I’m always on the lookout for songs that expand our view of the greatness and majesty of God.
‘Behold Him’ by Mitch Wong and Paul Baloche does that in a fresh and compelling way, and balances beautifully the revelation of God’s character with the opportunity to respond in wonder.
‘Behold Him’ is especially strong in presenting what Jonathan Edwards might have called ‘the conjunction of diverse excellences’, – highlighting two contrasting aspects of Jesus’ person and work. The song speaks of Jesus as the One who ‘was before there was light’ yet ‘heard humanity’s cry’ and ‘left His throne to wake as a child.’ He’s both the ‘lamb’ and ‘the roaring lion’ who ‘buried death as He rose to life.’ And, as you can see from these examples, it paints these contrasts with the beauty and freshness we might expect from Baloche from his decades of writing songs to serve the church.
The invitation of this song is simple and profound: behold Him. Having displayed the glory of Christ, we’re called to gaze upon Him. And we know that, as we do, the Holy Spirit is at work to transform us into His likeness from one degree of glory to another (2 Cor. 3:18). It draws us into the bridge, where we join with the saints in heaven in the chorus of Revelation 5: ‘Holy holy holy / Is the Lord God Almighty / Worthy worthy worthy / To receive all praise.’
All this rests on a very singable melody. I’d lead it in C with a congregation so the chorus doesn’t get fatiguing, but it fits nicely in a congregation’s range (which Bob Kauflin suggests is an A below middle C to the D in the octave above).
Contemporary worship songs are sometimes labelled ‘shallow’ and ‘man-focused.’ Although there are always extreme examples, there is (perhaps increasingly) a wealth of writers seeking to mine the depths of the Scriptures to enlarge our view of our God; ‘Behold Him’ is no exception. It’s been a blessing to me and our church, and I hope it will be to yours as well.
