Ice T, Good Friday, Death & Religion...

Good News on Good Friday (From the Archives)

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"…don't ever join a gang…"

-Ice T, Colors

I can remember seeing Ice T on The View some time ago talking about his recent Grammy win - his first in 30 years. When he came on the scene in the 80s, he was far from the mainstream celebrity he has ironically become. He was fierce, controversial, raw, and unapologetic in his criticism of police brutality and his realistic depiction of inner city life…he took what Marvin Gaye articulated in Inner City Blues to "a whole nother level" and predated what NWA would make prevalent only a few years later.

There's a line in his classic 1988 track, Colors in which he raps, "…death is my set/guess my religion". In the context of talking about gang culture (in this case, the notorious rivalry between LA gangs, Crips and Bloods), one's 'set' refers to their group of affiliation typically defined by a specific neighborhood, uniquely branded colors and other indicators of one's identity. Death was Jesus' set - ultimately He identified Himself with the death our sin deserves. Incidentally, His disciples and those who heard His word often stumbled over the prophecies that the Messiah would have to suffer and die in total humiliation (cf. John 12:32-34). We as sinners tend to forget that in the economy of the kingdom of God, life always springs from death. We die our way to salvation, we don't strive our way there through our obedience. We are given the kingdom because of Christ's obedience, not our own.

Hip Hop artist, Tha Phanatik once surmised, "no one here can get with the shed blood that Crips can’t even bang with"…Indeed, the blood of Jesus redeems us from our best efforts at keeping the law. His grace gives us a name "better than sons and daughters" (cf. Isaiah 56:5)…and an undeserved place in the family of God. Now that's a set worth claiming!