Hillsong Worship – Arrival

Hillsong Church is a megachurch founded in 1983 in Baulkham Hills, New South Wales, Australia.  It was formerly led by Hillsong Founder Brian Houston.  Hillsong possesses a massive discography, spanning across four music ministries.  These include Hillsong UNITED, Hillsong Worship, Hillsong Young & Free, and Hillsong Kids.

Hillsong has won several awards within their Hillsong UNITED and Hillsong Worship artist groups.  As of this writing, there are no awards for Hillsong Young & Free or Hillsong Kids.

Also, check out my entire list of Hillsong reviews and Christmas songs, Seasons and Prince of Heaven.

Note to new users: This is a different kind of review site!  Read About the Berean Test and Evaluation Criteria prior to reading this review.  I strongly encourage you to consider the potential blessings and dangers of this artist‘s theology by visiting Resources.

1. What message does the song communicate?

Jesus, who is the eternal, all-knowing Ruler and Creator God, became one of us. This is stated over and over and over again in various ways. In response, we are to praise Him for coming because He would save us from the consequences of our lawbreaking.

Score: 10/10

2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?

100%.

Lyrics posted with permission.*

[Verse 1]

Who is God that He would take our frame
The artisan inside the paint
Or breathe the very air His breath sustains
The architect inside the plan

The Creator, Jesus (John 1:1-3 and Colossians 1:15-16), becomes one of us, a creation (Philippians 2:6-7).

[Chorus]

Oh, come now, hail His arrival, the God of creation

That is, for us to celebrate His birth by praising Him like the angelic hosts did in Luke 2:13-14.

Royalty robed in the flesh He created
Jesus, the maker has made Himself known

See Verse 1, lines 1-4.

All hail the infinite infant God

Combines like 1 with His infinitude (John 8:58, Colossians 1:13-17, and Hebrews 13:8) and frailness as a baby (Matthew 1:25 and Luke 2:7).

[Verse 2]

The One who had no start and knows no end
Became confined in time and tense
The Everlasting God, the Great I Am
In the mercy of a mother’s hands

See Verse 1 and Verse 2, line 4.  Also, the “great I Am” comes from Exodus 3:14-15 and John 8:58.

[Bridge 1]

The One who holds the stars in the creases of His hands

See Verse 1, lines 1-4.

Is the One who holds my heart like a mother once held Him

Hillsong belongs to Jesus (Matthew 18:3, Matthew 19:14, and Luke 18:16-17).

The One who knows what lies, where space has run its course

Jesus is omniscient (1 Kings 8:39, 1 Chronicles 28:9, Psalm 44:21, Psalm 139:4, Psalm 147:4-5, Isaiah 40:28, Matthew 10:30, John 16:30, John 21:17, Acts 1:24, Hebrews 4:13, and 1 John 3:20).

Embraced a baby’s mind, and now I can know my God

See Verse 1, lines 1-4.

The monarch of the stars, the King above all kings

Jesus as King of kings is found in 1 Timothy 6:13-16, Revelation 17:14, and Revelation 19:11-16.

The ruler of my heart, and the Saviour for my sins

Hillsong surrenders to His ways (Psalm 43:5, Isaiah 64:8, Matthew 10:38, Matthew 11:28-30, Matthew 16:24, Mark 8:34-38, Mark 10:28, Luke 9:23, Luke 14:27, John 15:1-11, Romans 6:13, Romans 12:1-2, Galatians 2:20, Philippians 2:5-8, Hebrews 11:6, James 4:7-10, and 1 Peter 5:6), who is their Savior (Isaiah 45:21-22, Hosea 13:4, Luke 1:47, Luke 2:11, Acts 13:23, 1 Timothy 2:3, Titus 2:13-14, and 1 John 4:14).

The One who sees what lies, in each and every soul

See line 3.

Embraced our finite eyes, and now we can see our God

See Verse 1, lines 1-4, and John 14:9.

[Verse 3]

The holy Word of God defined by name
The author climbed inside the page…

The Word became flesh (John 1:1-3 and John 1:14).  Also, see Verse 1, lines 1-4.

[Bridge 2]

Love embraced our fate, when the playwright took the stage
All hail the arrival of our maker
God embraced our frame, when He graced the world He made
All hail the divine in a manger

All of these points have been previously covered elsewhere in this song.

Love embraced our fate, when the playwright took the stage
All hail the arrival of our maker
God embraced our frame, when He graced the world He made
All hail the divine in a manger
Love embraced our fate, when the playwright took the stage
All hail the arrival of our maker

Repeats lines 1-4.

[Outro]

God embraced our frame, when He graced the world He made
All hail the divine in a manger
Love embraced our fate, when the playwright took the stage
All hail the arrival of our maker

Repeats Bridge 1, lines 1-4.

Score: 10/10

3. How would an outsider interpret the song?

Jesus became a baby to save Christians from their sin.  What is sin?  Unbelievers will usually think it is error, but often do not define it as violating God’s laws.

Much of Hillsong’s language is poetic, yet, if those who don’t know Jesus understand one version of their central point, the rest are easy to comprehend.

Score: 9/10

4. What does this song glorify?

It glorifies Jesus that Hillsong remembers why He came: so that mankind could be saved.  While much wording is devoted to making the same point about God becoming man, they recognize that Easter is the real story behind Christmas, and that we should worship Him by celebrating His birth.

Score: 10/10

Closing Comments

Hillsong Worship’s Arrival is wonderful.  In a very rare show of flexing their poetic skills, Hillsong helps prepare our hearts to remember the reason for the season: God became a man to save us from eternal separation from Himself.  This brings Him glory.  Unbelievers should be able to catch what Hillsong is throwing at them, albeit not fully understanding the meaning of sin.

I highly recommend this song for corporate worship.  Seeker-sensitive churches should consider defining sin beforehand.

Final Score: 9.5/10

Artist Info

Track: Arrival (listen to the song)

Artist: Hillsong Worship

Album: Christmas: The Peace Project

Genre: Contemporary Christian Music (CCM)

Release Year: 2017

Duration: 7:22

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*Copyright © 2017 Hillsong Music Publishing (APRA) (adm. in the US and Canada at CapitolCMGPublishing.com) All rights reserved. Used by permission.