Bad worship songs: Extravagant - Bethel Music - Randy Matthew Jackson, Sean Feucht, Steffany Gretzinger, Amanda Cook

From time to to we examine the lyrics of worship songs. Our desire is not to mock or humiliate, but rather to honestly examine content with a view to calling forth a better worship expression.

With the great volume and variety of worship music available, none of us should have to settle for bad worship songs. We should be able to select hundreds or even thousands of top notch songs very easily.

What makes a song a good worship song? Is it enough to contain words like God or holy? How about vaguely spiritual sounding phrases? Should Jesus be mentioned? We think an excellent worship song should contain as many as possible of the following elements:

• A direct expression of adoration (God, you are...)
• A progression of ideas that culminates in a coherent story
• A focus on God, not us
• A certain amount of profundity
• A singable, interesting melody
• Scripture quotes or allusions to Scripture
• Doctrinal soundness

Further, a worship song should not:

1. contain lyrics that create uncertainty or cause confusion
2. be excessively metaphorical
3. be excessively repetitive
4. imply that Jesus is your boyfriend 

It's worth noting the most worship songs contain at least something good. That is, there might be a musical idea or a lyric that has merit. Such is the case with today's song, "Extravagant." (Youtube video.) It is a well-crafted song, but it has many problems.

Musical Problems

Steffany Gretzinger is singing the song in the video, and she does not sound good. The song is too low for her, so the opening lines of the song are croaky and strained. In addition, she sings with an affected voice, with odd embellishments and breathy emotive sounds so common among young pop singers today.

She is ostensibly leading the people in worship, so her obligation is to present the song in a way that the congregation can worship. That means the words and melody need to be plainly presented.

Thematic Problems

What is the focus and message of the song? Ultimately, what is it about? Is it a worship song, a song of praise, a song of petition, or a song of encouragement? As we read the lyrics, we find no expressions of worship or praise. No petition is made. We find nothing here directed to the encouragement of the congregation. It is odd indeed that there is nothing in the song about the glory of God, His mighty deeds, His saving power, His attributes, or character.

The song is about Jesus' extravagant love, but the way it's described is amorphous and vague. Every statement leaves one wondering what is intended. How was Jesus a lover before the beginning of time? How is it that Jesus withheld nothing? What does it mean to be "for us?" The verses are nothing more than a flow of religious-sounding phrases that convey no meaning.

Further, if we separate the song from the context of church and consider it apart from religious connotations, would could justifiably ask, who is Jesus, this hot dude she's so into? There is nothing in the song that would indicate we are singing a song about God. In fact, it really sounds more like a love song you'd hear on the radio.

This is problematic. 

Doctrinal Problems

There are many doctrinal problems with this song. 

• You stopped at nothing to prove You were for us - Was it really the purpose of Christ, to prove He was for us? Is this His highest intention? John writes:

Jn. 17:4 I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.

Jesus' intent actually was to glorify the Father by Him doing the Father's will. 

• We'll never comprehend, the way You love us - This is patently false. Paul writes:

Ep. 3:16-17 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fulness of God.

Pauls' prayer is that we would know this love that surpasses knowledge. Paul thought it to be possible, but the song writers contradict him.

• ...only heaven knows just how far You'd go, to say You love us - This is also false. Paul again:

Ro. 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

So we clearly do know how far Jesus went, the Cross.

• When You pull me close, No I won't resist - This quasi-sexual statement does not belong in church, it is an inappropriate way to describe our relationship to our savior. A statement like this would likely be found in an Ariana Grande song about some guy to whom she's attracted.

Our last complaint is that the song seems to be inordinately human-focused. It's not so much that the song is self-focused (which it is), but that it makes Jesus out to be obsessed with humanity, with His love being focused on us. We do concede that His love for us is important, but Jesus did what He did in obedience to the Father, primarily to work out the great purposes of God for the sake of His glory.

Nonsense Statements

You were a lover before time's beginning - This description of the eternal state of Jesus is superficial and misleading. He is the Word, the Word that pronounces blessings and curses, salvation and judgment, He is the Creator of all things, the Savior and the warrior, He is King of kings. 

While certainly it is true that Jesus is love, this is an incomplete description of Him. We would not be troubled by this except for the fact that the rest of the song waters down His love to point it is unrecognizable. We believe that if we are going to sing about some attribute of Jesus, like His love, there ought to be some development of the idea that brings us to worship Him even more.

You are the dawn that is breaking within me - We have little to say. This statement has absolutely no meaning. 

You are the sun that is rising around me - Doubling down on the previous thought, the song writers repeat the nonsense statement in a slightly different way.

Conclusion

We note there are four song writers credited. It would seem that there ought to be enough depth of faith and understanding of doctrine in this group to craft a song lyric that brings about worship and increased understanding of God.

The video is 10:42 long. which is an ample opportunity to explore this topic of Jesus' love in some depth. Sadly, this does not happen.

**

Here are the lyrics:

Vs. 1

You were a lover before time's beginning
You gave Your love freely withholding nothing
Jesus, my Jesus
You carried the weight of the world on Your shoulders
You stopped at nothing to prove You were for us
Jesus, my Jesus

Chorus

It's extravagant, it doesn't make sense
We'll never comprehend, the way You love us
It's unthinkable, only heaven knows
Just how far You'd go, to say You love us
To say You love us

Vs. 2

You don't belittle our pain and our suffering
You comfort us in our greatest unraveling
Jesus, my Jesus
You are the dawn that is breaking within me
You are the sun that is rising around me
Jesus, my Jesus

Bridge 

Here is all my love
It's Yours, no conditions
When You pull me close
No I won't resist