Some housekeeping: I will attempt to switch-off my creative & political perspective, and present this solely according to scripture, and how true believers in Christ should view, not only, Kanye West, but also anyone else after him - whether they possess the type of influence he has or not.
For those not familiar with Kanye West's “Sunday service,” please refer to This LINK.
Over the past week or so, I’ve been asked for my general take on Kanye's "Sunday service," & whether I believe Kanye's really a christian, or not. Irrespective of where you find yourself in this tussle, I’ll start this post by stating that if your intents are to definitively invalidate or validate Kanye’s claim to be a born-again Christian, then you might want to check your heart, & re-evaluate what your priorities or spiritual responsibilities are. It's not my role, or any one's for that matter, to decide who's a Christian or not, only thing we can, and should do is amplify our discernment.
Sunday service has been lauded as an effective medium between spirituality & art for this generation, some going as far as saying it is “religion hand-crafted for the social media age.” For some it’s so, for others it serves as nostalgia, reminiscent of childhood/pre-adolescent years spent in the church, and that shouldn't bother anyone necessarily. My only concern with Sunday service, doesn’t include Kanye per se, but rather the innocent souls who may interpret the unconventional service differently than its intended purposes, and end up glorifying the messenger, instead of the creator.
If you believe in spirituality, then you understand that the agent of darkness always tries to contort what was intended as good for evil. There will be some parties who will vehemently critique Kanye’s and his methods, simply because it's unorthodox to organized religion. I will also caution these individuals who aim to play devil's advocate, not to find themselves actually being an advocate for the devil – there is a difference between discernment, and condemnation. (Romans 2:1-3)
"You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things." - Romans 2:1-3
Yes, the road to hell is paved with good intentions, but it’s also adorned with condemnation. Remember he who guards his mouth, preserves his life, but those who speak rashly come to ruin. (Proverbs 13:3) After all, there is no framework or way to measure authenticity, except by waiting to see its fruits.
For example, in the parable of the weeds in Matthew 13, Christ likens the kingdom of God to a wheat field; when wheat & weeds grow together, it’s hard to identify which is weed & which is wheat, they both look the same at the beginning of their respective growing process. However, it is with time that one can actually be able to discern which is wheat, and which is weed.
Same goes with any trend or alleged fad, they’re only validated or invalidated by the test of time & their respective fruits. "it is by their fruits that we will know them" (Matt. 7:15)
Everyone has to start somewhere, but growth - which is the staple of the Christian faith – doesn’t exist where stagnancy may prefer to thrive. This being said, with organizers calling Sunday Service a form of church, I do worry about what the follow-up to its musical sessions look like, what teachings follow, and what spiritual leadership looks like. Sunday Service, because of its simplicity, can serve as a useful outlet for people new to the faith, or even those who abandoned the church due to the fallacy of organized religion, but there comes a time when children have to progress from drinking milk to eating meals. (1 Peter 2:2-3)
As believers, we need to answer the call of this generation, that seems to be crying out for God. We should be embracing them, guiding & showing them what the teachings say, not castigating them for expressing themselves the only way they know how. This idea of exclusivity with this Christian faith is not only absurd, but is one of the most hypocritical things those who have been redeemed, and received the gift of salvation can do to other fellow human beings.
If you believe what I believe, then you believe that Yahweh, the Supreme God, is capable of using any thing (from the jawbone of a dead donkey, to a talking one) or person, as a vessel to reach any generation, or specific soul. The same God who used King Saul to deliver Israel, only to later rebuke him, is the same One who used Saul the murderer (a different Saul), to raise generations of leaders, and whose teachings are pervasive, even ‘til this day. The same man who publicly testified selling his soul to the devil, is now acknowledging his love, and professing his faith in Jesus Christ. Many will ridicule him, but our duty as the body of Christ is not to join in verbal assaults, but to point towards the expression of love displayed on the Cross, and offer guidance, in truth. Because for anything to bear likeness to Christ, it has to be first Loving and Truthful.
The profound theologian, C.S. Lewis, once said that there will be 3 surprises in heaven: “Those who are there, those who aren’t, and you being there.”
This is because there will indeed be many prophets who will lead multitude of people to heaven, but for some reason fail at attaining the ultimate prize, and there will be people who give their life at the eleventh hour, like the penitent thief on the cross. (Luke 23:39-43)
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven." - Matthew 7:21
As a Christian, your main concern should be taking as much souls with you to the believed promised land. You should not be senselessly focused on who, & who doesn’t get to go to heaven, that you become distracted, and end up compromising YOU being there.
With Love & Truth Always,
paul.itiCs
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