I was never a fan of Kanye. I’ve heard of him, his music, and even his antics as an artist, but I was never a fan. It was hard for me to appreciate him as an artist or his work. His songs were filled with innuendos, racial slurs, profanity, and even blasphemy. People would judge him as someone who’s very far from God.

This is why his sudden conversion came as a huge shock to a lot of us. Some responded with gladness, hoping and praying that His newfound devotion would last and would lead to a lifelong change. Sadly, many responded with skepticism. They doubt the authenticity of his conversion and assume that this is another one of his weird antics.

Since we can never really tell what God is doing in his life and what is going on in his heart, it is not our place to judge. As I write this, I am speaking to myself, too. Looking at his story, there are a few things I’m reminded of that we all can hopefully learn from.

1. Christ is proclaimed, and that alone is cause to celebrate.

What then?

Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.

Philippians 1:18

For Paul, whoever was preaching the gospel or whatever their motivations were didn’t matter much, as long as Christ is proclaimed.

As I’m writing this article, Kanye’s album Jesus is King already has had about 197 million streams, and it has been topping music charts across the globe since its release. No matter what his motivations and intentions were, we can celebrate that people are becoming open to knowing Jesus Christ because of his music!

I bow down to the King upon the throne
My life is His, I’m no longer my own

“Closed on Sunday”

Jesus is our safe

Jesus is our rock

Jesus, give us grace

Jesus, keep us safe

“Water”

Every knee shall bow

Every tongue confess

Jesus is Lord

Jesus is Lord
“Jesus Is Lord”

2. No one is too far or too sinful to experience His grace.

Kanye’s story isn’t unique. This pattern is found all over the Bible and with a lot of people today. Every day we witness imperfect people being radically changed because of an encounter with God. Their lives are a testament to the truth that Jesus Christ’s victory on the cross can redeem us from even the darkest or most sinful of pasts.

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

Ephesians 2:13

And if Kanye, a person we’ve judged and labeled as “someone very far from God,” can be transformed like this, then there is hope that the “Kanyes” around us can have a life-changing encounter with God.

Who are the people in our lives whom we’ve deemed too far from God?

I hope that through Kanye’s story we will be reminded that we should never give up on people and that we should continue to share with them the love and truth of God and eventually lead them to Christ.

Whatever your stand is on Kanye’s newfound devotion, he’s calling all of us through his lyrics to do the right thing.

I deserve all the criticism you got

If that’s all the love you have, that’s all you got

To sing of change, you think I’m joking

To praise His name, you ask what I’m smoking

Yes, I understand your reluctancy, yeah

But I have a request, you see

Don’t throw me up, lay your hands on me

Please pray for me

“Hands On”

Photo credits: https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/music/kanye-west-returns-new-album-some-twitter-philosophy-n867886