The Christian chart-topping song “Redeemed” brought spiritual freedom for a man now serving a life sentence.
In a recent murder trial, defendant Danny Holmes opened with a 20-minute testimony where he confessed to killing a man three years ago and then he recounted his spiritual transformation in prison since then.
Instrumental to his confession was the song “Redeemed” by Christian rock band Big Daddy Weave. He brought the lyrics in a notebook to court.
Mike Weaver, the band’s lead singer, told Christianity Today he was “blown away” when he learned how God used his band’s music in Holmes’ life.
The song emphasizes redemption and Christ’s work to free us from our past sins and past selves. The line that sealed the deal for Holmes came from the first verse: “Then you look at this prisoner and say to me, Son, stop fighting a fight that’s already been won.”
Holmes accepted his life sentence and vowed to serve the Lord and spread the gospel while behind bars. He told the court – “I’m 30 years old, and I’ve been fighting for nothing all my life. I’ve been fighting for gangs,” “I ain’t never fought for anything that made sense. But I knew the Lord was telling me to fight for him this time. I just knew he was stirring on my spirit.”
Weaver said he and “Redeemed” co-writer Benji Cowart intend to visit Holmes in prison.
The Christian rocker said he wrote the song to work through with his own struggles with self-hatred. “I told Jesus everything I hated about myself, and he told me that’s not the way he feels about me.”