What "That's Why We Praise Him" means
Tommy Walker wrote a praise song that does not assume the congregation already knows what they are celebrating. It builds the case. The title is a punchline that earns its exclamation point by first laying the foundation. He came as a servant, he died as a sacrifice, he rose in victory, he is coming back in glory. That is why. The song does the work of articulating the reason before it asks for the response.
In a worship culture that sometimes produces praise without much content underneath it, "That's Why We Praise Him" is a corrective. It is a theology set to a melody. The song functions the way a well-written hymn functions: it puts true things in a singable form so that singing them shapes what the singer believes. The repeated declaration at the end of each verse is not empty enthusiasm. It is a conclusion reached by following the logic of the gospel story from incarnation through resurrection.
For worship leaders, this song is a teaching tool as much as it is a worship tool. Congregations that sing it regularly over a season are quietly being catechized in the reasons for praise. The song is doing more than filling Sunday morning with sound. It is building the vocabulary of worship that will serve people when the praise does not come easily.
What this song does in a room
The song opens rooms. Not in the delicate way that a slow intimate song opens them but in the way that a door swings wide and light comes through all at once. At 86 BPM with a strong rhythmic groove, "That's Why We Praise Him" invites physical participation in a way that suits the celebratory content. The lyric and the feel are aligned.
The call-and-response character of the song creates momentum. When a congregation hears "that's why we praise him," the repetition becomes almost liturgical. By the third time through, most rooms are not just singing the words but inhabiting them. There is something in the rhythm of a returned declaration that trains the body to assent. The congregation is not just expressing praise. The song is rehearsing it in them.
Watch what the bridge does. Tommy Walker builds the emotional arc toward something that lands on who Jesus is, not just what he did. That shift from action to identity is the moment the song moves from celebration of events to adoration of a person. Rooms that were energetically engaged in the verses often shift to something quieter and more personal in that moment. Both are praise. Both are appropriate. Let the room feel both without rushing it back to the groove.
What this song is saying about God
The song traces the arc of the gospel and finds God's faithfulness running through every point on the line. Jesus came willingly. Jesus served without coercion. Jesus died in love. Jesus rose in power. Jesus reigns and will return. At every station, the same character is on display: a God who keeps his word, who follows through on every promise, who does not abandon what he started.
The implicit claim is that God is trustworthy precisely because of his track record. The song does not appeal to vague divine goodness. It names specific events and holds them up as evidence. This is exegetically sound praise. You are not praising a feeling or a concept. You are praising a God whose history is verifiable, whose resurrection is the linchpin of a claim about what kind of God he actually is.
There is also a corporate dimension in the song that is easy to miss. "We" praise him. Not I, but we. The praise is communal by construction, not just by context. The song is saying that the gathered body is the proper locus of this kind of declaration. What the community says together about God has a weight that individual praise, however genuine, does not carry in quite the same way.
Scriptural backbone
Philippians 2:6-11 is the skeleton of this song: "Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
The song sings this text without quoting it directly. The narrative movement of the lyric follows the kenosis hymn in Philippians almost exactly: descent, servanthood, death, resurrection, exaltation. Knowing this gives the worship leader a way to frame the song for the congregation when it needs more than a song introduction.
How to use it in a service
This is a mid-to-high energy praise song that earns its place early in a set. It works well as a second or third song when you need to give people a theological reason for the celebration already underway. Starting a service at this energy level can feel abrupt for some congregations. Building to it from a slightly slower opening song gives people time to arrive before the declaration.
It pairs particularly well with Resurrection Sunday services, services built around the gospel message, evangelistic services where you want to put the content of the Christian claim into the room musically, and any series walking through the life of Christ. The song does not require a thematic connection to land, but when there is one, it amplifies the sermon significantly.
In G at 86 BPM, the key is accessible for most congregations. Watch the high notes in the chorus for untrained singers. You may consider dropping to F if your congregation struggles to sustain the energy on those upper passages. A lower key often increases participation more than it costs in musical feel.
Things to watch for as the worship leader
The groove is the engine of this song. If the band does not lock in rhythmically in the first eight bars, the song never fully gets off the ground. Do a focused groove check in rehearsal, separate from working out the chord changes. Get the drummer, bass, and keys aligned on the feel before you add anything else.
Be careful about the transition from the verse to the chorus. The lyric shifts from storytelling mode (what he did) to declaration mode (that's why we praise him), and the congregation needs to feel the gear shift. Lean into it. Emphasize the downbeat on the chorus entry. Give people a physical cue that something is being affirmed, not just described.
The song can be extended naturally in a worship set, but avoid repeating the chorus more than four or five times without adding textural variety. The lyric is simple enough to sustain repetition, but the band needs to give it movement through dynamics, not just volume. A stripped pass through the chorus with acoustic guitar and vocal only before bringing the full band back in is one of the most effective ways to renew attention without breaking the flow.
A note for the team behind you (techs, vocalists, band)
Drummers: this song wants a confident backbeat. The groove is the anchor. Snare on two and four, kick pattern with some variation on the offbeats, hi-hat keeping the 86 BPM feel tight without rushing. This is not the place for fills on every measure. Lock the grid and let the song breathe around you.
Bass players: sit with the kick drum. The bass and kick working together is what makes this song feel full and grounded at a live volume that is not oppressive. Walk the chord changes with purpose rather than flourish. The bass line should feel like a foundation people stand on.
Vocalists: the chorus harmonies should be bright and forward. Do not blend into the background on a song that is this declaratory. You are not accompanying the worship leader. You are joining the declaration. The energy of the harmony stack matters as much as the pitch accuracy.
Tech team: this song rewards a mix that is live and present rather than polished and produced. A little room sound in the live reverb helps the congregation feel like they are singing in the same space as the band. For in-ear monitors, make sure the worship leader can hear the congregation clearly. At this energy level, the leader needs to feel the room singing with them.