Bound To The Risen Christ
Bound to the Risen Christ is a newly written song that borrows its form from an older hymn tradition. Like a hymn, it has many verses and attempts to give an expansive picture of the Christian story of redemption rather than focusing on one text or idea. If you glance through a hymnal you will occasionally find hymns ‘with hallelujahs’ at the end of each verse. Charles Wesley’s Christ the Lord is Risen Today is perhaps the best-known example. Similarly, the verses in Bound to the Risen Christ each contain a different reflection on the Christian hope to which ‘Allelujah’ is the appropriate response, showing (I hope) that each insight into God’s story presents us with fresh opportunities to praise Him.
Bound to the Risen Christ emphasizes both our lack and God’s overflowing provision. Verse 1, which names God as the provider of all gifts is mirrored by verse 4 which confesses our failure to respond in gratitude for these gifts. We cannot, with a clean conscience, withhold anything from him and yet we try. This confession defines our position of desperate need which in the other verses is answered by the unique hope of the cross.
The refrain reassures us that we are ‘bound’ to Christ. Wherever Christ goes, we go. Wherever he is, we are. We are bound to him in his crucifixion—our sinful nature dying with him on the cross. And we are bound to him in his resurrection—an event which guarantees our own resurrections and empowers us to live a qualitatively different life in the present. The last two lines of the refrain—which are the only lines to directly address God—connect the eschatological hope of the new creation with our calling to humbly work for the building of his kingdom until the day of renewal comes.
As with many hymns, the lyrics might seem conceptually dense and hard to absorb at the pace that the music seems to demand. Hymns in the church are not just songs to sing, but texts of devotion literature. They are meant to be reflected on slowly and quietly and of course they are meant to be sung again and again! We hope you enjoy it.
Ben Keyes