Judging Lecrae

Is Hip Hop Holy?  Is Artistic expression even something that Christians should be involved with? 

It seems that ever since he appeared on the scene Lecrae, the Holy Hip Hop artist  has gained not only a devoted fan base, but a lot of hateful and vehemently outspoken  opposition

Most of the guys who hate him, and his style of music, come at him with "sanctification" and "Glory to God" talk on their lips.  But that talk  is cheap, if not genuine.

The questions emerge. How do we judge this guy?   And "what are the criteria for evaluating  forms of artistic expression?   Controversy in an of itself is bound to illicit some sort of response.  There is a snowball effect in mob thinking.  But what I have seen in the numerous comments and choosing of sides teaming up, is a notable lack of clear thinking and Biblical material.  

When you go to the Bible only to find proofs that you are right, you are not reading it in a manner that God can actually show you what He thinks.  Perhaps you are wrong?  You have not yet listened to what God says, when you use the proof-texting method of Bible study.  First you must read for comprehension and for personal instruction.  Let God actually show you what His word says, before you assume that you are right.  You may be wrong!   That's why the first step in all of this is to allow God to speak to you from His word. You will never help further your cause or bring "Glory to God", if you do not teach yourself first, before you try to validate yourself. 

Picking out verses from the Bible with the goal of finding all the ones that condemn a certain person, or a certain activity, is a dangerous way to read God's Holy Book.  It sets you up from the outset with a spirit of negativity and with a predigested  "desire to be right", that may in itself not be right. Assuming yourself to be right, without actually being right, is a very dangerous assumption.  It is possible to read the Bible sinfully!  If you read it just to prove yourself right, then you are not open to it's rebukes if you are really wrong. It is a book that is designed to correct bad thinking, not  cause it or support it.  So don't make the Bible try to support you, without first allowing it to inform you.  If you proof-text your way through the Bible, trying to prove yourself right, you have sinned in the process, because you have robbed God of His prerogative of absolute Lordship over your mind and heart.  Reading the Bible is often an avenue for sinning if it is done simply to tear somebody down, without allowing God to speak to you from the Bible before you try to speak the Bible to others.  Do you sin when you read the Bible?  You shouldn't. You should avoid sinful tendencies that are operating in your mind when you open God's precious book.  God wants to inform you of the truth, not be informed by you what the truth is.  He knows it.  He wrote it.  Why don't you try letting Him teach it you?

It is impossible to read correctly, if you do not let the words mean what they say and say when they mean whenever you go to the Bible.  You should never assume that you are right.  Instead you should assume that you might be wrong, and humble yourself before God's absolute authority...JUST IN CASE YOU ARE ACTUALLY WRONG.  What makes you so certain that if you pick out 15 verses about worldliness that you actually understand what they mean?  Just sticking verses in your essay  that use some of your favorite language, or words that you associate as hard hitting and to the point, does not necessarily mean that you have used those verse correctly.  There are plenty of verses that talk about worldliness.  But there is not one that defines worldliness as listening to Hip Hop Music or Rap Music.  So, Be careful how you handle God's word.

What is Worldliness?

A recent editorial I read attacking Lecrae, criticized him because of an interview he had done where he speaks to the interviewer about His stylist. Lecrae told the interviewer that he has a stylist, because he is an artist, and style is part of his art.  The editorial took the position that surely this is "worldliness";  quoted a few choice verses about worldliness, and then sought to slam dunk its case against New Calvinism, Holy Hip Hop and Lecrae with this one arbitrary value judgment.  But is artistic expression the criteria that the Bible uses to define worldliness?  It was, according to that article.  They sliced and diced and tore Lecrae apart for promoting worldliness, because he uses a stylist to help define his artistic expression.
But is that worldliness?  Is fashion, style, and art the thing that makes a man worldly?  Is Lecrae worldly because he uses a stylist, sports some tattoos, wheres high fashion, and puts his ball cap on sideways.  Is that how God defines "the love of the world?"  Is that any part of how God defines worldliness?  

In my mind, if you want to discredit a man by saying that he is worldly, or that he is promoting a worldly agenda, you must first define worldly.  Worldliness is not whatever you want it to be. It is what God says that it is.  The simple truth is that the Bible does not define worldliness as tattoos, certain kinds of tastes in music, certain types of clothing, or what kind of car you drive.  Being worldly is defined in the Bible in terms of "what a person thinks". Proverbs 23: 7 speaks of a man and says "as he thinketh in his heart, so is He".  Jesus knew the "thoughts" of men in Matthew 9: 3 and He asked them "Wherefore think ye evil  in your hearts (Matt 9: 4).  He knew their hearts and he was concerned about their thoughts.  Why?  Because sin originates from within us.  It is not just what we do, or do not do (as in breaking a command). It is what we are, and sin is an internal problem before it ever becomes and external problem.

"For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man" .
(Mark 7: 21-23)

 "That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man" (Mark 7:20).

"There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man" (Mark 7: 15).

"But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.  Do not err, my beloved brethren" (James 1: 14-16).

"And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God" 
(Roman 12: 2).

Worldliness needs to be defined according to these basic verses, as an internal sin problem, not external acts of sinning.  "Conformity to the world" consists in not having "a transformed mind".  "Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind".  Keep this in mind the next time you are tempted to judge Lecrae or anybody else based on simple external appearances.  Unless you can see inside a man's heart like God sees, you better be very careful about not judging falsely, and about not judging based upon superficial appearances, and irrelevant criteria.

"...for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart"  (1Sam 16:7).