Such a simple and short song yet so powerful. This is how I started my birthday – worshipping and praising the God I serve – because He is my all in all!

Bible Verse References

Verse 1 starts off by focus on 2 Corinthians 12:10:

That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Seeking the treasure of God is another way of wording Philippians 4:17:

Not that I desire your gifts; what I desire is that more be credited to your account.

Indeed, the Kingdom of God is described in Matthew as a treasure:

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

The second half of Verse 1 where we compare God to a precious jewel draws a parallel with Proverbs 20:15:

Gold there is, and rubies in abundance, but lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel.

When we give up and pursue things of the world, we can be reminded of the words from 1 Corinthians 3: 19:

For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight.

Thus, these simply lyrics when sung together form a tightly jam-packed set of principles that all focus on God/Jesus as our all in all. Indeed, Jesus commands us in Luke 10:27 to:

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.

The chorus proclamation of Jesus as the Lamb of God echos John 1:29 and Revelation 5:12:

The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

In a loud voice they were saying: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and praise!”

This worship song was first written in the 1990s by Dennis Jernigan and is arguably the best known of all his songs. He wrote the song at an Oklahoma City church during a daily 6am prayer meeting. Jernigan believed God was constantly singing over him so he needed to be constantly listening and writing down what God said in a music manuscript book that became his constant companion. The story goes that Dennis was sitting at the piano thanking God “that He bore the punishment of my sin fully with the first drop of His blood.” In that moment, the line came to him, “seeking You as a precious Jewel, Lord, to give up I’d be a fool.” The song emerged slowly piece by piece. The quote from Christianity Today attributed to their research and interview of Dennis for this song background states:

I’d start the people praying over a specific need in the church, then I’d go back to singing what I was sensing in the Lord. With my left hand I’d play the piano, and with my right hand I’d write down the melody and the words.

Ultimately, what we have penned in full is a powerful song of hope and the restorative nature of God as our source of everything; We serve a Good, Good Father (whoops that is a whole other song reference…) who embodies love, grace, peace and joy.

Lyrics

Verse 1
You are my strength when I am weak
You are the treasure that I seek
You are my all in all

Seeking You as a precious jewel
Lord, to give up I’d be a fool
You are my all in all

Chorus
Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name
Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name

Verse 2
Taking my sin, my cross, my shame
Rising again I bless Your name
You are my all in all

When I fall down You pick me up
When I am dry You fill my cup
You are my all in all

Showcasing the Song

I first heard and learnt this song when it was first released and made the rounds at church in the late 1990s/early 2000s. It was always sung in a more traditional format/style. This recent return to the song was its selection for use this upcoming weekend at church. To help us the worship team learn and familiarise ourselves with it, the following YouTube clip was provided, which totally blew me away. This particular arrangement and style was very appealing to me – the full orchestra and piano driven instruments play to my personal preferences, the powerful communal choral and vocal crescendo at the end and beautiful harmony between Tommee Profitt & Brooke Griffith. Enjoy!