10 Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
11 For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe's household, that there are contentions among you.
12 Now I say this, that each of you says, "I am of Paul," or "I am of Apollos," or "I am of Cephas," or "I am of Christ."
We are all on a journey, as those who are disciples of our Lord. And, yes, we will miss it, we will not live a perfect life, and we should be thankful for the grace of God. But, if we harshly judge others in their Christian walk, we may find ourselves on a spiritual island, which is certainly a lonely place. While the Bible does teach us right doctrine and solid instruction, there will be areas of disagreement - we have to be careful that we are not steeped in spiritual pride and that we are walking with proper measure of grace toward our fellow believers...they will slip up, too, just like each of us.
I wanted to share this passage of Scripture, because I think that it speaks to today's culture, driven by social media, in which people are divided, even in the body of Christ, even in overly harsh ways. In Mark 9, we can read:
38 Now John answered Him, saying, "Teacher, we saw someone who does not follow us casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow us."
39 But Jesus said, "Do not forbid him, for no one who works a miracle in My name can soon afterward speak evil of Me.
40 "For he who is not against us is on our side.
41 For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.
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I wanted to share this passage of Scripture, because I think that it speaks to today's culture, driven by social media, in which people are divided, even in the body of Christ, even in overly harsh ways. In Mark 9, we can read:
38 Now John answered Him, saying, "Teacher, we saw someone who does not follow us casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow us."
39 But Jesus said, "Do not forbid him, for no one who works a miracle in My name can soon afterward speak evil of Me.
40 "For he who is not against us is on our side.
41 For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.
I certainly do not think Jesus is calling for a broad ecumenism here, but I believe He is telling His disciples to not be hasty in their judgments and to possess a bit more grace, perhaps.
I saw a picture of a billboard in Times Square that contained a simple message: Jesus is King. Indeed he is. And, up in the bright lights was displayed the cover art for the new album for Kanye West's new "gospel" project.
And, this past week has certainly been quite a billboard for the seemingly newfound faith of Kanye West - he's been sharing some "Jesus talk" and conducting his Sunday Services, and now with the release of a gospel record, people are certainly taking note.
But, as late night talk show host James Corden asked him, is it real?
Faithwire reports on the rap legend's answer:
That article includes response from Greg Laurie, who is heard on Faith Radio weekday afternoons at 2:00: "I applaud any person that makes any movement toward God,” adding, “And I want to encourage them in that, not critique them about that. And I think it’s fantastic because he’s taking his considerable platform — and he has quite a platform, doesn’t he? — to talk about faith. It has people talking about Jesus. I’m happy for that conversation, people that wouldn’t normally be talking about the Lord.” He had posted a video, in which he encouraged people to "pray for him...Pray that he gets grounded in his faith, pray that he’s a seed sown on good ground that brings forth much fruit.”
Faithwire also reported:
The story shared comments from pastor Adam Tyson:
I saw a picture of a billboard in Times Square that contained a simple message: Jesus is King. Indeed he is. And, up in the bright lights was displayed the cover art for the new album for Kanye West's new "gospel" project.
And, this past week has certainly been quite a billboard for the seemingly newfound faith of Kanye West - he's been sharing some "Jesus talk" and conducting his Sunday Services, and now with the release of a gospel record, people are certainly taking note.
But, as late night talk show host James Corden asked him, is it real?
Faithwire reports on the rap legend's answer:
“When you go to sleep, would you agree that you are asleep when you are asleep? And when you wake up, would you agree that you are awake when you are awake? Would you agree those are two different states? People who don’t believe are walking dead; they are asleep. And this is the awakening.”The website characterized that as a reference to Romans chapter 6.
That article includes response from Greg Laurie, who is heard on Faith Radio weekday afternoons at 2:00: "I applaud any person that makes any movement toward God,” adding, “And I want to encourage them in that, not critique them about that. And I think it’s fantastic because he’s taking his considerable platform — and he has quite a platform, doesn’t he? — to talk about faith. It has people talking about Jesus. I’m happy for that conversation, people that wouldn’t normally be talking about the Lord.” He had posted a video, in which he encouraged people to "pray for him...Pray that he gets grounded in his faith, pray that he’s a seed sown on good ground that brings forth much fruit.”
Faithwire also reported:
Last week, ahead of the release of his latest record, West told Beats 1 show host Zane Lowe that he’s “now in service to Christ,” adding, “My job is to spread the Gospel, to let people know what Jesus has done for me.”The story on the website containing a longer account of the Corden interview is fascinating. It relates that Kanye was inspired to start the Sunday Services while in the hospital a few years ago. The story also says:
“God’s always had a plan for me and he wanted to use me,” Kanye replied. “But I think he wanted me to suffer more and wanted people to see my suffering and see my pain and put stigmas on me and have me go through all the human experiences.”
Now, through his public declaration of faith, Kanye hopes that others will be able to relate to his conversion story and know that, no matter how far they fall, God can always be called upon to pick us back up again.
“When I talk about how Jesus saved me, more people can relate to that experience. If it was just, ‘We grew up with this guy and now he’s a superstar,’ it’s less compelling than this guy who had a mental breakdown and was in debt,” he added.ChristianHeadlines.com featured a story last month about a California pastor, who "recently shared on 'The Pure Flix Podcast' his journey with Kanye West and believes his conversion is genuine, according to Faithwire."
The story shared comments from pastor Adam Tyson:
“[T]he first time I talked to [Kanye] the first Sunday in June, he told me, ‘I got radically saved five weeks ago,’” Tyson shared. “I said, ‘Kanye, what happened five weeks ago?’ He said, ‘I was just under the weight of my sin and I was being convicted that I was running from God, and I knew I needed to make things right, so I came to Christ. I came out of the darkness into the light.’”Kanye had attended Tyson's church, Placerita Bible Church in Santa Clarita, California, a few times, and Kanye stayed afterward to talk with Tyson. The story, from October 8, says, "Ever since, the pair have met weekly to discuss the Bible." Tyson reports that he has seen some fruit developing in Kanye's life.
What about the content of Jesus is King? A review on the Jesus Freak Hideout website says:
The review also mentions:
Plugged In from Focus on the Family has this to say about the project:
The "drop" of this Kanye West project has made a splash in the world of entertainment, as well as throughout the Christian community. And, I think you can expect enthusiastic embrace by some, skepticism by others, and a mix by some. The thought that occurred to me this morning had to do with the reaction of Jesus to the news brought to Him by His disciples that they had encountered someone who was casting out demons in His name and told him to stop. Jesus responded by saying that no one who did miracles in His name would then speak evil of Him. This communicates to me a message of grace; yes, we are called to test the spirits and even inspect the fruit, but we don't want to be overly critical of how God may be working in a person's life. I think Greg Laurie got it right - Kanye is talking about Jesus and the pastor encourages people to pray for him, to pray that he will be grounded and productive for the Lord.
We can also check our own lives and see if we are truly proclaiming that "Jesus is King." If Jesus is the King of our hearts, then we can expect spiritual growth and spiritual fruit to come from that. We will display that we are His disciples. We can talk a great game, but we have to make sure that we are actively playing, being obedient to Him as the Lord of our lives.
Overall, the album feels half-baked, like an idea not fully-formed, however, this also seems fraught with purpose, and comes with its benefits. At twenty-seven minutes across eleven tracks, it is a refreshing snapshot of a man newly given over to and living for Christ. Some things are best said with brevity, and given time to sink in with repeat listens. I appreciate that Kanye has something he seemingly cannot wait to say but doesn't feel the need to say it ad nauseam. This is a welcome change for a man not known to show restraint. What we have here comes across as a new convert eager to share his testimony, as quickly as possible.It mentions specific songs:
The album begins with a frenetic choir wailing, "sing until the power of the Lord comes down," on a brief opener devoid of any sign of West himself. There seems to be a double-time pace utilized to cue the listener to what they are in for throughout the tracklist. Songs are coming fast and lean. Kanye makes his entrance on "Selah," with an organ setting up his rap verse, and the gospel choir reaching for the heavens as they repetitively sing "Hallelujah" in rousing fashion.Other tracks include: Closed on Sunday, which "has typical West goofiness using Chick-fil-a to address the topic of lust, addiction, and raising his kids up in the faith rapping, "closed on Sunday/You my Chick-Fil-A/You're my number one/with the lemonade/raise our sons, train them in the faith/through temptations/make sure they're wide awake/Follow Jesus, listen and obey."
The review also mentions:
Another highlight is the slow Andrae Crouch-inspired jam, "God Is." With hoarse vocals, Kanye earnestly proclaims his new mission, "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."And, there's Hands On, in which "West delivers a gentle challenge to Christians who would judge him rather than pray for him."
Plugged In from Focus on the Family has this to say about the project:
But in the past, shout-outs to Jesus have often competed with lyrical excesses in other areas: harsh vulgarity, sexually explicity lyrics and Kanye’s famously outsized ego.
What seems wholly different on Jesus Is King is that those inconsistencies are almost completely absent. Almost. What Kanye has given us instead is an album that draws stylistically from rap and gospel, but one that focuses exclusively on Jesus and His identity as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.Both reviews mention the one profanity on the album, in speaking of religion in a denigrating way, contrasting it to the "revolution" that Jesus wants to bring. The review concludes by saying:
None of us can know whether Kanye will sustain his current level of Christian conviction in the years to come. But his earnest spiritual fervor is undeniable on Jesus Is King. On this album (and in the accompanying short film of the same name), Kanye West takes the spotlight off of himself and shines it unabashedly on Jesus Christ, proclaiming Him King and Savior.So, there you have at least, some of the comments regarding Jesus is King, which also has a film that accompanies it.
The "drop" of this Kanye West project has made a splash in the world of entertainment, as well as throughout the Christian community. And, I think you can expect enthusiastic embrace by some, skepticism by others, and a mix by some. The thought that occurred to me this morning had to do with the reaction of Jesus to the news brought to Him by His disciples that they had encountered someone who was casting out demons in His name and told him to stop. Jesus responded by saying that no one who did miracles in His name would then speak evil of Him. This communicates to me a message of grace; yes, we are called to test the spirits and even inspect the fruit, but we don't want to be overly critical of how God may be working in a person's life. I think Greg Laurie got it right - Kanye is talking about Jesus and the pastor encourages people to pray for him, to pray that he will be grounded and productive for the Lord.
We can also check our own lives and see if we are truly proclaiming that "Jesus is King." If Jesus is the King of our hearts, then we can expect spiritual growth and spiritual fruit to come from that. We will display that we are His disciples. We can talk a great game, but we have to make sure that we are actively playing, being obedient to Him as the Lord of our lives.
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