Chris Tomlin is one of the most loved and respected songwriters in Christian music. He has written dozens of top hit songs that have impacted the lives of thousands, if not millions of people. Tomlin also continues to be a leading light in contemporary Christian music, with numerous award nominations and wins under his belt. A regular in the Billboard Top Christian Albums chart, many of his songs have become staples at churches worldwide.
While he has plenty of worship songs that you can sing in your church, his best songs are those that emphasize God’s grace and love. For those reasons and more, we consider him one of the finest artists in Christian music. Tomlin’s powerful lyrics and beautiful melodies have made him one of the most popular worship leaders in the country.
Tomlin has several albums that all have their own stand-out songs, but which are the best Chris Tomlin songs of all time? We’ve picked out the 19 best ones from his entire discography to help you find your own favorites from this talented Christian artist.
Top 19 Chris Tomlin Songs
1. How Great Is Our God
“How Great Is Our God” catapulted Tomlin into the Christian mainstream. This joyous song honors our heavenly Father and King of Earth, as Tomlin describes God’s glorious qualities. In the lyrics, Tomlin refers to the Holy Trinity as the “Godhead Three in One, Father, Spirit, Son.”
“How Great is Our God” is popular in both contemporary worship services and traditional church settings. In 2012, Tomlin released a new version of the song called “How Great Is Our God: World Edition,” which is sung in different languages such as Afrikaans, Hindi, and Mandarin. The song won several awards, including “Song of the Year” at the 2006 GMA Dove Awards. This song also reached the top in the Billboard Hot Christian Songs list.
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2. Our God
“Our God” is a song written by Chris Tomlin, Jonas Myrin, Matt Redman, and Jesse Reeves, produced by Martin Smith. This is the first single from Tomlin’s seventh studio album, And If Our God Is For Us… Tomlin derived the album title from a line in this song where he sings about God’s greatness. The song spent 10 weeks as No. 1 on the Billboard Christian charts. At the 2011 Billboard Music Awards, this song got the award for Top Christian Song, and Tomlin won Top Christian Artist at the same event.
3. Indescribable
“Indescribable” is a powerful worship song. Christian singer-songwriter Laura Story originally wrote and recorded the song, then Chris Tomlin released his rendition in his album Arriving. Since the release of Tomlin’s rendition in 2004, it has become a favorite Christian praise and worship song around the world.
This popular praise song expresses words that are just not enough to express God’s amazing love. “Indescribable” showcases a passionate testimony, declaring that no matter how eloquent one may be, one will never fully describe how much God loves them or what it is like to experience His presence.
4. Your Grace Is Enough
“Your Grace Is Enough,” composed by Matt Maher, has a modern freshness and is about God’s goodness and faithfulness. According to Maher, he wrote the song after spending some time in the Bible studying God’s grace and noting how often that term occurred. Chris Tomlin then popularized this song in 2004 when he released it in his album, Arriving.
The lyrics from “Your Grace is Enough” explore various themes, including faithfulness, love, justice, and God’s grace. The song emphasizes the covenant God’s faithfulness—the God who wrestled not just with Jacob but also with sinners. The song also talks about a God who leads us by still waters and is never far away from us.
5. Whom Shall I Fear (God of Angel Armies)
It’s easy to understand why “Whom Shall I Fear (God of Angel Armies)” has become one of Christian music’s most beloved songs. It’s a powerful worship song with lyrics inspired by the Bible passage from 2nd Kings: “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
When Tomlin made a tweet about the song in 2018, he said, “In the midst of crisis or anything that comes against, it is powerful to know Who stands behind and goes before us. The God of Angel Armies is always by our side.”
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6. The Wonderful Cross
“The Wonderful Cross” from Chris Tomlin is an updated version of Isaac Watts’ hymn “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross,” composed in 1707. Both songs illustrate a profound Christian paradox at the core of the Gospel.
This song is about Jesus’ death on the cross and how His sacrifice can save everyone. It reminds you that as you marvel at the wondrous cross, it is a monument of agony and glory, sorrow and love.
7. Good Good Father
Although this song is a cover of the song from the worship band Housefire, “Good Good Father” is still one of the most popular songs by Chris Tomlin. Tomlin released his rendition as the lead single for the Never Lose Sight album.
Lyrically, it tells about how God has been good to him throughout his life. The song was his eighth number one on the Billboard Christian Airplay chart. It also became an anthem for Christians across the globe, making it one of today’s best worship songs from Tomlin.
8. I Lift My Hands
Lifting one’s hands is a beautiful expression, not just for Christians but for everyone. This indicates victory, and in some cases, it may even signify surrender. This song sings about surrendering our hands to God and reaching out to Him for comfort.
The message of “I Lift My Hands” is simple yet powerful. It’s a song of reaching out to God and saying you remember His faithfulness and you just need Him now in your life. In a world of chaos and confusion, this song is a source of hope for people who are desperate for God’s peace. The lyrics call out to the Lord as you lift your hands to believe again.
Indeed, “I Lift My Hands” reminds us that while we may feel like we don’t have much to offer God, He is still worthy of our praise. The song’s simple lyrics and easy-to-follow melody make it an excellent song for worship teams to add to their list of modern worship songs.
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9. I Will Follow
“I Will Follow” is a song from Tomlin’s 2010 album, And If Our God Is For Us… This song is about putting your faith in God and entrusting your life to Him. It’s a good reminder that if you devote your life to Christ, He will guide you through life’s difficulties. According to the Bible, whoever loses their lives for the sake of Jesus will find them, and He will save their souls from sins.
This song is a bold statement of faith, declaring that we will follow Jesus wherever he leads us. The lyrics are straightforward but powerful, encouraging us to follow Jesus even when our faith is tested.
10. Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone)
Chris Tomlin’s rendition of “Amazing Grace” is a modern update of the classic hymn, where they included one verse from the traditional piece. It replaces the rest with three new verses written by Tomlin, Louie Giglio, and Jonas Myrin. The result is a rousing anthem that perfectly combines classic worship lyrics with modern music production.
After being asked to do something to the hymn, which would be featured in the film about William Wilberforce called Amazing Grace (2006), Tomlin wrote the song. Aside from the usual improvisations and simplifications common to folk or pop styles of music, Tomlin’s rendition of the famous hymn didn’t have substantial alterations to the harmonic structure of the traditional hymn.
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11. I Will Rise
“I Will Rise,” written in 2008, is about recognizing our imperfections but trusting in God’s perfect plan for our lives. It reminds us that even if we fall down, His grace will always be there to help us get back on our feet again.
This song was inspired by Revelation 21:4-5, which describes people “no longer [having] tears,” God “wiping away every tear,” and death being no more. It’s a compelling message about trusting in God, who can heal anyone’s pain if only they let Him.
12. Jesus Messiah
While still bouncing up ideas for “Jesus Messiah”, Chris Tomlin already wanted to use the name “Messiah” in the song. Tomlin said in an interview with ChristianMusicPlanet.com: “Messiah is such a strong name for Jesus. For when you use that name, you are truly saying that He is the name above all names–that He is the Christ, the Son of God, the Chosen One, the Savior of the world. That’s why you will notice that every lyric in this song amplifies this idea of Jesus being the Messiah.”
“Jesus Messiah” debuted at No. 1 on the Christian Songs chart in 2008 and became nominated for a Dove Award for Worship Song of the Year in 2009. It was on Tomlin’s fourth studio album, Hello Love, written with Daniel Carson, Ed Cash, and Jesse Reeves.
13. How Can I Keep From Singing?
Chris Tomlin wrote the song “How Can I Keep From Singing?” with Matt Redman and Ed Cash in 2006. As background for the song, Redman discovered and got inspired by a poem of the same name written in the 19th century. Although there is some debate regarding who exactly wrote the words set to this music, the original poem is attributed to Robert Lowry, a well-known American hymnist in the mid-19th century.
In the poem, Lowry praises Christ’s love and serenity, proclaiming, “No storm can shake my inmost calm, While to that Rock I’m clinging,” referring to Jesus Christ’s rock. Since 1868, the song’s premise has remained the same: a dedication to God since He is constant in all things.
14. Home
“Home” is the third single from Chris Tomlin’s Never Lose Sight album released in 2016. Originally, Tomlin had no intention of recording this song. However, after his friends and family members heard the song, they encouraged him to record it.
“Home” is a beacon of hope and a ray of sunshine in the midst of people’s hectic, stressful, and sometimes challenging lives. As the lyric says, we all know that the world we live in is not supposed to be what it currently is. There is so much misery, pain, and fear in it. However, the beauty and hope of this song are that one day, Jesus will put everything right. God will wash away tears, sin, and sorrow as He makes everything new.
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15. Who You Are To Me
Chris Tomlin & Friends, his latest album released in 2020, is the product of a chance meeting between Tomlin and Tyler Hubbard of Florida Georgia Line in 2019. That meeting led to a songwriting collaboration with FGL and several other country singers, many of whom have been impacted by Tomlin’s music for years.
“Who You Are To Me,” written by Tomlin and Lady A members Hillary Scott, Charles Kelley, and Dave Haywood, is the album’s first single. The song is about the singer’s deep devotion to God and how He will always be there for him in his pleasures and sorrows. The song’s melody is simple, but the lyrics are heartfelt.
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16. At The Cross (Love Ran Red)
The song “At The Cross (Love Ran Red)” is the album’s title track, and it paints a vivid picture of the cross. The song was written by Chris Tomlin, Jonas Myrin, a worship leader at Hillsong Church London, Matt Redman, a British worship singer-songwriter, and Nashville songwriter and producer Matt Armstrong. Ed Cash, Tomlin’s regular producer, was also part of the project.
This song serves as the centerpiece of Tomlin’s Love Ran Red album. He told Billboard magazine, “When we were writing the song, it was the line, ‘Where your love ran red and my sin washed white’ — it just knocked me out. It was such a simple way of sharing the Gospel. It’s such a beautiful word picture of what Jesus has done for us. I feel like you can really see it.”
17. Unfailing Love
“Unfailing Love” comes from Chris Tomlin’s 2004 album, Arriving. This song talks about God’s eternal love for us despite our shortcomings. As Christians, we are prone to sinning and forgetting what God has done for us, but His love never fails. This song is an excellent reminder that God’s love will always endure despite our failures in life.
18. God’s Great Dance Floor
“God’s Great Dance Floor” is about God inviting us to join him on the dance floor, which Tomlin says is “a metaphor for life.” The idea behind it is that God wants us to give Him all we have. Even when we feel like giving up, God wants us to keep going and dance with Him. It reminds us that God loves us and wants us to spend time with him, praising him through our lives and through worship.
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19. Made to Worship
“Made to Worship” comes from Tomlin’s 2006 album See the Morning. The song talks about how we were made to worship God and that it is our purpose to love Him and serve Him by bringing glory to His name.
The song peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Christian Songs list. At the 38th GMA Dove Awards in 2007, the song received three nominations: Song of the Year, Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year, and Worship Song of the Year.
Who Is Chris Tomlin?
Chris Tomlin is an American contemporary Christian music artist, worship leader, and songwriter from Grand Saline, Texas. Few Christian artists have impacted the world of worship like Chris Tomlin. The Grammy-winning artist, who has sold nearly 30 million records, penned some of the most well-known worship songs of all time, including “How Great Is Our God,” “Whom Shall I Fear (God of Angel Armies),” and “Good Good Father.”
It’s impossible to deny that Tomlin’s music is catchy and inspiring, making it highly popular in the Christian music community. As a Christian artist, Tomlin’s music focuses on worship, praise, and devotion to God. He is also known for reworking classic hymns into modern worship songs.
Tomlin’s impact on faith-based music has earned him numerous awards. During his career, Tomlin has been nominated for 32 Dove Awards and has won 19 of them. Tomlin also won Best Contemporary Christian Music Album at the 2012 Grammy Awards for his album And If Our God Is For Us…
Conclusion
Chris Tomlin is truly a gift to the Christian music industry. His unique melodies and uplifting lyrics have reached the ears of many throughout his career. Tomlin has written some of the most well-known worship songs of all time, ones that are sung in churches all over the world, including “Whom Shall I Fear (God of Angel Armies)” and “How Great Is Our God.”
Here at Musician Authority, we wanted to take a moment to honor some of Chris Tomlin’s best songs ever. We hope you will enjoy our list, as well as check out some of his other great works.