Fight Song

Everybody has that one song that really gets them pumped up, that gets the blood flowing and steels their resolve. It's the song people listen to in the gym while they're working out. It's what they play in the background of the movie when the hero is defeating the villain in the battle royal. It's what every pep band plays at every ball game to get the crowd, well, pepped up.

It's the fight song.

Asbury Theological Seminary, my alma mater, has no sports teams, no mascot, and no pep band, but there was one song we sang (sing?) at every major event and any other chance we get: "And Can It Be," the great hymn by Charles Wesley. We all claimed it as the Asbury fight song, and as far as fight songs go, it's not a bad one. In four verses, it details human sinfulness, the humiliation and sacrifice of Christ, our inability to save ourselves, victory over sin, and eternal life. Now that should get your blood pumping!

Let me preface my next statement by saying there's a lot of good contemporary Christian music out there and I love it. But one reason we still sing hymns from 1738 as fight songs is because they describe salvation and the power of God. It's easy to fall into the trap of using music just to produce emotional highs, but highs that aren't backed by anything solid. In worship, we must always be careful to use songs which have substance, which teach us the love and power of God -- not to make us feel warm and fuzzy, but to draw us into true praise and adoration of the One to whom we sing. One, because He is worthy of our praise, and two, because worship gets us ready for the battle.

So: what's your fight song?