Hip hop recording artist Lecrae is urging Christians to be the “hands and feet” of Jesus to help heal America’s divisions.
“My heart breaks but I’m not hopeless,” Lecrae wrote on his Instagram account Sunday. “I anticipate God raising up more people to put aside their fears and doubts.”
The post came the same day Lecrae posted an Instagram picture of himself at a protest alongside a written message, “‘Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, and plead the widow’s cause,’ (Isaiah 1:17).” In the picture, he was holding a sign reading, “Justice is a right not a privilege,” while wearing a shirt reading “11 Six” – a reference to Romans 1:16.
In his post addressing the church, Lecrae said Christians can help heal the nation.
“My mama marched in the 60s and 70s. She took me to my first protest as a child after Rodney King was beaten unjustly,” he wrote, referencing the 1991 police beating of a black man in Los Angeles. “I protested in Ferguson. I protested for justice of #mikebrown #freddiegray #tamirrice #ericgarner #sandrabland #philandocastile and others over the last 4 years. Here we are again. Violence and mayhem did not bring their lives back or bring justice. We need real plans. We need more than tweets. We need solidarity. We need the walls around this proverbial Jericho to fall.
“Yes Christians we need Jesus, but Jesus calls YOU to be hands and feet. My heart breaks but I’m not hopeless,” Lecrae wrote. “I anticipate God raising up more people to put aside their fears and doubts. I anticipate God dealing with the evil and complacency. I pray for people who are unashamed to say, ‘send me Lord, I’ll go.’ This is going to be a marathon not a sprint. If trusting God is a sign of weakness, I confess I am weak.”
In a Monday Instagram post, Lecrae referenced abolitionists and civil rights leaders of the past who relied on God’s Word. The post included a picture of him reading the Bible.
“The very words that guided Harriet Tubman, that fueled Fredrick Douglas, and gave infinite wisdom to Dr. King. We have access to them,” he wrote. “These Christian leaders were not inactive, but their action was informed by their faith.”
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Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Jason Kempin/Staff
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, The Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
