Hillsong United: Building Upside Down Kingdoms

I love the words of Jesus in Matthew 5. Before we played a note, we sat down in the studio and read through the Beatitudes. They  represent the way of God’s kingdom, what  Jesus exemplified and has called us to be as the  church. It’s a way that rages in stark contrast to  the natural way the world operates. It’s a way  that chooses surrender over self-promotion.  It’s about peacemaking rather than attempting  to make things right.

JD Douglass: Jesus talks about the poor in spirit. Theirs is the kingdom of heaven. The merciful will be shown mercy. The Beatitudes is this thought that Jesus came to serve and not be great. Everyone wants to build empires, but Jesus came to serve.

JH: We decided that the kingdom of God we’re here to help build, the kingdom we pray our music helps facilitate or speaks into, will be firmly founded in what Jesus was about. Choosing to not look at everything from the “share the best and hide the rest” perspective, but choosing to firmly put your root in the desire to remain as low as possible. Not in a self-deprecating, weird, false humility kind of way, but in a real way—a way where we know exactly where we stand and we know exactly who God is. And we’re willing to start from that point and step in confidence to where God has us. It takes all the pressure off.

To me, this process has brought everything to life. Empires has come alive inside of us.

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