Church Street Worship is a student-run music collective from RUF at Northwestern University. Recently, the team set about sending their original song “Come Lord Jesus” to The Gospel Coalition’s 20th Anniversary “What is the Gospel?” song contest.
The Gospel Coalition celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. As part of marking this milestone, we decided to host a song and video contest in which we challenged Christian creatives to put the gospel to song or capture it in a compelling video. A big part of TGC’s mission over the last two decades has been—and continues to be—to renew the contemporary church in the ancient gospel.
We received nearly 200 entries from creatives representing 10-plus nations, each responding (in song or video format) to the prompt “What is the gospel?” We loved reviewing all the submissions, each with its own flavor, genre, and storytelling approach. Contest entries came from both professional and amateur artists, both young and old, including many church-based worship groups. It was inspiring to see this creative outpouring in celebration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Church Street Worship’s song was selected as a Contest Runner Up, and added the contest’s compilation playlist.
NU Campus Minister Andrew Barber sat down with the song’s creators to talk about the process and the meaning behind the lyrics.
Andrew Barber, RUF Campus Minister at Northwestern: Sam and Katherine, I’m excited to be here with you guys and hear about the new song from Church Street Worship.
Sam Collett, RUF NU Student: Yeah. The song is called Come Lord Jesus. It was really born out of a desire to fill a gap in our UF Northwestern canon of songs that we play in Large Group. That gap was songs that talk about the tension of the now and the not yet. Christ has come, his kingdom is here, and yet we’re still awaiting his second coming and the new heavens and the new Earth.
Andrew: Katherine, can you talk to us a little bit the song itself? How do you think the song accomplishes what Sam was just talking about?
Katherine Novakovich, RUF NU Student: Each of the verses themselves really work to support that idea of why are we calling Christ to come. Verse 1, we identify with Adam in the garden. We, too, have eaten the fruit and we suffer the results of sin. But then you go into verse 2 and we talk about all of the beautiful things that we do experience here on earth and the tension between those two, but how they both work together to cause us to call out. Verse 3, we get into the crucifixion of and his eventual resurrection and how we proclaim the coming of Christ. Then we end with verse 4, which is looking forward towards the marriage supper of the Lamb, which brings us full circle back to Revelation.
Sam: Excellent. It’s been really special hearing certain students reach out to us and just say how this song has brought them hope, how it’s brought them to a deeper yearning for Christ to come. Really, that’s our prayer, that the song blesses others in the same way that it has us and others in the ministry.
Andrew: I knew you all were on to something with two things. One, we didn’t announce that you all had written this song and just folded it into worship and started singing. We got real reactions from people, which was, this was a fantastic song and we loved worshiping with it. The second thing was, the second time you all played it in worship, I misplaced my bulletin, didn’t have it with me, and was able to just autopilot, sing the lyrics, sing along, knew how the tune was going, and recognized halfway through, Wait, this is their song, which just speaks to the intuitive flow of the lyrics, how theologically rich it is, that it flows with the story, and musically, it’s really beautiful. It’s a great song. Lastly, as a campus minister, I have to say it. If RUF’s mission is to reach students for Christ and equip them to serve, what I see and what you all have done, is that the “equip to serve” is not just for the future, but it’s for right now. First Timothy 4: 12 speaks about let no one despise you for your youth. Launch into, do it. Get about the work of the Kingdom of God.
Andrew: We’re invited to do that. I feel like you all writing this song is a way of saying, “we don’t have to wait.” We can right now make meaningful music, meaningful worship, invite people into that. I love that about what you all have done, and I’m excited to see where we go from here.
Sam Collett: Thanks. Thanks. Come Lord Jesus, come.
Listen to Church Street Worship on Spotify and Apple Music, and follow along on Instagram at @churchst.worship