Lecrae – Timepiece

Lecrae is the poster child for redeeming hip hop and rap music.  He is a strong voice amid a genre whose music stereotypically glorifies gangs, violence, drugs, and sex.

Beginning his career in 2004, Lecrae released ten albums and one EP, including:

• Real Talk (2004)
• After the Music Stops (2006)
• Rebel (2008)
• Rehab (2010)
• Rehab: The Overdose (2011)
• Gravity (2012)
• Church Clothes (EP, 2012)
• Anomaly (2014)
• All Things Work Together (2017)
• Let the Trap Say Amen (2018)
• Restoration (2020)

Lecrae appeared in several films, wrote two books, Unashamed (2016) and I Am Restored (2020), and received too many awards for me to list on this page.

I must confess: When I started this website in 2018, I hated rap music and fought my way through it for the songs I reviewed.  Now, my feelings are “ok, it’s not that bad”.  For my small audience who listens to it, this is a victory.  You’ve won me over!

Also, check out my reviews of Just Like You, Boasting, and Dirty Water.

Lyrics can be found at https://genius.com/Lecrae-timepiece-lyrics.

Note to new users: This is a different kind of review site!  Read About the Berean Test and Evaluation Criteria prior to reading this review.

1. What message does the song communicate?

Lecrae uses clever chrono-themed wordplay to describe the difference between worldly and Godly living.  The world idles and is concerned about material wealth, quick service, and arriving at their destination as quickly as possible.  Godly living is about stopping everyday life to invest time and energy into following Jesus and doing as He commands.

Lecrae is stuck in the middle, struggling to find which direction to go. He admits that he invests too much time into the former and not enough with the latter, knowing that Jesus will call us into account how we spent the time that God allotted to us.  Lecrae reminds us that we can draw near to God while we still draw breath.  Time is a gift that God grants; an opportunity to repent and forsake living for our things to follow Jesus.  After all, we cannot take our stuff with us when we die.

This song only repeats Hook, which appears as the song’s beginning, middle, and end.

Score: 10/10

2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?

This entire song and the Bible agree.

[Hook]

Lines 1-4: These are the words of worldly people who do not listen to the voice of Christ, thinking that He isn’t watching or doesn’t exist.  Jesus warns that these are men and women who prefer darkness and avoid light, lest they become exposed (John 3:19-20).

Side Note: While others believe it irreverent to call Jesus the “Man in the sky”, He did appear (as a man) in the sky when He ascended in heaven (Acts 1:9).  I don’t have a problem with it.

Line 5: An Audemar is an expensive watch.  This is an example of worldly living that Lecrae is exposing.  They cannot serve God because they serve their possessions (Matthew 6:24 and Luke 16:13).

Lines 6 and 7: This statement connects timekeeper in line 5 with Lecrae’s humility, that he doesn’t know when the light (the sun), Jesus, will return (Matthew 6:24 and Luke 16:13).

Lines 8-14: Repeats lines 1-7.

[Verse 1]

Lines 1-4: These statements are about our western society, where everything is rushed and done faster and faster.  We are so busy caught up in our lives that we forget the journey as we rush to our destination.  This makes us anxious and impatient people and can easily drive us away from waiting upon the Lord (Psalm 27:14 and Isaiah 40:31).

Lines 5 and 6: Lecrae equates serving time itself with serving time in prison.  Time has become their idol, drawing them away from God.  See commentary on Hook, line 5.

Lines 7 and 8: Haven’t we all wished that we had more time?  Lecrae points out that time isn’t the issue.  We all have the same 24 hours in the day.  We can’t save time and we can’t acquire more of it, but we can decide on how we spend it.  Wishing for more time isn’t the answer.

Lines 9 and 10: This is the struggle Lecrae faces between serving God and his striving in the world.  It is spiritual warfare (Matthew 4:1-11, Romans 7:14-25, Ephesians 6:12-17, and 2 Corinthians 10:3-5).

LInes 11-14: Lecrae finds it ironic that he purchased a timepiece that he hardly uses, what he considers to be both a waste of money and, of course, time.  He cannot buy time by spending money.

Lines 15 and 16: Lecrae realizes that God determines how many days we receive (Psalm 139:16 and Job 14:5), that it’s appointed that we will die and face God in judgment (Hebrews 9:27), and that we don’t know when Christ will return.  He will come like a thief in the night (Matthew 24:36-44, Matthew 25:13, Mark 13:32, Luke 12:39-40, Acts 1:7, 1 Thessalonians 5:2, 2 Peter 3:10, Revelation 3:3, and Revelation 16:15).

Line 17: Lecrae admits that he doesn’t spend enough time with God.

Lines 18 and 19: Contrasts Hook, lines 1-4 with Psalms 121:4, stating that God is always watching.

[Verse 2]

Lines 1-3: Conan the Barbarian is a fictional soldier who fought to survive and for personal gain.  Lecrae’s commentary is directed towards alley drug dealers who continue their ways as a means to survive, too cowardly to do the right thing, much less follow Jesus.  They will not inherit the Kingdom of God (Revelation 21:8).

Lines 4 and 5: Most people don’t think past their material lifestyle or the worries of their lives to comprehend their purpose or that there’s a day that Jesus comes back as Lecrae realized in Verse 1, lines 15 and 16.

Line 6: To blame a “man of the cloth” for how he spends his time when we show contempt to God for doing the same is hypocritical judging that Jesus taught to avoid (Matthew 7:1-5).

Lines 7 and 8: Rhetorical questions with an obvious answer: no. works don’t save us (Acts 13:39, Romans 3:20-21, Romans 4:13, Romans 9:32, Galatians 2:16, Galatians 3:10-13, and Galatians 5:4) and yes, God is angry with the wicked every day (Psalm 7:11).

Lines 9-13: This contrasts with the previous lines, that time is a gift that God gives us as opportunities to repent (2 Peter 3:9) and redeem the time that is lost (Ephesians 5:15-16).

Line 14: That is, idling is not running the race (1 Corinthians 9:24-27 and Hebrews 12:1-3).  Idle hands are the Devil’s workshop (Proverbs 16:27).

Lines 15-17: After death comes the judgment (Hebrews 9:27).  We will be judged on the way we spent our time in this life, including idle words we spoke (Matthew 12:36).

Line 18: A Rolex is another expensive timepiece.  Lecrae forsakes his sinful lifestyle, serving God (Romans 6:1-11, Romans 7:4-6, Galatians 2:19-20, 2 Timothy 2:11, and 1 Peter 2:24).

Lines 19-21: Lecrae struggles with investing his time in Godly pursuits with worldly living.  As a successful artist, he is tempted by the allurement of success, idolization, and finances.  These aforementioned desires, if pursued, cannot be taken when Lecrae dies.

Lines 22: Introduces the final iteration of Hook.

Score: 10/10

3. How would an outsider interpret the song?

Lecrae’s lyrics are thick with everyday language, easing interpretation for those who do not yet follow Jesus.  He gives just enough hints such as the Man in the sky, eternity, sin, and judgment that leads to a religious view, if not uniquely Christian.  While they will probably not see sin as lawbreaking, it’s not required to interpret the point that Lecrae makes about hypocrisy.

Score: 7/10

4. What does this song glorify?

It brings glory to God, compelling us to spend more with God and less on other pursuits.

Score: 10/10

Closing Comments

Lecrae’s Timepiece is a convicting song.  It causes us to think intentionally about how we spend our time.  We cannot get it back and we cannot buy it or wish for more.  We can only spend time.  We will all face an Eternal God who will come again to judge us on how we spent our time.  Every breath we take is an opportunity for unbelievers to repent and get right with God, bringing Him glory.  Though unbelievers may interpret this outside Christianity.

This song is inspirational, but not appropriate for corporate worship.

Final Score: 9.5/10

Artist Info

Track: Timepiece (listen to the song)

Artist: Lecrae

Album: Anomaly

Genre: Hip Hop/Rap

Release Year: 2014

Duration: 3:53

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