Christus Victor

The 2025 annual national Getty Music Sing! Conference in Nashville, TN was a landmark event as their “Sing! Hymnal” was introduced to an enthusiastic gathering of nearly 8,000 church musicians and worship leaders.  Several years in the making, this will likely become the hymnal most often found in evangelical churches across America over the next couple of years.  This year’s conference had the theme, “Generation to Generation,” and that was evident in the structure and selections in this hymnal, designed to reach multi-generations.  The Getty team and their advisors and editors have chosen a wide sampling of hymns from all ages from centuries past to some of the newest compositions of the 21^st century.

It will be a great tool to connect multi-generations at a time when many children, young people, and young adults have missed out on the opportunity to know such great hymns as “Crown Him with Many Crowns,” “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name,” “O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing,” and “Jesus, What a Friend for Sinners.”  At the same time, the hymnal has a rich sampling of newer hymns of several different styles from composers like the Gettys.  It also includes a healthy number of metrical Psalms for singing, a welcome emphasis to a historic practice that needs to be revived.

In addition to hymns, there are many Scripture readings, prayers, and other liturgical aids designed to lead the church to rise above the simplistic “songs followed by sermon” which has dominated much of the free church culture, carrying that over from the revivalistic meetings going back into the 19^th century.  This is much-needed when many who lead worship in the 21^st century, both ministers and musicians, have not recognized the presence and value of a biblically and historically based liturgical structure, as has often been recognized in places like Isaiah 6. 

The overall structure of the “Sing! Hymnal” is somewhat unique.  Selections are divided into three sections: 1) The Worship Service, 2) The Christian Life, and 3) The Life of Christ. It is published by Crossway, and includes the option of a larger spiral-bound accompanist’s edition.  It is a sizeable and somewhat heavy (!) hymnal, with thicker paper, and a generous supply of indices (including single paragraph hymn stories!).  The final selection number 900, is full four-part harmony for Handel’s “Hallelujah” chorus from “Messiah.”

The hymnal is part of an effort (hopefully successful!) to call the church not only to a deeper worship engagement with God, but also one that takes seriously the biblical and historical models and philosophies of a God-centered worship that is not stiffly liturgical, but is unapologetically liturgical, nonetheless.

Getty Music has grown from the hymn-writing and performing work of Keith and Kristyn Getty.  They have become immensely popular and well-loved since their best-known work, “In Christ Alone,” written in 2001.  This couple from Northern Ireland have lived in America for several decades, now with their four daughters in Nashville.  The Getty team includes instrumentalists (piano, flute, violin, percussion, etc.) and such vocalists as Matt Papa, Matt Merker, Skye Peterson, Jordan Kauflin, Matt Boswell, Ben Shive, and Laura Story, and often includes such special guests as Joni Eareckson Tada, Malcolm Guite, Ligon Duncan, John Lennox, Alistair Begg, and John Piper.  Their annual Sing! Conferences include performances from Shai and Blair Linn and Sandra McCracken, as well as Australia’s CityAlight band.

One of the most recent songs written by the Getty team is “Christus Victor.”  This was featured prominently at the 2024 Sing! conference, and then again in 2025. Here is how the hymn is described on the Getty website.

The Story Behind the Song

“Christus Victor” is Latin for “Christ the Victor” which we sing at the end of the third verse. It highlights this big theme of Christ’s victory over sin and death.

We wrote this song with Matt Papa, Matt Boswell and Bryan Fowler and recorded it for the first time in 2024. The melody of the verse was begun by Matt Papa several years ago and finally found a home here. Keith wrote the melody of the chorus in the car one day when we were dropping the girls off to school!

Each year we write new hymns for the themes of the Sing conference. Last year the theme was “Songs of the Bible.” As we read through those songs we noticed in Revelation 15 this verse. “And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb.”

It describes a time that’s coming when the work on earth is complete and there is great singing about all the Lord has done! This theme is repeated all through the Bible.

The Song of Moses

The first recorded song of the Bible is the Song of Moses in Exodus 15 (you should read it!) The people of Israel sing a victory song after God leads them safely through the Red Sea defeating their enemies. We tell this in verse 1 of the song.

The Song of the Lamb

But at the center of the Bible’s story is the song of the Lamb, the Lord Jesus, who takes away the sins of the world at the cross. He rose again and conquered death. We tell this in verse 2 of the song.

Singing the Whole Story

This hymn tries to link the pieces of God’s salvation story together. The Old Testament points towards Christ’s Coming. The New Testament tells us of his first coming and the promise of His second one (verse 3 of the song). The chorus is a great shout of praise to the Lamb from all God’s people!

Something to Think About

In the song we like to sing what is called “a threefold Amen.” This means to sing “Amen” three times. It is a Church tradition to sing this word in that way. “Amen” is often repeated through the Bible as a way for people to respond to all that is said and sung – “Yes, we agree, may it be so!” is what we are saying. We also like to sing it in harmony so we can better hear all the different voices of the church!

Have you ever read or watched a story where a great hero leads his people into victory after a big battle? You will hear them shout out in celebration of the victory. This is like that. We sing ‘Amen’ to celebrate the victory of Jesus. It gives us courage today and hope for all that is to come. Christ has won and He will reign forever on the throne!

We hope as you sing it you think as Moses did all those thousands of years ago: “I will sing to the Lord for He has triumphed gloriously!”

The driving theme of “Christus Victor” is obviously the victory Jesus has won.  That is the central theme of the book of Revelation, and should be the great hope and constant song of every believer, still struggling here below as part of the church militant (as named in classic systematic theology terminology) but looking forward to the day of the full acknowledgement and enjoyment of celebrating with the church triumphant.

The refrain, which comes several times though the hymn, is taken directly from Revelation 7:12 as part of the great hymn of heaven which John saw and heard being sung in that Lord’s Day vision granted to him, and recorded in chapters 4 and 5.  We should gather from that that the hymn is actually being sung there right now, and that we will add our voices to that heavenly chorus of countless saints and angels, perhaps with those very words, and to music more wonderful than we have heard on this earth.  Perhaps we should consider our singing on Sunday mornings as a corporate rehearsal for that day which is approaching.

While this can certainly be sung as a congregational hymn, it is somewhat different from the typical stanza/refrain pattern, as reflected in the printed version in the “Sing! Hymnal.”  Therefore, the lyrics below reflect the pattern (with repeats) in which it is intended to be sung.  Notice how each stanza begins by addressing God most appropriately as “O Most High,” followed in sequence by “King of the ages,” “Dwelling among us,” and then “King of the nations.”  The music accents the joy of the truth that Jesus already has, and will at the end be, gloriously victorious.  How very appropriate then that we repeatedly sing “Amen” to that, using the harmony of the well-known three-fold anonymous Danish amen (which also follows the chord progression of Johann Pachelbel’s “celebrated” Canon.

Stanza 1 hearkens back to the Passover, recalling how it was the blood of a lamb shed and applied to the doorposts of the homes that led to the deliverance of the people of Israel out of Egypt and then though the waters of the Red Sea.

O Most High, King of the ages
Great I AM, God of wonders
By the blood You have redeemed us
Led us through mighty waters
Our strength, our song, our sure salvation

          (refrain)

Now to the Lamb upon the throne
Be blessing, honor, glory, power
For the battle You have won
Hallelujah Amen

Stanza 2 continues to draw attention to the shedding of blood for our redemption, but in this stanza looking at the fulfilment through the sacrifice of Christ, our Passover Lamb, who
lived, who died, who rose victorious.”

O Most High, dwelling among us
Son of Man sent for sinners
By Your blood You have redeemed us
Spotless Lamb, mighty Savior
Who lived, who died, who rose victorious

          (refrain)

Now to the Lamb upon the throne
Be blessing, honor, glory, power
For the battle You have won
Hallelujah

Bridge

With every tribe and every tongue
We join the anthem of the angels
In the triumph of the Son
Hallelujah Amen

Stanza 3 moves past the Exodus and Calvary to the culmination on that awesome day of celebration when Jesus will be lifted up for all to see and every knee will bow and every tongue confess that He is Lord.  Then we will tremble with joy before our “King of the nations” in His victory.

O Most High, King of the nations
Robed in praise, crowned with splendor
On that day who will not tremble?
When You stand, Christ the Victor
Who was, and is, and is forever

          (refrain)

Now to the Lamb upon the throne
Be blessing, honor, glory, power
For the battle You have won
Hallelujah

          (bridge and coda)

With every tribe and every tongue
We join the anthem of the angels
In the triumph of the Son
Hallelujah Amen

Amen, amen, amen
Amen, amen, amen
Amen, amen, amen

          (final refrain)

Now to the Lamb upon the throne
Be blessing, honor, glory, power
For the battle You have won
Hallelujah

With every tribe and every tongue
We join the anthem of the angels
In the triumph of the Son
Hallelujah Amen
Sing the victory of the Lamb
Hallelujah Amen

Amen

Citation

Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Bryan Fowler / Keith Getty / Kristyn Lennox Getty / Matt Boswell Pub Designee / Matt Papa
Christus Victor (Amen) lyrics © Capitol CMG Publishing

Here is a bit more about the new SING! Hymnal … a rave review from Christian blogger Tim Challies:

I have come to realize that I probably felt a little skeptical about the new Sing! Hymnal from Getty Music. I wasn’t aware of this, but I suppose I hear of so many big product launches—and experience so many that end up being a mite disappointing—that I am prone to be a bit jaded. But I realize now that I should not have been, because this hymnal delivers.

It forced me to ask the question: What makes a good hymnal? Obviously, song selection is at the very top of the list and is the most important factor. A hymnal cannot be good if it is full of bad songs, and it’s hard for it to be truly bad if it’s full of good songs. Beyond the quality of the songs is the variety—the variety of songwriters, subjects, time periods, and even the inclusion (or lack of inclusion) of Psalms. Simply, a good hymnal must be a collection of good songs. With the massive variety of songs available in the English language, we could perhaps go a bit farther and say that it must be a collection of great songs.

A second factor is the additional material such as Scripture readings, creeds, liturgical elements, snippets of catechisms, and so on. Many of the best hymnals go beyond merely printing hymns and offer other material that can be used for personal or corporate worship.

A third factor is the structure. While it would be possible to simply arrange each of the selections alphabetically by title or chronologically by age, the best hymnals provide a deeper structure that helps lead through the selection. Often this is done by arranging songs according to a typical order of worship or by certain themes.

A fourth factor is the index or indexes. A good index can help a reader (or singer) discover songs by title, topic, Scripture passage, or songwriter. It can often also help with melodies and meters.

Then, of course, there are the musical settings, which are a bit outside my domain as someone whose ability to read music peaked with sixth-grade recorder lessons.

All of this is to say that there are many factors that combine to set a great hymnal apart from a good, mediocre, or just plain one.

How does The Sing! Hymnal stack up? Very well, I’d say. When it comes to song selection, it draws deeply from the rich history of Christian hymnody while including the best of the songs written in recent years. It is perhaps slightly stacked toward the works of Keith and Kristyn Getty and their associated musicians (e.g. Matt Boswell, Matt Papa) but it is, after all, a Getty product. You’ll also find a good bit of CityAlight, Sandra McCracken, Bob Kauflin, and other contemporary favorites.

In terms of additional elements, there are many of them that are well-placed and helpful—prayers, Scripture-readings, quotes, and more. It has been carefully crafted to be more than a collection of songs. The structure is useful as well and it offers three sections: The worship service (which offers selections following a traditional Protestant liturgy), the Christian life (which offers songs related to topics like the church, suffering, thanksgiving, and death), and the life of Christ (which traces his life from advent to return). The indexes are numerous and helpful. And, after asking those who are more qualified than I am, the musical settings appear to be excellent.

So overall, The Sing! Hymnal is a great product and one that may have its place in personal devotion, family worship, and the corporate gathering. There is probably not a human being on earth who will agree with every song that was included and omitted, but that is inevitable for any collection. And every hymnal gets revised eventually, so it is probable that through the decades, some selections will be added and others removed. In that way, I take this to be the beginning of a living, still-to-be-curated collection.

 “The Sing! Hymnal” is an impressive product and one I’d gladly commend to you. I’d suggest you give it a look and consider how you may make it a part of your worship.

Here is a link to the song as performed live at the 2024 Sing! Conference.