He Is Lord
He is Lord, He is Lord,
The theological core of 'He Is Lord' is a direct proclamation of the resurrection and Lordship of Jesus Christ drawn from two central Pauline texts: Romans 10:9 ('if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved') and Philippians 2:9–11 ('at the name of Jesus every knee should bend… and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord'). This is not merely a devotional acclamation but a confession of the most fundamental article of Christian faith, making the text theologically dense despite its brevity. For Lutheran worship the conjunction of resurrection and Lordship is central: the risen Christ who commands every knee to bow is the same Christ who justifies the ungodly by grace through faith, and the Lordship confessed here is the Lordship of the one who has conquered sin, death, and the devil. The text functions primarily as Gospel proclamation and doxological response. The indicative mood throughout — 'He is risen,' 'He is Lord' — places the theological weight entirely on divine action and identity rather than human response or obligation. The final eschatological note ('every knee shall bow, every tongue confess') draws from Isaiah 45:23 via Philippians 2, situating this present confession within the cosmic scope of Christ's ultimate reign, a theme central to Lutheran eschatology and the theology of glory understood through the cross. The additional stanzas ('He is King,' 'He is Love,' 'He is Life') expand the proclamation through titles that correspond to major biblical themes: royal messiahship, divine love (1 John 4), and Johannine life-theology (John 14:6), though these stanzas function somewhat independently and may be selected according to liturgical need. In Lutheran ecumenical worship this text integrates naturally into the theology of proclamation that governs Lutheran liturgy. Because it is a direct confession of resurrection faith, it avoids the introspective subjectivism that can characterize some charismatic praise music, and its scriptural grounding makes it doctrinally reliable for Lutheran use. It functions best not as a stand-alone praise chorus but as a liturgical acclamation: a response to the Gospel reading, a post-baptismal or post-communion proclamation, or an Easter season doxological element. The text's brevity and memorability also make it effective as a repeated congregational refrain within a more complex liturgical structure, and its ecumenical adoption means that ecumenically gathered congregations will often know it.
History & Background
'He Is Lord' emerged in the early charismatic renewal movement in the United States around 1970 and is classified as a traditional text, with no single author definitively identified; it circulated widely in informal worship settings before appearing in print. Its origins are closely tied to the Jesus Movement and the broader charismatic renewal of the late 1960s and early 1970s, when congregations in Pentecostal, evangelical, and mainline renewal circles sought short, repetitive acclamations rooted in scripture that could be learned quickly and sung with conviction. The text draws directly from Philippians 2:9–11 and Romans 10:9, making it among the most scripturally anchored of the short praise choruses from this era. The song spread rapidly through the charismatic renewal networks, appearing in collections such as Scripture in Song and various renewal hymnals throughout the 1970s, and it was adopted across denominational lines with remarkable speed. Additional stanzas beyond the original ('He is King,' 'He is Love,' 'He is Life') developed organically as communities adapted the piece, a common feature of oral transmission in renewal worship contexts. By the late 1970s and 1980s the hymn had crossed into mainline Protestant and Catholic worship through the charismatic movement's influence on those traditions. The text achieved broader ecumenical recognition through its inclusion in major denominational hymnals, including the United Methodist Hymnal (1989) and other collections of the era, cementing its place as a simple but theologically substantive Easter and general-use acclamation. Its brevity and directness have made it a natural candidate for use as a sung response within liturgy, particularly following the reading of the Gospel, at baptism, or as a post-communion acclamation. Today it remains in active use across evangelical, mainline Protestant, Pentecostal, and Catholic renewal worship contexts worldwide.
Hymnal Appearances
- United Methodist Hymnal — 177
Bulletin Note
Traditional, USA, c. 1970. Text based on Philippians 2:9–11 and Romans 10:9. Tune: HE IS LORD (anonymous). Additional stanzas ('He is King,' 'He is Love,' 'He is Life') developed through oral tradition in charismatic renewal communities.
Preaching Connection
At the heart of every Christian sermon is the claim this text makes in four words: 'He is Lord' — not was, not will be, but is, alive and reigning, which is either the most important thing ever said or a delusion that should be abandoned. Philippians 2 and Romans 10 together frame this confession as both cosmic fact and personal stakes, making it a powerful anchor for preaching on resurrection, Lordship, or the nature of saving faith.
Catechism & Confessional Connections
- The Definition & Command of Baptism Small Catechism — Holy Baptism
Themes
Resurrection Lordship of Christ Confession of faith Easter Eschatology Universal salvation Doxology Charismatic renewal Proclamation