Jonathan James

The Theology behind the songs in EXALTED

The list of songs
There are 10 songs in the album Exalted:

1. Holy, holy, holy
2. Exalted
3. Worship the Lord
4. Lamb of God
5. Apple of the eye
6. My strength and shield
7. Greater love
8. Seek the Lord
9. Bless the Lord
10. Unto you

The summary (all song titles are underlined)
In the beginning, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit; the Trinity, referred to in the Bible as Holy, holy, holy created Man. Man sinned against a holy God. God the Son then became a Lamb of God (a sacrificial offering) showing the world God’s greater love. Now the Son is in the highest place, exalted, having died and risen from the grave. Therefore we, His blood-bought, redeemed children need to worship the Lord; seek the Lord and bless the Lord. Even in the worst of times we are to cry out “Unto you… I lift up my eyes” for we can testify that he is "My Strength and Shield" and He promises to keep us as the apple of the eye, both now and forever!

The meaning of each song

Holy, holy, holy…taken from Revelation 4:8 reflects an extraordinary worship service in heaven. Holiness is the only attribute of God that is repeated three times! Hardly do we hear it said of God; ‘wisdom, wisdom, wisdom’ or ‘power, power, power’. So holiness reflects God’s crowning glory (according to theologian Charnock). One day, we will be singing this anthem as God’s bride, before all the angels and heavenly beings. What a great and awesome experience that will be.

Exalted…comes from Philippians 2: 9-11. “Therefore God also has exalted Him and given Him the name above every name… Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” If we are to be victorious in this life and live above the maddening crowd, we have to understand and affirm the truth of the exaltation of Christ – that He is indeed lifted above every principality and power in this age and the age to come. New agers think that Christ was only for a certain age but He is for all time. He cannot be unseated in His power and glory.

Worship the Lord…comes from Psalm 27:4. It happens to be my sister, Violet’s life verse: “One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in His temple” The Psalmist does not have a cluttered life. His life is reduced to just ONE THING! The Psalmist eagerly seeks God’s face. In the Bible God’s face refers to His presence and therefore seeking His face is seeking intimacy and fellowship with the God of Gods and the Lord of Lords. It is from the context of intimate worship that we receive divine guidance. Today, we want guidance without worship! We are pragmatists. God wants worshippers.

Lamb of God…from John 1:29 is the testimony of John the Baptist who came to bear witness of Jesus Christ, the Son of God who would be a Lamb of God (the ultimate sacrifice of God for mankind). The term was easily understood by the Jews who were taught both by word and symbolism to put their faith in the coming Lamb of God. Unlike the slain lamb during the Passover celebrations (Exodus 12: 1-36) which symbolized the act of taking away the sin of a household, the Lamb of God came to take away the sin of the world. Therefore this is a more excellent and eternal sacrifice. We have an eternal future because of the Lamb of God and His sacrificial work on the cross. Without the Lamb of God and His shedding of blood there is no mercy, grace or kindness for mankind.

My strength and shield comes from Psalm 84 where the Psalmist longs most intensely to celebrate the presence of God. The Psalmist sings with a sense of longing and expectation. The Psalmist, upon coming to the temple and seeing the birds building their nests in the courtyards, longs to follow their example in making a home in the presence of the Lord. Worship of the Lord is invigorating as it strengthens the worshipper who looks to God as a surrounding shield. Hence God’s protection and provision are assured as we dwell in His presence.

Apple of the eye is a prayer of David from Psalm 17. David stands in court and pleads his cause before the ultimate Judge of the earth. The basis of David’s integrity is not his righteousness but the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ (David is looking by faith to the coming of Christ). As David faces the unknown forces of life and the attacks of the enemy he uses a precious and endearing Hebrew expression “the apple of your eye”. Literally this is a reference to the pupil of the human eye. Just as a person unthinkingly and continuously protects the precious organ of the human eye, God is committed to protecting His people. We are the pupil of His eye. God will and must protect us.

Greater love from John 15:13 expresses that the love of God in sending His Son to die for our sin, is far beyond comprehension on the human plane. This is indeed an ‘other-worldly’ kind of love. It is the greatest expression of love. He was sinless and yet he died for our sins.

Seek the Lord is from Isaiah 55. The Gospel of the Lord Jesus is most clearly revealed in the New Testament. However, Isaiah in the Old Testament is sometimes referred to as the Gospel of the Old Testament. Here we find the great and wonderful invitation to experience the salvation of God. It is so wonderful and simple. This is because God’s thoughts and ways are far superior and different from man’s thinking and actions. God’s Word will always bear fruit. He will establish His Kingdom of blood-bought saints just as His Word says.

Bless the Lord from Psalm 103 is a favorite Psalm for countless people. This is one of the most quoted Psalms in Church services, prayers and liturgies. We are called to bless Him with “all that is within us”, in other words from the very depths of our soul. This is because He blesses us with multi-dimensional blessings and especially because His work of mercy and forgiveness of our sins is unfathomable…” as far as the heavens are high above the earth”; “as far as the east is from the west”

Unto You is drawn from Psalm 123 and 124. The Psalmist is experiencing much hardship and is in the midst of tremendous need. He sees himself as a servant beckoning the eyes of the Master and waiting for the Master to just make one move or say one word that will be in his favor. Then in Psalm 124, as it were the Psalmist takes delight in celebrating the victories of the Lord and remembering the victory of the Red sea and the Jordon. From this historic experience the Psalmist draws strength and faith to go on living for God in the here and now. The anguish of the heart now turns to trust and worship in the living God.                               

Jonathan James