Songwriter: Eugene Monroe Bartlett Sr. | Written: 1939 | Genre: Southern Gospel / Worship Hymn | Hall of Fame: Gospel Music Hall of Fame, 1973
The Origin Story: Written from a Sickbed, Destined for Eternity
Some of the most triumphant songs in Christian history were written in the darkest of circumstances. Victory in Jesus is perhaps the defining example. Written by Eugene Monroe Bartlett Sr. in 1939, this beloved hymn emerged not from a season of health and abundance but from a sickbed—after a devastating stroke robbed one of gospel music’s most energetic pioneers of his ability to travel, teach, and perform.
For nearly four decades, Bartlett had criss-crossed the American South, founding singing schools, building a gospel music publishing empire, and composing hundreds of songs. Then, at 53 or 54 years old, a stroke paralyzed him and left him bedridden for the final two years of his life. The man who had built the Hartford Music Company, trained generations of musicians, and composed over 800 gospel songs could no longer do any of it. Yet instead of bitterness, Bartlett turned to his Bible. And from that daily reading and meditation on Scripture—particularly 1 Corinthians 15:57—emerged what would become one of the most sung hymns in Christian worship history.
The song first appeared in 1939 in Gospel Choruses, a paperback songbook published by James D. Vaughan in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee—the same Vaughan Music Company that had been central to the rise of Southern Gospel quartet singing for decades. Bartlett passed away on January 25, 1941, just two years after writing it. He never lived to see it become an anthem of the global church.
Songwriter Biography: Eugene Monroe Bartlett Sr. (1883–1941)
Early Life and Musical Education
Eugene Monroe Bartlett Sr. was born on Christmas Eve, 1883 (some sources record 1885), in Waynesville, Missouri. His family relocated to Sebastian County, Arkansas, while he was still a boy, and it was in the Ozarks and Arkansas River Valley that he came of age musically. He received formal music training and graduated from the Hall-Moody Institute in Martin, Tennessee—an institution known for producing gospel music educators and practitioners throughout the South.
Bartlett was a gifted multi-instrumentalist, singer, and song leader with a natural aptitude for teaching others to read shaped-note music. He quickly became one of the most sought-after instructors in the American South, traveling extensively to hold singing schools and conventions where he trained hundreds of amateur musicians in the fundamentals of harmony and sight reading.
Hartford Music Company and Institute
In 1918, Bartlett founded the Hartford Music Company in Hartford, Arkansas—one of the earliest and most influential Southern Gospel publishing houses in American music history. The company published hymnals, songbooks, and gospel song collections, selling more than 15,000 copies of its titles in its early years. The Hartford company became a launching pad for numerous Southern Gospel composers and helped define the sound and style of quartet gospel music in the early twentieth century.
In 1921, Bartlett expanded his vision by founding the Hartford Music Institute, a school dedicated to shape-note singing that provided formal musical education and created career pathways for aspiring gospel musicians across the region. Bartlett served as president of the Hartford Music Company from its founding until 1935, overseeing its growth into a multi-state operation with branch offices in several cities. Among his notable publishing achievements was the introduction of McClung’s “Just a Rose Will Do”—a beloved gospel standard in its own right.
Prolific Composer and Unlikely Legacy
In his lifetime, Bartlett composed over 800 gospel songs—an extraordinary output. His catalog included beloved titles such as Everybody Will Be Happy Over There, Just a Little While, He Will Remember Me, You Can’t Keep a Good Man Down, and Camping Toward Canaan’s Land. He also composed the country music song Take an Old Cold Tater (and Wait), later recorded by Little Jimmy Dickens. Yet ironically, nearly all of his 800+ compositions have faded into obscurity, while Victory in Jesus—his very last song—has outlived them all. In 1973, Bartlett was posthumously inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee, a recognition of his transformative role in the genre’s formation.
Scripture Foundation: The Theology of Victory
Victory in Jesus is not merely an emotional celebration—it is a theologically precise hymn built on specific biblical foundations. Every verse traces a different dimension of salvation, and each is anchored in the New Testament’s proclamation of Christ’s redemptive work.
Key Scriptures
1 Corinthians 15:57 — “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” This is the primary theme verse of the entire hymn. The “victory” belongs to God and is given through Christ—not earned by human effort. This distinction is central to the song’s message.
1 Peter 1:18–19 — “Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things… but with the precious blood of Christ.” The chorus line “He sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood” draws directly from this passage of Christ as Redeemer who purchases sinners at great personal cost.
John 3:16 — “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…” The chorus phrase “He loved me ere I knew Him” echoes the prevenient grace of John 3:16—God’s love preceding any human response.
Matthew 9:35; John 9:6–7 — Verse 2 references Christ making “the lame to walk again and caused the blind to see,” drawing directly from the healing miracles of the Gospels as evidence of Christ’s divine authority and compassion.
John 14:2–3 — “In My Father’s house are many mansions… I go to prepare a place for you.” Verse 3’s “I heard about a mansion He has built for me in glory” is a direct echo of Christ’s promise in the Upper Room Discourse.
Revelation 21:21; 22:1–5 — “Streets of gold beyond the crystal sea” draws from Revelation’s vision of the New Jerusalem and the river of life flowing from the throne of God.
Ephesians 2:4–5; Titus 3:5 — The phrase “beneath the cleansing flood” draws on the New Testament’s language of regeneration and the washing of the Holy Spirit—salvation as a cleansing act of divine grace.
The theological arc of the song is classically evangelical and Wesleyan-Arminian in tone: God initiates, Christ redeems, the Spirit cleanses, and the believer responds. The victory is entirely Christ’s, bestowed freely on the sinner who repents and trusts—a message perfectly suited to Bartlett’s own experience of helplessness on his sickbed.
Verse-by-Verse Lyrical Analysis
Verse 1: “I Heard an Old, Old Story”
I heard an old, old story, how a Savior came from glory, / How He gave His life on Calvary to save a wretch like me; / I heard about His groaning, of His precious blood’s atoning, / Then I repented of my sins and won the victory.
Verse 1 is a personal salvation testimony compressed into four lines. It begins with hearing—”I heard an old, old story”—which captures the biblical truth that “faith comes by hearing” (Romans 10:17). The “old, old story” refers to the gospel itself, echoing the beloved hymn Tell Me the Old, Old Story by A. Catherine Hankey (1866), intentionally invoking a sense of continuity with generations of Christian witness. “How a Savior came from glory” neatly captures the Incarnation (Philippians 2:7), and “gave His life on Calvary to save a wretch like me” echoes John Newton’s Amazing Grace in its unflinching self-description. The phrase “precious blood’s atoning” anchors the atonement in the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ—His blood as the price of redemption. “I repented of my sins and won the victory” completes the conversion narrative: hearing, conviction, repentance, and the resulting victory. This verse, in eight lines, tells the whole story of salvation.
Verse 2: “I Heard About His Healing”
I heard about His healing, of His cleansing pow’r revealing, / How He made the lame to walk again and caused the blind to see; / And then I cried, “Dear Jesus, come and heal my broken spirit,” / And somehow Jesus came and bro’t to me the victory.
Verse 2 moves from the historical gospel to its personal application. Having heard about Christ’s miraculous healing ministry—specifically the lame walking and the blind seeing (Matthew 11:5; John 9:25)—the songwriter now makes his own cry: “Come and heal my broken spirit.” This is the pivotal moment of personal application: the miracles of the Gospels are not merely historical curiosities but precedents for present-day transformation. The phrase “somehow Jesus came” is a remarkable admission of mystery—Bartlett does not claim to fully understand the mechanism of conversion; he simply testifies that Christ came. There is pastoral wisdom in this humility. The word “somehow” has resonated with millions of believers who experienced genuine spiritual transformation without being able to fully articulate its mechanics. This verse is especially poignant given Bartlett’s circumstances: a man whose body had failed him, now crying out for healing of spirit rather than flesh.
Verse 3: “I Heard About a Mansion”
I heard about a mansion He has built for me in glory, / And I heard about the streets of gold beyond the crystal sea; / About the angels singing, and the old redemption story, / And some sweet day I’ll sing up there the song of victory.
Verse 3 completes the salvation journey by turning the believer’s gaze heavenward. The “mansion in glory” draws from John 14:2–3 (Christ’s promise to prepare a place), while “streets of gold beyond the crystal sea” are taken directly from Revelation 21:21 and 22:1. The phrase “angels singing” evokes both the nativity chorus of Luke 2 and the heavenly worship of Revelation 5. “The old redemption story” functions as a bookend with verse 1’s “old, old story”—the same gospel that is heard on earth will be sung in heaven. The final line—”some sweet day I’ll sing up there the song of victory”—transforms the hymn from testimony to anticipation. Bartlett, confined to his bed and approaching death, was looking forward to the day he would join that choir. The present-tense victory of salvation becomes an eternal song.
The Chorus: “O Victory in Jesus”
O victory in Jesus, my Savior, forever. / He sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood; / He loved me ere I knew Him, and all my love is due Him, / He plunged me to victory, beneath the cleansing flood.
The chorus is a masterpiece of evangelical theology in hymn form. “He sought me and bought me” captures the dual movement of prevenient grace (the seeking) and substitutionary atonement (the buying)—drawing from Luke 15’s parables of the lost sheep and lost coin, and from 1 Peter 1:18–19. “He loved me ere I knew Him” is one of the most theologically profound lines in all of gospel hymnody: it directly addresses the primacy of God’s love before any human response—a key Wesleyan emphasis rooted in John 3:16 and 1 John 4:19 (“We love Him because He first loved us”). “All my love is due Him” follows logically: because love is first received, it is then owed in return. “He plunged me to victory, beneath the cleansing flood” may allude to both baptism and the Spirit’s sanctifying work—the “cleansing flood” echoing Ezekiel 36:25 (“I will sprinkle clean water on you”) and Titus 3:5 (“the washing of regeneration”). The chorus is not a vague celebration but a doctrinally precise summary of the gospel: divine initiative, atoning death, prevenient love, and cleansing grace.
Historical Timeline
Year
Event
December 24, 1883
Eugene Monroe Bartlett Sr. born in Waynesville, Missouri (some sources record 1885)
~1900s
Graduates Hall-Moody Institute, Martin, Tennessee; begins career teaching singing schools across the South
1918
Founds Hartford Music Company in Hartford, Arkansas—one of the South’s earliest gospel music publishers
1921
Founds the Hartford Music Institute, a shape-note singing school
1918–1935
Serves as president of Hartford Music Company; grows it to a multi-state operation
1939
Suffers a debilitating stroke; left bedridden and unable to travel or teach
1939
Writes Victory in Jesus while bedridden; first published in Gospel Choruses by James D. Vaughan, Lawrenceburg, Tennessee
January 25, 1941
E.M. Bartlett passes away, age 57 (or 55); never witnesses the hymn’s rise to worldwide fame
1950s–1960s
Song adopted into Baptist, Methodist, and Church of God hymnals across America; becomes a congregational standard
1973
E.M. Bartlett posthumously inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, Nashville, Tennessee
2014
Michael W. Smith records the hymn on his album Hymns, introducing it to a new CCM audience
2021
Carrie Underwood records Victory in Jesus on her album My Savior (UMG Recordings), reaching millions of new listeners
Present
Widely regarded as one of the most beloved hymns in all of Protestant Christianity; sung in virtually every evangelical denomination worldwide
Notable Recordings and Covers
Year
Artist
Album / Label
Significance
1939
Various Quartet Groups
Gospel Choruses (Vaughan Music)
First publication; adopted by Southern Gospel quartets almost immediately
1950s–1960s
George Beverly Shea
Various RCA/Word Records releases
Shea’s rich baritone carried the hymn to Billy Graham Crusade audiences worldwide
1960s–1970s
Various Baptist Hymnal editions
Lifeway / Baptist Sunday School Board
Inclusion in the Baptist Hymnal cemented its status as a denominational standard
1970s
The Statler Brothers
Various
Country gospel crossover that broadened the song’s reach beyond Southern Gospel
1970s–1980s
The Florida Boys
Various
Long-running Southern Gospel quartet kept the song in regular rotation on TV programs
1980s–1990s
Various Church of God / Pentecostal Quartets
Various
Adopted as a near-universal worship standard in Holiness-Pentecostal traditions
2014
Michael W. Smith
Hymns (Reunion Records)
Major CCM artist re-introduced the hymn to contemporary Christian audiences
2018
The Band Steele
Single release
Contemporary gospel arrangement featuring Bo Steele; official music video went viral
2021
Carrie Underwood
My Savior (UMG Recordings)
Grammy-winning country superstar’s rendition reached mainstream audiences; album debuted at #1 on Billboard Christian Albums chart
2021
Carrie Underwood (Live)
My Savior: Live from the Ryman
Sold-out live recording at the legendary Ryman Auditorium; performance became widely shared online
Ongoing
Dailey & Vincent, Gaither Vocal Band, various bluegrass artists
Various
Continuously recorded in bluegrass, country gospel, and traditional church music settings
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Who wrote “Victory in Jesus” and what inspired it?
Victory in Jesus was written by Eugene Monroe Bartlett Sr. in 1939. It was inspired by his personal study of 1 Corinthians 15:57—”Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ”—during a period when he was bedridden following a debilitating stroke. Unable to travel or teach as he had done for decades, Bartlett channeled his faith and Scripture meditation into what would become his final and most enduring composition. The circumstances of its writing give the hymn an extraordinary authenticity: a man who had lost nearly everything was writing about victory he still believed in with his whole heart.
2. What does the chorus mean by “He sought me and bought me”?
This phrase captures two essential movements of salvation theology. “He sought me” refers to prevenient grace—the theological conviction that God takes the initiative in pursuing sinners before they seek Him (Luke 15:3–7; 1 John 4:19). “He bought me” refers to the atonement—Christ’s death on the cross as the price paid for redemption (1 Corinthians 6:20; 1 Peter 1:18–19). Taken together, the phrase asserts that salvation is entirely God’s doing from beginning to end: He sought the lost sinner first, and then paid the ultimate price to redeem that sinner. The believer contributes nothing to the transaction except the sin that required it.
3. What is “the cleansing flood” in the chorus referring to?
The phrase “He plunged me to victory, beneath the cleansing flood” carries rich multi-layered imagery. It primarily refers to the spiritual cleansing of regeneration—what the Bible describes as being washed clean by the blood of Christ (Revelation 1:5) and by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5; Ezekiel 36:25–26). Many also hear an allusion to Christian baptism, which symbolizes dying to sin and rising to new life (Romans 6:3–4). In the Holiness-Wesleyan tradition that shaped much of Southern Gospel, “the cleansing flood” additionally evokes the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit—being plunged into a deeper experience of grace that cleanses not just the guilt of sin but its power. The word “plunged” is vivid and deliberate: it speaks of total immersion, not a superficial sprinkling, in the victory Christ provides.
4. Why is “Victory in Jesus” sometimes called the “Baptist theme song”?
The affectionate nickname “Baptist theme song” emerged from the hymn’s near-universal adoption in Baptist churches across America from the 1950s onward, when it was included in successive editions of the Baptist Hymnal published by the Southern Baptist Convention’s Sunday School Board (now Lifeway). Generations of Baptist churchgoers grew up singing it at revivals, Vacation Bible Schools, Sunday services, and altar calls. Its straightforward evangelical theology—emphasizing personal salvation through Christ’s atoning blood, the priority of grace, and the hope of heaven—aligns perfectly with Baptist doctrinal distinctives. However, the song is by no means exclusively Baptist; it is sung with equal enthusiasm in Methodist, Church of God, Assembly of God, non-denominational, and countless other Protestant traditions worldwide.
5. How can “Victory in Jesus” be effectively used in worship today?
Victory in Jesus is one of the most versatile hymns in the evangelical repertoire. In a traditional worship context, its upbeat, march-like rhythm makes it an energetic congregational opener or a powerful closing hymn. In a contemporary setting, it has been adapted with electric guitar, drums, and keys while retaining the original melody and lyrics—The Band Steele’s 2018 arrangement is an excellent modern template. It works exceptionally well as an altar-call invitation hymn, since each verse traces the full arc of conversion and the chorus reinforces the assurance of salvation. For sermon series, it pairs naturally with messages on 1 Corinthians 15 (resurrection and victory), Romans 8 (no condemnation), or John 14 (heaven and the Father’s house). For pastoral care contexts—hospital visits, funerals, or grief support—verse 3 in particular (“some sweet day I’ll sing up there the song of victory”) provides profound comfort. In all settings, the hymn’s core message remains inexhaustible: the victory belongs to Christ, and He freely gives it to those who trust in Him.
Have a worship song you’d like to see featured? Leave a comment below or contact us at vbccarthage.org. This post is part of our ongoing Worship Song Deep Dive series.
How a drowsy drive on an American highway gave the world the greatest worship anthem of the modern era
The Man Who Yelled Into the Wind
It was sometime in 1987, and a tired young man named Richard Wayne Mullins was driving alone across the American heartland toward a youth conference. Sleep threatened to pull him under as the flat landscape rolled by. What happened next is the stuff of Christian music legend.
According to his brother David, Rich rolled down the car window and started yelling. Not out of frustration — but in imitation. He was channeling the old fire-and-brimstone country preachers he had grown up listening to, the ones who could shake a congregation loose from its pews with vivid, Old Testament imagery. Into the rushing wind, he thundered about a God whose footsteps shook the earth and whose fists held lightning. He preached to empty fields and open sky. And somewhere in that sleepy, gloriously unhinged sermon-in-motion, a chorus took shape:
“Our God is an awesome God — He reigns from heaven above, with wisdom, power, and love — our God is an awesome God.”
By the time he arrived at that Christ in Youth conference in Joplin, Missouri, the song existed in rough form. He taught it to the audience that night. The kids went wild. Rich thought nothing of it.
He was wrong.
Rich Mullins: The Ragamuffin Behind the Song
To understand why “Awesome God” resonated with millions, you have to know the man who wrote it — because everything about the song flows directly from the contradictions, struggles, and convictions of his life.
A Boy From Indiana
Richard Wayne Mullins was born on October 21, 1955, in Richmond, Indiana. His mother, Neva, was a birthright Quaker — gentle, spiritual, nurturing. His father, John, was a tree farmer — tough, emotionally reserved, and not easy to please. Rich grew up straddling those two worlds: the quiet interior life of Quaker faith and the hard exterior world of rural Indiana labor.
He was musical from almost before he could walk. His great-grandmother would hold him on her lap at the piano, and he would press his fingers on the keys, learning hymns in four-part harmony before he could speak clearly. At four years old, riding a tractor across the farm, he reportedly composed his first song. Music was not a choice for Rich Mullins — it was the air he breathed.
But he was also awkward, sensitive, not good at sports, and deeply uncertain of his own worth. He would later describe the years from his junior year of high school through age 30 as a period of near-constant torment: “I didn’t like myself, and I didn’t like anybody who was around me.” His faith, paradoxically, felt hollow during much of this time — not because he stopped believing in God, but because he couldn’t believe God could love him.
The Road to Music
After graduating high school in 1974, Rich pursued music education, eventually landing at Cincinnati Bible College and later Friends University in Wichita, Kansas. His early songwriting caught the attention of Amy Grant’s team, and Grant recorded his song “Sing Your Praises to the Lord” — giving him his first real foothold in the Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) industry.
His debut album, Behold the Man, arrived in 1981, followed by Rich Mullins (1986) and Pictures in the Sky (1987). These early records showed a songwriter with unusual depth and theological seriousness — but they were commercially modest. Rich entered the studio in spring 1988 with the conviction that it might be his final album. “I figured, ‘Boy, this is gonna be my last album, so I’m not gonna be clever here. I’m just gonna say what I have to say.'”
The album he made was Winds of Heaven, Stuff of Earth — and it contained a little song born on a highway somewhere between Tennessee and Missouri.
The Origin of “Awesome God”: Setting the Record Straight
There is some fascinating ambiguity about exactly where the song was written. Most accounts agree Rich was driving alone, fighting off sleep, and began yelling out the window in imitation of old-time country preachers. Some sources specifically place it as a drive toward a concert in Colorado; others say it was en route to a Christ in Youth conference in Joplin, Missouri, with the song first performed at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, MO in August 1988. Still other accounts point to a high school camp in Michigan.
What is consistent across all accounts: the song was composed in motion, essentially improvised during a drive, and then immediately shared with a live audience who responded with immediate enthusiasm. Rich himself was ambivalent about the precise origin — he told different stories at different times and appeared genuinely unconcerned with the details.
What is not ambiguous is what happened next. When “Awesome God” debuted on the AC Charts on August 15, 1988, it climbed steadily and hit #1 on October 3, 1988, spending a total of 18 weeks on the chart. Reunion Records later threw Rich a celebration party in Nashville for the achievement.
Lyrical Analysis: What “Awesome God” Actually Says
One of the great injustices done to “Awesome God” over the decades is that most people only know the chorus. This is a tragedy, because the complete song — three verses plus the famous refrain — is a remarkably dense theological statement compressed into vivid, concrete images.
The Title and the Word “Awesome”
The title is drawn directly from Scripture. The phrase “awesome God” appears in Nehemiah 1:5, Nehemiah 9:32, Psalm 47, and Daniel 9:4. The Hebrew concept behind these passages is yirah — a complex word that carries connotations of fear, reverence, awe, and wonder all at once.
By 1988, the word “awesome” had already begun its slide into casual slang — a synonym for “cool” or “great.” Rich Mullins was reaching deliberately backward, reclaiming the word’s original weight. To call God “awesome” in Mullins’s sense is not a compliment — it is a statement of ontological reality. It means: this Being exceeds your categories. You cannot domesticate Him. He is beyond you.
Verse 1 — The God of Power
When He rolls up His sleeves He ain’t just putting on the ritz (Our God is an awesome God) There’s thunder in His footsteps and lightning in His fists (Our God is an awesome God) And the Lord wasn’t joking when He kicked ’em out of Eden It wasn’t for no reason that He shed His blood His return is very close and so you better be believing that Our God is an awesome God
This verse draws from an enormous swath of Old Testament imagery. The picture of God “rolling up His sleeves” is a vernacular translation of the ancient Hebrew concept of the “arm of the Lord” — God’s powerful intervention in history (Isaiah 52:10). “Thunder in His footsteps and lightning in His fists” references passages including Exodus 19:16, Psalm 18:13, Psalm 29:3-7, Job 37:3-5, and Revelation 4:5. The verse then pivots rapidly through three theological pillars: the Fall (Eden), the Atonement (the cross), and the Second Coming. In four lines, Mullins covers the entire sweep of redemptive history.
Verse 2 — The God of Creation and Judgment
And when the sky was starless in the void of the night (Our God is an awesome God) He spoke into the darkness and created the light (Our God is an awesome God) Judgment and wrath He poured out on Sodom Mercy and grace He gave us at the cross I hope that we have not too quickly forgotten that Our God is an awesome God
This verse begins with Genesis 1:1-3 — the darkness before creation, God speaking light into existence. It then pairs the destruction of Sodom (Genesis 18-19) with the mercy of the cross — the most theologically loaded juxtaposition in the entire song. The implication is unmistakable: the same God who obliterated Sodom for its wickedness is the God who absorbed that same judgment Himself at Calvary. Wrath and mercy are not opposites in this theology — they are held together at the cross. The structure mirrors Psalm 136, where a single refrain (“His love endures forever”) repeats while the verses build the cumulative case for it.
The Chorus — A Declaration, Not a Description
Our God is an awesome God He reigns from heaven above With wisdom, power, and love Our God is an awesome God
“He reigns from heaven above” echoes Psalm 97:1 and Exodus 15:18. “Wisdom, power, and love” is a triad drawn from 2 Timothy 1:7 combined with Proverbs 8 and the Psalms. The repetition of “Our God is an awesome God” throughout the song functions liturgically — like a doxology or antiphon. By the end, the listener has not just heard a statement; they have participated in a confession.
The Verse-Chorus Divorce
One of the most-noted observations about the song’s modern use is what one theologian called “the great divorce between verse and chorus.” As “Awesome God” became a congregational staple, many worship leaders stripped it to its chorus alone — discarding the verses that provide the reason for the declaration. Sung alone, the chorus becomes cheerleading. Sung with the verses, it becomes a creed. The full song argues its case; the chorus alone simply asserts it.
Timeline: The Life of a Song
Year
Event
1987
Rich Mullins writes “Awesome God” during a late-night drive, improvising it as a preacher-styled rant to stay awake
Spring 1988
Rich enters the studio to record Winds of Heaven, Stuff of Earth for Reunion Records
August 2, 1988
Winds of Heaven, Stuff of Earth is released; “Awesome God” is the lead single
August 15, 1988
“Awesome God” debuts on the Christian AC Charts
October 3, 1988
“Awesome God” hits #1 on the AC Charts; spends 18 total weeks on chart
September 1988
Rich launches a 16-week national “Awesome God Tour”
December 1988
Reunion Records throws a celebration party for Rich in Nashville
1989
Maranatha! Praise Band records the chorus — beginning the song’s congregational worship life
1993
Rich forms The Ragamuffin Band, named after Brennan Manning’s book
1994
Michael W. Smith records a live version; featured on WOW Worship compilations
September 19, 1997
Rich Mullins dies in a traffic accident near Lostant, Illinois, at age 41
1998
Awesome God: A Tribute to Rich Mullins is released
1998
The Jesus Record, Rich’s posthumous album, is released
1998
Rich is named GMA Dove Award Artist of the Year — posthumously
2004
CCM Magazine names “Awesome God” the #1 greatest song in Christian music history
2021
Netflix film A Week Away features “Awesome God” in a campfire medley
2023
Point of Grace releases a new recording with a live a cappella outro
April 11, 2025
Phil Wickham releases “What An Awesome God” in six versions
2025
Phil Wickham’s version spends 23 weeks at #1 on Christian radio charts
The Humble Artist Who Gave It All Away
The commercial success of “Awesome God” created an uncomfortable tension for its author. Rich Mullins was profoundly suspicious of wealth, celebrity, and the CCM industry’s growing entanglement with consumer culture.
After the song’s success, he made a decision that shocked the music world: he set up a board of directors to manage his finances and had his royalty checks sent directly to his lawyer rather than himself. The board distributed the funds according to a plan Rich helped design. He accepted only the average median salary for an American laborer — the rest went to charities, including Compassion International (he eventually sponsored three children through the organization).
His reasoning was theological: “Jesus said whatever you do to the least of these my brothers you’ve done it to me. If I want to identify fully with Jesus Christ, the best way I can do that is to identify with the poor.”
In 1995, after graduating from Friends University with a degree in music education, he moved to Tse Bonito on the Navajo Nation reservation in New Mexico, where he lived in a small sheet-metal trailer and taught music to Navajo children. “God never told me to go to New Mexico,” he said with characteristic deflation. “It’s no different than someone saying, ‘I’m going to flip burgers in Pittsburgh.'”
The Ragamuffin Gospel and the Theology Behind the Song
Any serious engagement with “Awesome God” must grapple with the theological framework that shaped it — and no influence was more formative than Brennan Manning, the former Catholic priest and author of The Ragamuffin Gospel (1990).
Manning wrote his book “for the bedraggled, beat-up, and burnt-out” — for people who could not get their spiritual lives together and suspected God had given up on them. His central argument was that God’s grace is more scandalous, more unconditional, and more available than the moralistic religious culture of American Christianity was willing to admit.
Mullins, who wrestled throughout his life with depression, alcoholism, and a profound sense of unworthiness, heard Manning’s message and was transformed. He said Manning’s teaching “broke the power of mere ‘moralistic religiosity'” in his life. In 1993, he named his backing musicians The Ragamuffin Band as an explicit tribute to Manning’s work and theology.
The paradox of “Awesome God” is that it was written by a man who simultaneously believed God was terrifyingly holy and that this same terrifying God loved broken people with reckless abandon. The song holds both truths — the holiness and the mercy — in the same lyrical space. That tension is not an accident; it is the entire point.
The Death That Shocked a Generation
On the evening of September 19, 1997, Rich Mullins and his friend and bandmate Mitch McVicker were driving from Chicago to a benefit concert in Wichita, Kansas. Near Lostant, Illinois, on Interstate 39, Mullins’s Jeep went out of control and rolled, ejecting both men. A tractor-trailer, unable to stop in time, swerved to avoid the Jeep and struck Mullins. He died instantly. He was 41 years old.
McVicker survived, though he suffered serious head and internal injuries and spent weeks in a Peoria hospital before beginning rehabilitation. Rich had been just weeks away from entering the studio to record a collection of ten new songs about Jesus — songs his friends and colleagues described as the best writing of his career. Those recordings were assembled posthumously into The Jesus Record, released in 1998 — one of the most poignant artifacts in Christian music history. At the 1998 GMA Dove Awards, he was named Artist of the Year. At the 1999 awards, he won Songwriter of the Year.
Rich Mullins never made a cent from his signature song. By his own design, it had all gone elsewhere. And yet the song outlived him by decades and shows no signs of stopping.
Legacy and Modern Covers: The Song That Will Not Die
In 2004, CCM Magazine named “Awesome God” the #1 greatest song in Christian music history — a distinction that still stands more than two decades later. The song migrated out of CCM radio and into the pews of churches around the world, becoming a staple of youth camps, vacation Bible schools, revival meetings, and Sunday morning worship services across virtually every Protestant denomination.
When Point of Grace recorded a new version in 2023 — more than 25 years after his death — they added a live outro: the entire audience at their Ocean City, New Jersey concert singing the chorus a cappella, without being given the lyrics. “The entire room instinctively knew the words,” said group member Leigh Cappillino. “That’s just another example of how ‘Awesome God’ continues to stand the test of time.”
Notable Covers
Artist
Version / Context
Year
Maranatha! Praise Band
First congregational worship recording (chorus only)
1989
Michael W. Smith
Live version; performed live 36+ documented times in concert
1994–present
Helen Baylor
Full gospel cover
1990s
Rebecca St. James
Featured on WOW Worship compilations
2000s
Third Day
Various live performances and recordings
2000s
Hillsong United
Featured in worship sets worldwide
2000s
Cast of A Week Away (Netflix)
Campfire medley with “God Only Knows”
2021
Point of Grace
Studio version with live a cappella outro
2023
Phil Wickham
“What An Awesome God” — six-version extended single with new verses
2025
Phil Wickham and the New Generation
Of all the modern interpretations of “Awesome God,” Phil Wickham’s 2025 release “What An Awesome God” represents the most significant artistic intervention since the original. Released on April 11, 2025 — a year that would have marked Rich Mullins’s 70th birthday — the song preserves the iconic chorus while adding entirely new verses penned by Wickham and co-writer Jonathan Smith.
Wickham’s new verses draw on Psalm 33:6 and Genesis 2:7, maintaining the same scriptural density as Mullins’s original verses while updating the production for modern congregational worship. The song was released in six distinct versions — studio, organic, live, voice memo, choir, and instrumental — to serve different worship contexts. “What An Awesome God” went on to spend 23 weeks at #1 on Christian radio charts in 2025.
Wickham described the experience: “It’s hard to even describe what it means to me to share a small part of the legacy of this song. It has quickly become one of my favorite songs to sing with the church.”
Why This Song Endures
Scholars, pastors, and musicians have offered many explanations for “Awesome God”‘s extraordinary staying power. Nathan Myrick, writing for United Methodist Discipleship Ministries, argues that it became “one of the signature songs of the burgeoning contemporary worship music movement” because it combined a singable, theologically confident chorus with a driving, emotionally accessible melody. Michael Blanton, the head of Reunion Records, attributes the song’s longevity to Mullins’s refusal to write for the church market — he was always writing for the ordinary, spiritually hungry person on the street.
But perhaps the deepest explanation lies in what the song refuses to do. It refuses to make God safe. It refuses to make worship comfortable. It insists on a God who judges as well as saves, who poured out wrath on Sodom and then absorbed that same wrath at the cross. In an era of therapeutic Christianity — a God who serves as life coach and cosmic affirmation engine — Rich Mullins drove down the highway and yelled about a different kind of God: awesome in the ancient sense, terrifying and beautiful and wholly other.
That version of God turns out to be the one people actually want to worship.
Rich Mullins (October 21, 1955 – September 19, 1997) is remembered at Friends University in Wichita, Kansas, in a dedicated archive known as “Rich’s Room” in the Edmund Stanley Library. His music continues to be performed by artists worldwide, and “Awesome God” remains, nearly four decades after its creation, the #1 ranked song in Contemporary Christian Music history.
Few hymns in modern Christian worship carry the depth of theology, poetic beauty, and enduring relevance like “Before the Throne of God Above.” Though many believers today associate the song with contemporary worship, its origins trace back more than 160 years. The journey of this hymn—from a 19th-century poem to a globally beloved worship song—is a fascinating story of rediscovery, revival, and rich biblical truth.
This article explores the origins, historical development, theological depth, and modern resurgence of this powerful hymn.
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The Author: Charitie Lees Smith (Bancroft)
The text of “Before the Throne of God Above” was written in 1863 by Charitie Lees Smith, an Irish-born poet and the daughter of an Anglican clergyman.
Born in 1841, Smith grew up in a home deeply rooted in Scripture and theology. Her father’s role as a minister influenced her early exposure to biblical teaching, and she demonstrated a gift for writing poetry from a young age.
Originally, the poem was titled “Within the Veil with Jesus” or sometimes “The Advocate.” This title reflects the central theme of the hymn: Christ as our advocate before God.
The Original Publication (1863)
The hymn first appeared in a collection titled The Praise of Jesus in 1863.
At that time, it was not even set to music—it was simply a poem consisting of six stanzas. This is important because it reminds us that the power of the hymn lies first in its text, not its melody.
The poem was later included in other hymn collections, including:
Praises of Jesus (1865, United States)
Our Own Hymn-Book (1866), compiled by Charles Spurgeon
Spurgeon titled it “Jesus Pleads for Me,” emphasizing its central doctrinal message: the intercession of Christ.
A Hymn Nearly Forgotten
Despite its strong theology, the hymn did not achieve widespread popularity in its early years. In fact, it largely faded into obscurity for nearly a century.
While it appeared in some hymnals in the late 1800s, it never gained the traction of other well-known hymns of the time. One reason may be that it lacked a widely accepted musical setting. Various tunes were used, but none captured the heart of the text in a way that resonated broadly with congregations.
For decades, “Before the Throne of God Above” remained a hidden treasure—rich in truth but largely unknown.
The 20th-Century Revival
Everything changed in 1997.
A modern composer named Vikki Cook, associated with Sovereign Grace Music, encountered the hymn text during a church service.
Though the existing musical setting did not connect well with the congregation, Cook was deeply moved by the words. She began meditating on the text during her personal devotional time and eventually composed a brand-new melody.
This new arrangement transformed the hymn.
Cook’s version was first recorded in 1997 and later published in hymnals by 1999.
This moment marked the beginning of the hymn’s modern resurgence.
A Leader in the “Retuned Hymn Movement”
The new version of “Before the Throne of God Above” became a key example of what is often called the “retuned hymn movement.”
This movement seeks to:
Recover older hymn texts rich in theology
Pair them with modern, accessible melodies
Reintroduce them to contemporary congregations
Cook’s melody gave the hymn a fresh emotional tone—one of confidence, assurance, and joy—rather than the more somber tone of earlier tunes.
Today, many worshipers assume the song is entirely modern, unaware that its lyrics date back to the 1800s.
The Theology of the Hymn
One of the reasons this hymn has endured—and flourished—is its deep biblical foundation.
The lyrics draw heavily from Scripture, especially passages like:
Hebrews 4:14–16
Hebrews 7:25
Romans 8:33–34
The central theme is clear: Jesus Christ is our High Priest and Advocate before God.
Key Doctrinal Themes
1. Christ as Our Advocate
The hymn opens with the powerful line:
“I have a strong and perfect plea…”
This reflects the biblical truth that Christ intercedes for believers before the Father.
2. Assurance of Salvation
Lines like:
“No tongue can bid me thence depart”
emphasize the security of the believer in Christ.
3. Justification Through Christ
The hymn declares:
“For God the just is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me.”
This beautifully captures the doctrine of substitutionary atonement.
4. Union with Christ
The final stanza proclaims:
“One with Himself, I cannot die…”
This expresses the believer’s unity with Christ and eternal hope.
Why the Hymn Still Resonates Today
Despite being written in 1863, “Before the Throne of God Above” feels incredibly relevant in modern worship.
1. It Addresses Doubt and Guilt
In a world where many struggle with guilt and insecurity, the hymn speaks directly to the believer’s assurance in Christ.
2. It Is Rich in Scripture
Unlike many modern songs that focus on emotional expression, this hymn is saturated with biblical truth.
3. It Bridges Old and New
Thanks to Vikki Cook’s melody, the hymn successfully connects:
Historical theology
Modern worship style
4. It Centers on Christ
The song is entirely Christ-focused—His work, His intercession, and His righteousness.
From Obscurity to Global Worship
Today, “Before the Throne of God Above” is sung in churches around the world and has appeared in numerous hymnals and worship albums.
Artists and groups such as Sovereign Grace Music and others have helped popularize the hymn among new generations.
What was once a nearly forgotten poem is now a cornerstone of modern Christian worship.
Next to John 3:16, Revelation 3:20 is perhaps the most famous evangelistic passage in the New Testament. It has been described as the simplest explanation of the plan of salvation in the Word of God. In this sermon, we explore the profound invitation of Jesus Christ to every individual.
Revelation 1:4 John, to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace to you and peace
from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who
are before His throne,
Revelation 1:5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead
and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from
our sins in His own blood,
Revelation 1:10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day …
Revelation 1:18 I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore.
Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.
Revelation 2:8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, ‘These things says
the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life:
Revelation 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice
and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
Revelation 3:21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne,
as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.
Revelation 3:22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Next to John 3:16, — Revelation 3:20 is perhaps the most famous evangelistic
passage of Scripture in the New Testament
This verse of Scripture has been described as “the simplest explanation of the plan
of salvation contained within the Word of God.”
1. WHOSE STANDING AT THE DOOR?
Revelation 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door …
Revelation 3:21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne,
as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.
2. WHAT DOES THE DOOR REPRESENT?
Revelation 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock ….
Proverbs 4:23 Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.
Proverbs 4:23 (CJB) Above everything else, guard your heart; for it is the source of
life’s consequences.
Proverbs 4:23 (GNT) Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts.
There is an old hymn that includes these lines:
Somebody’s knocking at your door
Sounds like Jesus
Oh sinner why don’t you answer
Somebody’s knocking at your door.”
John 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become
children of God, to those who believe in His name:
3. WHO CAN LET HIM COME IN?
Revelation 3:20 “… If anyone … ”
Unbelief is never neutral
Matthew 12:30 “He who is not with Me is against Me …”
Matthew 13:58 Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.
Mark 6:5 Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a
few sick people and healed them.
Mark 6:6 And He marveled because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages
in a circuit, teaching.
Mark 8:18 Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do
you not remember?
Someone said, “We repeated the words without thinking about what they meant.”
4. HOW DOES HE SEEK ENTRANCE INTO OUR DOOR?
Revelation 2:20 “… If anyone hears My voice and opens the door…”
Romans 10:17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Rita Coolidge said, “Too often the opportunity knocks, but by the time you disengage
the chain, push back the bolt, unhooked the two locks and shut off the burglar
alarms, it is too late.”
5. WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF I OPEN THE DOOR?
Revelation 3:20 “… I will come in to him,…”
The Christian life is defined as, “I in Christ and Christ in me.”
Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ
but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live
by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Revelation 2:20 “… I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.”
With the Lord’s supper we dine with Him in remembrance of His sacrifice for us.
6. WILL WE HAVE TO OVERCOME OPPOSITION?
Revelation 3:21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne,
as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.
7. WHY DON’T YOU LET HIM COME IN?
Revelation 3:22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the
churches.'”
The “Hymn” “The Savior is Waiting” includes these lines:
The Savior is waiting to enter your heart
Why don’t you let Him come in
There’s nothing in this world to keep you apart
What is your answer to Him
Time after time He has waited before
And now He is waiting again
To see if you’re willing to open the door
Oh how He wants to come in
John 10:9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, …
In Part 2 of “Laodicea, The Church Lukewarm Over Being Lukewarm,” we continue our journey through the “Revelation: Jesus Revealed” series by examining Christ’s striking message to the Laodicean church in Revelation 3:14-22. This sermon explores the grave danger of spiritual complacency—the curse, condition, and root causes of being “lukewarm.” Through an honest look at our own spiritual poverty, blindness, and wretchedness apart from God, we discover Christ’s ultimate counsel: an invitation to repent and receive His true riches, His perfect righteousness, and complete restoration.
Audio Only:
Sermon Notes:
Sermon Series: Revelation: Jesus Revealed: The View Behind The Veil
Laodicea, The Church Lukewarm Over Being Lukewarm” (Part 2)
Revelation 3:14 “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, ‘These
things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation
of God:
Revelation 3:15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could
wish you were cold or hot.
Revelation 3:16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot,
I will vomit you out of My mouth.
Revelation 3:17 Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need
of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and
naked—
Revelation 3:18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may
be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your
nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.
Revelation 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and
repent.
Revelation 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice
and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
Revelation 3:21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne,
as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.
Revelation 3:22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Revelation 3:16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will
spue thee out of my mouth.
I. THE CHRIST WHOSE AGAINST LUKEWARMNESS.
Revelation 3:14 “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, ‘These
things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation
of God:
II. THE CURSE OF LUKEWARMNESS.
Revelation 3:15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish
you were cold or hot.
III. THE CONDTION OF LUKEWARMNESS.
Revelation 3:16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot,
I will vomit you out of My mouth.
IV. THE CAUSE OF LUKEWARMNESS.
Revelation 3:17 Because you say, —and do not know
1 Thessalonians 4:13 “But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren …
John 15:5 “… for without Me you can do nothing.”
1. YOU DO NOT KNOW THAT YOU ARE WRETCHED.
Revelation 3:17 Because you say, — and do not know that you are wretched … ”
Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.
Romans 7:24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
Romans 7:25 I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Noel Jesse Heikkinen, Wretched Saints (quote)
“The truth of the gospel of Jesus is this: I am nothing more than a wretch … and yet
so much more than a saint. I am a wretched saint, and that’s exactly what I am
supposed to be. No more; no less. That is my identity; it is who I am.”
Voddie Baucham (quote)
“May I never get over the fact that God saved a wretched sinner like me.”
Blaise Pascal (quote)
“The greatness of man is great in that he knows himself to be wretched.”
2. YOU DO NOT KNOW THAT YOU ARE MISERABLE.
Revelation 3:17 Because you say, — and do not know that you are miserable …”
1 Corinthians 15:19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most
miserable.
3. YOU DO NOT KNOW THAT YOU ARE POOR.
Revelation 3:17 Because you say, ‘I am rich, — and do not know that you are poor …
Matthew 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4. YOU DO NOT KNOW THAT YOU ARE BLIND.
Revelation 3:17 Because you say, — and do not know that you are blind ….”
5. YOU DO NOT KNOW THAT YOU ARE NAKED.
Revelation 3:17 Because you say, — and do not know that you are naked …”
V. THE COUNSEL FOR LUKEWARMNESS.
Revelation 3:18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may
be rich;
1. WE NEED CHRIST’S RICHES.
1 Corinthians 4:7 (EASY) “… You received from God everything that you have.
2 Corinthians 8:9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He
was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might
become rich.
2. WE NEED CHRIST’S RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Revelation 3:18 “… and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of
your nakedness may not be revealed;
Isaiah 64:6 “But we ‘are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousness are like
filthy rags;
Isaiah 61:10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God;
for he hath clothed me with the the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with
the robe of righteousness …
3. WE NEED CHRIST’S RESTORATION.
Revelation 3:18 “… and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.
Revelation 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and
repent.
The wretch needs to retch.
Thomas Watson said, “Real repentance is the vomiting of the soul.”
