus (Hebrews 12:2).
Line 3: A prayer to God, much like John the Baptist’s attitude in John 3:30.
Lines 4-6: Repeat of Verse 1, lines 4-6.
[Bridge?]
Line 1-4: This is the first explicit mention of the name of God. They offer a prayer; a petition for God to be:
- Larger than personal struggle (Job 26:14, Job 37:5, Psalm 147:3-5, Jeremiah 32:27, Matthew 19:26, 2 Corinthians 13:4, and 1 Timothy 6:15-16);
- Tougher than feeble minds (Hebrews 4:12); and
- Glorified (Exodus 16:7, Exodus 24:17, Exodus 40:34-35, Leviticus 9:23, 1 Chronicles 29:11, Psalm 3:3, Psalm 8:1, Psalm 19:1-4, Isaiah 6:1-3, Isaiah 40:5, Isaiah 42:8, Isaiah 58:8, Isaiah 60:1, Habakkuk 2:14, John 1:14, John 17:22, Romans 3:23, 2 Corinthians 3:18, 2 Corinthians 4:6, Philippians 4:19, Hebrews 1:1-3, Revelation 21:10-14, and Revelation 21:23).
Score: 6/10
3. How would an outsider interpret the song?
Unfortunately for We Are Messengers, I doubt that many unbelievers will see this as a cohesive whole, where the Bridge informs the rest of the lyrics. Without any outside research, most will likely interpret the first two verses and chorus as some sort of relationship, though probably not with God. The Bridge, then, is a disjointed prayer to God. This will be the only section that will have a spiritual impact on outsiders, however small it may be.
Score: 3/10
4. What does this song glorify?
There is no doubt that their goal is to glorify God. This shines brightest during the Bridge; however, some of the lyrics are unclear, veiling His glory.
Score: 7/10
Closing Comments
Magnify has a great message. It calls us to reorient our focus from ourselves, during times of intense struggle and pain, towards the glorified God of creation, who is bigger than our problems. Yet, some of its content is opaque, it incorrectly attributes sin removal to merely observing God, and unbelievers will not likely have the same interpretation as Christ followers.
Final Score: 6/10
Artist Info
Track: Magnify (listen to the song)
Artist: We Are Messengers
Album: We Are Messengers
Genre: Contemporary Christian Music (CCM)
Release Year: 2016
Duration: 3:28
Agree? Disagree? Don’t be shy or have a cow! Calmly and politely state your case in a comment, below.
Comments
Claire Burkhalter
I love this song. I was able to hear it in the Big Daddy Weave tour when it was at Mitchell Berean Church.
RL
I see what you’re saying but I believe the song writer is using poetry which when reading requires us to really think and dig deeper into the meaning. Poetry, in my opinion, conveys feeling, emotion, expressing through metaphor and imagery rather than literal communication. So the way I read verse 1 is more about being in depression or struggling with some deep emotional pain they have been hanging out too long in when Jesus is right there. I think of the lyrics as expressing a love that changes everything, a look at the Savior, seeing His beauty, that draws you in, and leads you to repent and trust Him and give it all to Him. I could argue that just as the Israelites were told to look at the snake on the staff and be healed, Jesus makes the comparison to Himself being lifted up on the cross in John 3:14-15. However, He makes it clear that whoever believes in Him will be saved. I doubt the songwriters would disagree with that nor negate the atoning work of Christ to wipe away sin, but just as it took the Israelites trust to look on the staff with the snake to be healed, perhaps the songwriter is alluding to that look in faith or (in love language terminology) that to look upon the beauty of Jesus is to love Him perhaps like a man would say to his bride that to know her is to love her because of the beauty and love he feels for her even though not every other man feels as this man does toward her. If my understanding is wrong, please feel free to clarify, as the truth is essential. Thanks.