Grace might be the New Testament’s central idea. The fact that God pours blessing out on an undeserving humanity makes the cross the most shocking and beautiful expression of love imaginable.

Many people believe that grace is a project where one is expected to earn their keep and prove their merit. It’s a startling thing to fall into the hands of God with absolutely nothing of value to make us deserving of His kindness. But His mercy triumphs over judgment and gives us what we could never earn. If that doesn’t create in you a worshipful spirit, nothing will!

Here are ten Christian songs about grace.

Hymns about Grace

1. Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing

Robert Robinson was a handful. Born in 1735, he was always a difficult and rambunctious child whose parents eventually shipped him off to London at age 14 to take an apprenticeship with a barber. Things only went downhill from there.

He was 17 when an evangelist named George Whitefield came to London. Robinson and some buddies decided they would go down and check this evangelical meeting out for a few laughs. What he heard that night hit him hard, hounding him for the next three years. At 20, he gave his heart to Christ.

He eventually answered a call to ministry and while preparing a sermon wrote the original words to “Come Thou Fount.” Most hymnals have revised the song down to three verses from the original five. Asahel Nettleton wrote the music.

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of Thy redeeming love.

Sorrowing I shall be in spirit,
Till released from flesh and sin,
Yet from what I do inherit,
Here Thy praises I’ll begin;
Here I raise my Ebenezer;
Here by Thy great help I’ve come;
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home.

Jesus sought me when a stranger,
Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood;
How His kindness yet pursues me
Mortal tongue can never tell,
Clothed in flesh, till death shall loose me
I cannot proclaim it well.

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

O that day when freed from sinning,
I shall see Thy lovely face;
Clothed then in blood washed linen
How I’ll sing Thy sovereign grace;
Come, my Lord, no longer tarry,
Take my ransomed soul away;
Send thine angels now to carry
Me to realms of endless day.

2. All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name

This hymn has often been called “the national anthem of Christendom.” The lyrics were written by Edward Perronet, and first appeared in a gospel magazine in 1779. It has been sung with many different tunes over the life of the church.

Although ordained in the Anglican church, Perronet was devoted to the Methodism of John and Charles Wesley. He was a strong speaker, but always deferred to John Wesley when he was around.

Wesley was often frustrated that Perronet wouldn’t preach and one day he just stood up and announced that Brother Perronet was about to preach. Perronet stood up and said, “I will now share the greatest sermon ever preached.” And when he had everyone’s attention, he read the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew’s gospel and sat back down.

When he wrote the words to “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name,” he declared that he had said all that he ever wanted to say.

All hail the power of Jesus’ name!
Let angels prostrate fall;
bring forth the royal diadem,
and crown him Lord of all.
Bring forth the royal diadem,
and crown him Lord of all.

Ye chosen seed of Israel’s race,
ye ransomed from the fall,
hail him who saves you by his grace,
and crown him Lord of all.
Hail him who saves you by his grace,
and crown him Lord of all.

Sinners, whose love can ne’er forget
the wormwood and the gall,
go spread your trophies at his feet,
and crown him Lord of all.
Go spread your trophies at his feet,
and crown him Lord of all.

3. Silent Night

In 1818, a group of actors was touring Austria with gospel messages. On December 23, they showed up at Oberndorf, a village near Salzburg where they intended to re-enact the birth of Christ in the Church of St. Nicholas.

Sadly, the church organ was in disrepair and so they decided to put on their show in a private home. The evening put Josef Mohr in a pensive mood he went out for a long walk in the snow and ended up on a hill overlooking the village.

He put the words to “Silent Night” together in his mind and went to see Franz Gruber, the church organist. With the organ out, Gruber came up with a melody on guitar and they played it at church on Christmas morning.

Buried in the verses is one particular lyric that jumps out in which Josef calls the advent, “the dawn of redeeming grace.” No words could better describe that moment.

Silent night, holy night!
All is calm, all is bright.
Round yon Virgin, Mother and Child.
Holy infant so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace,
Sleep in heavenly peace

Silent night, holy night!
Shepherds quake at the sight.
Glories stream from heaven afar
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia,
Christ the Savior is born!
Christ the Savior is born

Silent night, holy night!
Son of God love’s pure light.
Radiant beams from Thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus Lord, at Thy birth
Jesus Lord, at Thy birth

4. ‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus

Louisa M. R. Stead moved to Cincinnati, OH from Dover, England in 1871. She was twenty-one years old. At a Christian camp she dedicated her life to missionary service and married in 1875. The couple had a daughter and began to build a beautiful life together.

When their daughter turned four, the family decided to visit a beach in New York for a picnic lunch. No sooner had they sat down when Louisa’s husband heard a little boy’s cries for help out in the water. He rushed out to rescue the boy, but in his panic the boy pulled him under and both drowned.

Soon Louisa and her daughter Lily moved to Cape Colony, South Africa where she worked as a missionary for fifteen years before she married again. It was during that time that she wrote this well-known hymn.

In the chorus she testifies to her trust in God, and then asks for him to give her the grace to trust him more. There’s a beauty in the recognition that even our dedication and faith is given to us as an act of God’s unmerited favor.

’Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to take Him at His Word;
Just to rest upon His promise,
And to know, “Thus saith the Lord!”

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!
How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er;
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
Oh, for grace to trust Him more!

Oh, how sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to trust His cleansing blood;
And in simple faith to plunge me
‘Neath the healing, cleansing flood!

Yes, ’tis sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just from sin and self to cease;
Just from Jesus simply taking
Life and rest, and joy and peace.

I’m so glad I learned to trust Thee,
Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend;
And I know that Thou art with me,
Wilt be with me to the end.

5. Amazing Grace

There’s no way that this list would be complete without including the most easily recognized Christian song on the planet. It’s wonderfully appropriate that “Amazing Grace” would be so well-known the world over—it’s such a perfect picture of God’s relationship with man through Jesus Christ.

The hymn’s author, John Newton, had basically grown up on the sea and was known for his profanity and coarseness. His mother wanted him to grow up and be a minister, but he rejected her teaching and became a slave trader.

When trapped in a storm in the middle of the Atlantic for a week (and he was sure he would die), he had an epiphany and remembered what his mother had taught him. His life began to be transformed. While he didn’t give up slave trading immediately, he eventually realized that it was not compatible with his new faith. He became an ardent and tireless activist against slavery in England.

When he became a minister, he would often write hymns to accompany his teaching. One of those was “Amazing Grace,” a heartfelt summation of what true grace looks like. And today, this is one of those hymns that have fallen on many ears over the years.

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.

’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.

Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promised good to me,
His Word my hope secures;
He will my Shield and Portion be,
As long as life endures.

Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who called me here below,
Will be forever mine.

When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we’d first begun.

Worship songs about grace

6. Your Grace Is Enough by Matt Maher

Matt Maher had been reading one of Paul’s epistles and was struck by the description of what Paul described as a “thorn in his side.” (2 Cor. 12:7) Even though Paul asked repeatedly for the Lord to take this ailment away, the Lord wouldn’t and responded “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

Maher was struck by the exchange between God and Paul and felt unsure if he really believed that God’s grace was sufficient for him as well. He wrote this song as a responsive scripture reading or prayer.

Great is your faithfulness oh God
You wrestle with the sinner’s heart
You lead us by still waters into mercy
And nothing can keep us apart

So remember your people
Remember your children
Remember your promise, oh God

Your grace is enough.
Your grace is enough.
Your grace is enough.
Your grace is enough for me.

7. Who Am I by Casting Crowns

Songwriter Mark Hall tends to write in his car. One day he was talking to God while driving through Alabama and was struck with the realization that he had no business being so friendly with the God of the universe—and yet, here he was.

Even though this song doesn’t use the word “grace” once, it’s a powerful picture of God’s undeserved goodness to us.

Who am I, that the lord of all the earth
Would care to know my name
Would care to feel my hurt?
Who am I, that the bright and morning star
Would choose to light the way
For my ever wandering heart?

Not because of who I am
But because of what you’ve done
Not because of what I’ve done
But because of who you are

I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
A vapor in the wind
Still you hear me when I’m calling
Lord, you catch me when I’m falling
And you’ve told me who I am
I am yours

8. Grace Flows Down by Christy Nockels

David E. Bell, Louie Giglio, and Rod Padgett wrote this deceptively simple little song of worship that became a big hit for worship leaders around the world.

It begins with a call back to Newton’s famous hymn, and then turns its attention to the crucifixion. The blood that pours from Christ’s hands and feet metaphorically becomes the grace that covers us all.

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
Amazing love, now flowing down
From hands and feet that were nailed to the tree
As grace flows down and covers me

It covers me
It covers me
It covers me
And covers me

9. This Is Amazing Grace by Phil Wickham

Worship leader Phil Wickham and Josh Farro from the band Paramore sat down and wrote a rough version of this hit one afternoon. They recorded a rough demo, but didn’t really think anything of it. Worship leader Jeremy Riddle heard it and asked to rewrite some of the lyrics and “This Is Amazing Grace” was born.

The verses are a powerful testimony to God’s power and strength. They speak of God’s mightiness, power, and ability to bring chaos into order. These forceful verses are offset by a chorus that considers how this amazingly formidable God would lay down his own life in place of our own.

Amazing grace, indeed.

Who breaks the power of sin and darkness
Whose love is mighty and so much stronger
The King of Glory the King above all kings

Who shakes the whole earth with holy thunder
Who leaves us breathless in awe and wonder
The King of Glory the King above all kings

This is amazing grace
This is unfailing love
That You would take my place
That You would bear my cross
You laid down Your life
That I would be set free
Oh Jesus I sing for all that You’ve done for me

10. Forever Reign by Hillsong

Paul says in his letter to the Ephesians: “For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—-to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” (Eph. 3:14–19)

Songwriters Reuben Morgan and Jason Ingram struck a friendship over coffee and decided to write some music together. “Forever Reign” was the second song that the two penned based off this passage in Ephesians.

As Reuban tells it, it’s an extremely confessional song which contrasts God’s goodness with our unworthiness. As God extends His grace to us, he isn’t diminished by us—we are enlarged by him.

You are good You are good
When there’s nothing good in me
You are love You are love
On display for all to see
You are light You are light
When the darkness closes in
You are hope You are hope
You have covered all my sin

You are peace You are peace
When my fear is crippling
You are true You are true
Even in my wandering
You are joy You are joy
You’re the reason that I sing
You are life You are life
In You death has lost its sting

I’m running to Your arms
I’m running to Your arms
The riches of Your love
Will always be enough
Nothing compares to Your embrace
Light of the world forever reign

What are your favorite worship songs about grace?

We’d love to hear from you. Tell us what worship songs or bible verses remind you of God’s amazing grace.

Check out our other praise posts:

• 10 Worship Songs about Love
• 15 Worship Songs about Prayer

Looking for a new and powerful church presentation software that utilizes and features current standard hymns? Check out MediaShout 7 and begin using standard hymns, some rearranged and editable, for worship today!