(Photo :Barry Rowland and Deliverance)

The resurrection is not God's desperate last moment expedient to save the hero from a situation that got out of hand.  Resurrection is not a paltry cop out excuse to redeem God's crestfallen face when Jesus Christ was unexpectedly put to death.  Rather, resurrection has always been God's plan to unveil a new world in Jesus Christ at which we are invited to belong through faith and repentance.  When Jesus was raised from the dead, earth has been colonized by the life of heaven.  This is the theme of Barry Deliverance and Deliverance brand new album "He's Alive" released on Crossroads Music (the McKameys, the Kingsmen and the Akins).  Barry Rowland, his wife Tammy Rowland and Steve Rupert come from a rich heritage in Gospel music.  Barry is the son of the legendary songwriter Kyla Rowland.  The trio first started as Kyla Rowland and Deliverance where they have produced their share of hits such as "Loving The Lamb," "One Scarred Hand," and "I Am a Soldier."  After which, Kyla took a back seat resorting to song writing while her son Barry took the reins of what is today's one of Southern Gospel's best trio.

Though Kyla Rowland is no longer singing with the trio, her presence is still eminent.  She singlehandedly wrote 8 out of the 10 tracks on "He's Alive."  Yet, it's not a matter of nepotism; after all these years, Kyla Rowland has not lost her deft touch with the pen when it comes waxing eloquence about the Cross and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.  "Death Had to Let Him Go," is a power ballad that speaks of how Christ crashes the funeral procession of the son of Nain causing a stir when he raised the dead boy up from the dead.  Steve Rupert's colorful and dramatic delivery makes the re-telling of this Biblical narrative so real that it is as if it were happening right before our eyes.   For those of us who have acquiesced to the myth that the resurrection is just an event of the past that has nothing to do with our here and now need to listen to "Fear for Faith."  A toe tapping celebration of the exchange the disciples felt they met the Risen Christ; here their fears were morphed into faith  so endearing that they would later die for.

Continuing on the theme of the resurrection is the unique sounding "We'll Go Down Standing Up."   Imbued with a rootsy bluegrass cum deep Southern blues, "We'll Go Down Standing Up" expresses the hope that Christ will ultimately raise us up in victory.  Thus, suffering for Him is never futile but an honor.  Another standout is the Steve Rupert and Tammy Rowland vocally-led gentle country ballad "Sweet Things Out of Darkness."  The seed thought of the song comes right out of the somehow obscure Isaiah 45:3 where God promises:   "And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the Lord, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel."  Yet, the resurrection of Christ is not an end in itself; it points to the day when He will come back to raise us to be with Him.  So, it is a delight that Barry Rowland and Deliverance have included the old Kyla Rowland classic "What a Wonderful Time (To Be a Christian)."

The two non-Kyla Rowland songs work come from Harvey Gene Smith: "He's Alive" and "He's Still God."  Both of which fit the thematic flow of the album well though they pale in comparison to the Kyla originals.  "He's Alive," which follows their highly acclaim "Make Mine the Real Thing," doesn't disappoint.  Most laudatory is that this record is tightly knitted around the glorious truth of the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  These songs make this truth cynosure; they make this truth palatable; they make this truth a transforming part of our lives.