Exegeting the Hymns #72 - Glorious Day

Glorious Day
w/m - Sean Curran, Jason Ingram, Jonathan Smith, Kristian Stanfill

I was buried beneath my shame
Who could carry that kind of weight
It was my tomb Till I met You

I was breathing, but not alive
All my failures I tried to hide
It was my tomb Till I met You

You called my name and I ran out of that grave
Out of the darkness into Your glorious day
You called my name and I ran out of that grave
Out of the darkness into Your glorious day

Now Your mercy has saved my soul
Now Your freedom is all I know
The old made new, Jesus, when I met You

I needed rescue, my sin was heavy
But chains break at the weight of Your glory
I needed shelter, I was an orphan
But You call me a citizen of heaven
When I was broken, You were my healing
Your love is the air that I'm breathing
I have a future, my eyes are open

This is a song from a few years back from the very popular “Passion Conference”. While this song contains some doctrine, I’d put it in the “Testimony song” category. One thing I really like about this song is that, even though it is a testimony song, it is a testimony song that every believer should be able to sing because it is about the work of Christ in saving us.

I was buried beneath my shame. Who could carry that kind of weight? It was my tomb Till I met You. On initial listening, I thought this opening line is not one that I would have written to describe our standing before we are saved. While it is true that we are dead before God makes us alive (Ephesians 2), the shame we feel because of our sin isn’t there until our eyes are opened to it. The carnal man loves his sin. But then, I thought of “Christian” in John Bunyan’s “Pilgrim’s Progress”. When he first heard the gospel in the City of Destruction, it placed a huge burden on him that only fell off at the foot of the cross. Just understand that our tomb is not simply “shame” that we feel, but the sin and death we are born into.

I was breathing, but not alive. All my failures I tried to hide. This speaks of the lost who walk around thinking they are alive, when in fact they are dead men walking. The one we sin against is God. We fail before we are saved because we have no desire to be pleasing to God. Again, I don’t know if the world tries to hide it when they fail God by continuing in their sin. Only a believer would feel conviction for their failures in the area of sin.

You called my name and I ran out of that grave, out of the darkness into Your glorious day. Now this is a very accurate description of what happens to a man who was dead, blind, and in rebellion against God, when the Holy Spirit draws them, opens their eyes and makes them alive… they RUN out of the grave and into the arms of the Savior.

Now Your mercy has saved my soul. Now Your freedom is all I know, the old made new, Jesus, when I met You. John 1:13 tells us we are “born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” It is the mercy of God that saves us, not being born into a Christian family, not doing good works, not even our own will. It is God and His mercy. He saves us and sets us free. The old is passed away and everything is become new.

I needed rescue, my sin was heavy, but chains break at the weight of Your glory. The chains spoken of here, in context, are the chains of sin and death, not just the chains of low self-esteem or bad habits. These can form chains, even around believers, but this is a bondage that has eternal consequences. The context is salvation as can be seen in the next phrase: I needed shelter, I was an orphan but You call me a citizen of heaven. God adopts us into His family. This is not a temporary adoption. This adoption is a result of being justified freely and redeemed from the slave market of sin.  

When I was broken, You were my healing. Again, this is clearly speaking of healing from our sin nature and total depravity. Your love is the air that I'm breathing. This is a poetic way of saying that Jesus is our all in all. It is not meant to mean that the love of God is a mixture of nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide etc.

I have a future, my eyes are open. Those whom God has called, He justifies. And those He justifies, He glorifies. Our future is secure because our names are written in the Lambs Book of Life. We look forward seeing our Savior on that glorious day!

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