It's about time to look at another hip hop artist and how one of his songs can become a sermon or a lesson with a little twist. I have a 1970 Cadillac that I like to take a ride in every once in awhile; and as the night had become cool here in Mobile, Ala., it was a perfect time to take it out. I was just cruising the Saraland community and a thought came to me. I wonder who I could find in the Christian hip hop community with that smooth west coast sound that I grew up on. Through a couple of searches online I came to an artist in Sante Fe, N.M., named Illusent. Many of you may have heard of him, but I had not. I shot him an email and asked if I could use one of his songs for a video I was shooting. After a few emails back and forth, I asked him about doing this article with me, so here we are.

The track we are going to look at and dissect is from his album Pedestrian and it is titled, "Who Am I?" Through a little conversation with Illusent, I found out one thing about him above all: His relationship with Jesus is the most important thing to him in life. Even in this song we see he was brought through the fire only by God's grace.

In the track, we see Illusent looking for many things in life. He couldn't seem to find happiness. He asked himself repeatedly, "Who am I?" You actually can feel the emotions in his lyrics. I think we all have asked ourselves, "Who am I?" We absolutely can see the reflections of these lyrics in Ephesians 2:1-10. Paul's letter to the Ephesians was nothing short of a theology course. These theological truths have set the course for many different denominations, and you can find absolute truth within them.

Ephesians 2: Made Alive in Christ

"As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Artist: Illusent

Album: Pedestrian