“How Great Is Our God” is a contemporary worship song by Chris Tomlin, written with Ed Cash and Jesse Reeves. It appeared on Tomlin’s 2004 album Arriving and has since become a familiar song in churches around the world. You can read the complete copyrighted lyrics through SongSelect.
The song praises God’s majesty, eternal nature, and authority over creation. It also refers to the Trinity and describes Jesus as both the Lion and the Lamb. Although its words are simple, they express several important Christian beliefs.
What Does “How Great Is Our God” Mean?
The main message is that God’s greatness is beyond human limits.
The song describes God as:
- The King of creation
- Eternal and unchanged by time
- More powerful than darkness
- Revealed as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
- Both mighty and merciful
- Worthy of worship
The chorus invites other people to join in praising Him. This makes the song more than a private prayer. It becomes a shared declaration of faith.
The word “our” is meaningful because it creates a sense of unity. People may come to worship with different experiences, fears, and struggles, but they can still praise the same God together.
God’s Majesty and Power
The first verse presents God as a King clothed in majesty and surrounded by light. This imagery is similar to Psalm 104, which describes God as being wrapped in light and covered with splendor.
In the Bible, light often represents holiness, truth, goodness, and God’s presence. Darkness can represent fear, confusion, sin, or evil.
The song does not describe light and darkness as equally powerful. Darkness retreats before God. The image shows that evil and fear do not have the final authority.
This does not mean believers will never go through painful or uncertain situations. It means those situations are not greater than God. His power and character remain steady even when life feels unsettled.
Why the Chorus Invites Everyone to Sing
The chorus moves beyond describing God and asks others to recognize His greatness too.
Its simple language is one reason the song works well in group worship. People do not need a deep knowledge of theology to understand the central message. Children, new believers, and longtime church members can sing it together.
The chorus follows a natural pattern:
- It declares that God is great.
- It invites others to join in worship.
- It expresses the hope that everyone will recognize His greatness.
Worship begins as a personal response, but the song does not keep it private. It encourages believers to praise God together.
God Is Greater Than Time
The second verse focuses on God’s eternal nature.
Human life is divided into the past, present, and future. We remember what has already happened, deal with what is happening now, and often worry about what may happen next.
God is not limited in the same way. He does not grow older, lose power, or become surprised by events. He remains the same throughout every generation.
The description of God as the beginning and the end reflects the language of Revelation 22:13, where Christ is called the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last.
This part of the song can be comforting during seasons of change. Plans fail, relationships change, and circumstances can become uncertain. The song reminds believers that God’s character does not change with their situation.
The Meaning of the Trinity Reference
The song also refers to God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
This reflects the Christian doctrine of the Trinity: there is one God who is known in three persons. The song does not try to explain the doctrine in detail. It simply includes it as part of its description of who God is.
A similar reference appears in Matthew 28:19, where Jesus tells His followers to baptize people in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Including the Trinity makes the song more than a general statement about a higher power. It clearly expresses a Christian understanding of God.
Why Jesus Is Called the Lion and the Lamb
One of the most memorable ideas in the song is the description of Jesus as both a Lion and a Lamb.
The Lion represents:
- Strength
- Authority
- Courage
- Kingship
- Victory
The Lamb represents:
- Gentleness
- Innocence
- Sacrifice
- Humility
- Mercy
These images may appear opposite, but together they describe the Christian view of Jesus. He has the authority to defeat evil, yet He chose to give His life for others.
The imagery comes from Revelation 5. In the passage, Jesus is announced as the victorious Lion of Judah but is then seen as a Lamb who had been sacrificed.
The contrast shows that Jesus’ strength is not cruel or selfish. His victory is connected to love and sacrifice. He is powerful, but He is also compassionate.
The Bridge Makes the Worship Personal
The verses focus mainly on God’s character. The bridge shifts toward the worshipper’s response.
Instead of only stating that God deserves praise, the singer makes the praise personal. Worship becomes something offered sincerely rather than simply repeated as part of a familiar song.
This section also reminds listeners that God’s worth does not depend on human feelings. A person may feel joyful, tired, distracted, or discouraged, but God’s character remains the same.
The bridge encourages believers to praise Him for who He is, not only for the things they hope to receive.
What Does “Great” Really Mean?
In this song, “great” does not simply mean physically large.
God’s greatness includes His:
- Power
- Wisdom
- Holiness
- Faithfulness
- Love
- Mercy
- Authority
- Eternal nature
Calling God great is a way of admitting that He cannot be fully measured or understood by human standards.
It also places personal struggles in a wider perspective. Worship does not deny that problems are real. It reminds believers that their problems are not the highest authority in their lives.
Why the Song Remains Popular
“How Great Is Our God” has lasted because its message is clear and can be sung in many situations.
It works during celebrations, quiet prayer, difficult seasons, and large worship gatherings. The song does not depend on one personal story or a specific event. It focuses on God’s character, which allows people with different experiences to connect with it.
The melody and repeated chorus also make it easy to learn. More importantly, the song gives people simple words for expressing wonder and gratitude.
Its message is not complicated: God is powerful, eternal, loving, and worthy of praise.
What Listeners Can Learn From the Song
The song encourages believers to begin with who God is rather than with what they fear.
It does not promise that every problem will disappear after worship. Instead, it reminds listeners that faith is based on God’s character, not on perfect circumstances.
The song also shows that worship is more than singing. Music can express praise, but worship can also be seen in trust, obedience, gratitude, kindness, and the way a person treats others.
A worship song has greater meaning when its message continues after the music ends.
Final Meaning
“How Great Is Our God” is a song about God’s majesty, power, and unchanging nature.
It presents Him as the eternal King whose light overcomes darkness. It refers to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and describes Jesus as both the victorious Lion and the sacrificial Lamb.
The chorus invites everyone to take part in the praise. Its message is that God remains worthy of worship in joyful moments, difficult seasons, and ordinary daily life.
The song’s strength comes from its simplicity. It gives believers a clear way to declare that God is greater than fear, change, and anything else they may face.
