I realize this story is old news and everyone who’s a somebody has already made their comments about it days ago. I have avoided chiming in on social media concerning Kanye West’s new album and conversion. Now that the conversation has diminished some, here are my thoughts.
It’s a well known fact that I don’t like rap music. With that being said, I personally have not listened to Kanye’s new album but I have heard and read a lot of good things about his lyrics. A lot of my Christian friends on Facebook and Instagram have dropped stories and posts containing words like “lit!” and “dope!” followed by the fire emoji. Some have even gone as far to say his lyrics are better than most well known artists in the Christian music industry!
Because I have not listened to Kanye’s new album for myself, I have not formed an opinion about it but I am aware that many are rejoicing and defending while others are attacking and have questions. Some people are labeling Kanye as the “Paul of the music industry” while some reject him because of his history. First of all, I do not in any way or form condone anyone who bashes a babe in Christ for his or her sins in the past. Secondly, I ask those who rejoice to put away the anointing oil – at least for now.
Now before readers start labeling me as a Pharisee, I am absolutely thrilled that Kanye is writing better music that glorifies Jesus but with that said I am also cautious. Over the past two decades, many prominent Christian music artists have fallen from grace. I could name half a dozen artists who have abandoned the faith and/or fell to sin; however, seeing a multi-Grammy award winning mainstream artist, married into one of the biggest family celebrities on the planet, come into the fold of Christian music is definitely a first! As exciting as this may be, I’m hopeful about Kanye’s future but I’m also leery of crowning him as “God’s instrument for revival.” Allow me to explain why.
Christianity should without a doubt be infiltrating the world and winning lost souls but something that I have observed in recent years is the infiltration of worldliness in American Christianity. A lot of Christians are oblivious to it but this infiltration has been quietly taking place for many years. Churches cherry pick their favorite bible verses often taking them erroneously out of context while ignoring the passages considered “too offensive.” Scripture is no longer viewed as the leading authority on morality but morality is subjective and moral relativism is what governs a person to choose for themselves what is right and wrong. Sin is no longer called an offense to God but merely “a bad choice” or a “disease.” God’s grace is so greatly embellished that repentance is no longer deemed necessary and a call to holiness is quickly dismissed as legalism. Lastly, God’s love is so grossly exaggerated that the fear of the Lord is seen as a radical and inappropriate subject.
Surely we can see that this religion isn’t authentic Christianity. It certainly isn’t the gospel that Jesus preached! (Matthew 4:17); however, this form of Christianity has become the dominate religion of the western hemisphere and several big name celebrities have already come out to endorse it. The god that many American Christians worship today is not the God of the Bible but a false god created in their image.
“A whole generation of Christians has come up believing that it is possible to ‘accept’ Christ without forsaking the world.” – A.W. Tozer
I’m leery of endorsing any person, regardless of their celebrity status, who profess Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Simply put – anyone can talk the talk but can they walk the walk? And most importantly, is the Jesus Christians worship the REAL Jesus or is it a knock-off Jesus? These are definitely things to consider but because no one can boldly say for certain whether Kanye’s conversion is authentic or not, the most appropriate response to all of this is to pray for him and observe fruit. Although good fruit seems to be present in the early stages of his new Christian life, let us not be quick to jump to conclusions. Regardless of how people may feel about his past or music, Christians need to stop having the “judge not” argument with each other in public and start praying for the man! With the spotlight being as big as it is, it’s only a matter of time before the tares and ravenous birds come. Kanye will certainly be susceptible to criticism and even false teachers so may he stay grounded in the word and may God use him to shake Hollywood and the entertainment industry. I’m rooting for you, Kanye!
Joshua Hawk 