This pushing sixty grandmother has been listening to rap. And I couldn’t love it more.
Kanye West has found religion. Until recently, what little I knew about this man included vulgarity, narcissism, and Kardashians. Until this month I wouldn’t have given him the time of day. But his apparent conversion has me paying attention. And I like what I’m hearing.
It certainly is nothing new for a celebrity to “get religion.” Many Hollywood elites claim a belief in God, or identify as “spiritual.” But this seems different. I don’t know Kanye West’s heart, but his words convey a childlike faith that, genre notwithstanding, is music to my ears.
In his newly released album Jesus is King, West, backed by a goosebump inducing, insanely good 80 voice gospel choir, sings and raps his way through his thoughts and feelings about his newfound faith. But it’s more than that. Kanye West exalts Christ and the scriptures in his lyrics. That is nothing short of remarkable.
In the song God Is, West sings,
Everything that hath breath, praise the Lord. Worship Christ with the best of your portions. I know I won’t forget all he’s done. He’s the strength in this race that I run. Every time I look up, I see God’s faithfulness, and it shows just how much he is miraculous. I can’t keep it to myself, I can’t sit here and be still. Everybody, I will tell ‘til the whole world is healed.
King of Kings, Lord of Lords, all the things he has in store. From the rich to the poor, all are welcome through the door. You won’t ever be the same when you call on Jesus’ name. Listen to the words I’m sayin’, Jesus saved me, now I’m sane. And I know God is the force that picked me up. I know Christ is the fountain that filled my cup. I know God is alive, yeah, he has opened up my vision, giving me a revelation. This ain’t ‘bout a dead religion. Jesus brought a revolution. All the captives are forgiven. Time to break down all the prisons. Every man, every woman, there is freedom from addiction. Jesus you have my soul.
On the album, West sings about using the Gospel for protection. In the song Closed on Sunday (a shout out to Chic-fil-A) he admonishes,
Hold the selfies, put the ‘Gram (Instagram) away. Get your family, y’all hold hands and pray. When you got daughters, always keep ‘em safe. Watch out for vipers, don’t let them indoctrinate. Raise our sons, train them in the faith. Through temptations, make sure they’re wide awake. Follow Jesus, listen and obey. No more livin’ for the culture, we nobody’s slave. Stand up for my home. Even if I take this walk alone, I bow down to the King upon the throne. My life is his, I’m no longer my own. I pray to God that he’ll strengthen my hand.
The very brief title track ends the album by simply quoting Philippians 2:10-11: Every knee shall bow, every tongue confess, Jesus is Lord. Jesus is Lord.
If this is a true conversion, I am thrilled for Kanye West. There are many who are calling him out, accusing him of using Christianity as a publicity stunt. And there are some who are not thrilled that he is claiming an association with their Jesus. Kanye addresses those folks in the song Hands On. He writes,
What have you been hearin’ from the Christians? They’ll be the first ones to judge me. Make it seem like nobody love me. Only if they knew what I knew, I was never new ‘til I knew of the true and living God, Yeshua. The true and living God. Somebody pray for me.
This truly is an unusual turn of events. And I’ll admit, looking into the pre-conversion Kanye made me a little uneasy. But then two scriptures came to mind that put me at ease, and even sparked joy over the thought of this man finding the unfathomable love of Christ. In Luke 9, after Jesus had sent his disciples out on their first mission, John returned and complained, “Master, we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we tried to stop him, because he is not one of us.” Jesus replied, “Don’t stop him, for whoever is not against you is for you.” And in Philippians 1:15-18, Paul proclaims,
It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so out of love... The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely… But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.
Whether Kanye West is using Christianity for his own gain or, God willing, he has genuinely experienced God’s saving grace, this week I heard Christ being preached in every way on Jimmy Kimmel Live and The Late Show with James Corden. And because of this I rejoice!
Kanye West has found religion. And he needs our prayers, that his wealth, his past, the media, his family, and all the vain trappings of celebrity will not distort the gospel or overpower his joy in his discovery that Jesus is, indeed, King.