Father album cover

From Father · 2 November 2018

Son

Verse three is almost entirely the I AM sayings of John. One line in verse two becomes a whole song seven years later.

0:004:48
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No email, no account, no catch. It is yours to keep and yours to pass on.

The storyJohn 14:6Psalm 42:1Romans 8:17Hebrews 4:16

Son is the companion piece to Great Titles, four tracks later on the same album, and it does the same job from the other side. Great Titles is a catalogue of the Father’s names. This is a catalogue of the Son’s.

Verse three is where that becomes literal. The vine, the shepherd, the light of the world, the door, the daily bread, the way and the truth and the life — six of the I AM sayings from John, run together in eight lines across six different chapters. Nothing is explained; they are simply listed, in the way you would list what someone is to you rather than what they have done.

One of them is placed rather than listed. You are the door comes with a condition attached — when our faith hits the floor — so the way out is named at the moment of collapse rather than at the height of conviction. It is the only line in the verse that says when.

The chorus then does something the title has been setting up. It says you are the son of God, and immediately says you’ve made us heirs of God. A song named for one son ends by making the listener into others — which is Romans 8:17, and which is the entire Father album arriving at its argument from the opposite direction. Padre asks for a father. Son points out what that makes you.

Two lines in verse two are worth stopping on. Just like the deer, our heart pants for You is Psalm 42:1 — the third song to draw on that psalm, after HERE, which cites the same verse, and Deep, which takes its title from verse seven.

And then: show us your face, nothing else will do.

That line was released in 2018. In March 2019 Yemi began writing a song he could not finish for five years, and in the memo for Behold The Lamb he describes a retreat that birthed in him a desire to see the Lord face to face. Face to Face eventually arrived in 2025. The wish was already sitting in a released song before it had a name or a melody, and this is the earliest dated instance of it.

Jacy Mai features. There is also an acoustic version recorded live in the studio.

Lyrics

Intro

Eeeh… Son of God Love you

Oooh… Thank you for the cross

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus Jesus

Verse 1

You are my love The sight of my life When I was lost You brought me back home

You gave up your throne To make us your own Paid every dime You make the worst divine

Chorus

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus You are the son of God Jesus, Jesus, Jesus You’ve made us heirs of God

Verse 2

We wait for You We thirst for You Just like the deer Our heart pants after You

Show us your face Nothing else will do Just for your glory Keep us at the throne of grace

Verse 3

You are the vine Come rain or shine Shepherd of our souls Light of the world

You are the door When our faith hits the floor Our daily bread The Way, The Truth and Life

Bridge

Our defender (Jesus) Breath of life (Jesus) Beginning & end (Jesus) Our Redeemer (Jesus)

You are our hope Your will has made a way You’re the miracle worker You brought us back home

You love us so much You gave up your life You stand in the gap for us You brought us back home

Heal every scar Make us whole again

Credits

Written by
Yemi Alafifuni
Produced by
Evans Ogboi
Released
2 November 2018
Length
4:48
ISRC
TCADU1874220
Label
Yemi Alafifuni — self-released
Featuring
Jacy Mai
Recorded by
Jonathan MacMillan at Smokehouse Studios, London
Mixed by
Randy Poole
Mastered by
Randy Poole
Musicians
Goziam Okugwu — keyboards · Evans Ogboi — keyboards · Otis Mensah — bass · Ben Trickey — guitars · Feranmi Oguns — drums
Background vocals
Nathan and Suzanne Young, Music Makers Recordings LLC (Nashville, TN) · Isaac Cates & Ordained
Versions
Son · feat. Jacy MaiSon (Acoustic) · Live in studio, ft. Jacy Mai

Scripture

  • Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life.

    John 14:6

  • As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.

    Psalm 42:1

  • And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ.

    Romans 8:17

  • Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

    Hebrews 4:16