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Kanye West sounded a lot like a preacher testifying about Jesus during his most recent Sunday service held in an Atlanta, Ga., megachurch.
Regular attendees at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, where Dr. Jamal Harrison Bryant pastors, were treated Sunday morning to a 10-minute sermon by the hip-hop artist, FOX 5 reported. Among the hundreds of worshippers were rappers T.I., Chris Tucker and 2 Chainz.
"Jesus, let's be specific," West shared, starting off singing and then speaking. "Because the road to hell is paved with, 'Oh, I'm just a good person.'"
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The audience cheered as the "Jesus Walks" rapper sang "use me, Lord," along with a 600-person choir, and dropped a line about following Jesus with everything.
"You sent your son to die for us and all you ask is for radical obedience to you," West said, referring to God the Father. "You're not asking us to do the least. You know how people are like, 'At least I...,' how are we gonna do the least when he did the most?"
The 42-year-old West, who has publicly struggled with mental health, then testified.
"I've seen him work miracles in my life," West said. "You know the devil presents so many flashy, shiny objects. I've seen everything that the devil could've showed you via TV, videos, car dealerships, jewelry, houses, and I'll tell you..." He added, singing: "Nothin' beats God...and a sound mind."
Back into preacher mode, he declared: "Let's not be concerned with the opinions of men at all. Only the opinion of God. I know we say this is the culture or that is the culture. To be radically in service to Christ is the only culture that I want to know about."
West thanked God for the opportunity to be in Atlanta, where he was born and his parents met.
"Thank you for saving me, for replenishing me, for delivering me," West prayed in part. "When I found out about you...I got closer to my children. I got closer to my family, 'cause the devil had me chasing a gold statue, had me chasing cars, had me chasing numbers...the power of God cannot be calculated by a number, a first week sale, by a bank account, by how many cars you drive, by how big your house is, how many acres you got.
"It's God inside of us. It's God inside of family. It's God inside of friendship that we hold each other accountable. If you see somebody slipping, you tell them. They be coming at me like why are you so judgmental. It ain't for me to judge, but I'm gonna tell them what I see."
West said when the devil accuses him of speaking up too much he says he's "just pointing to the Word."
Speaking about a family member, he said: "But every excuse he got. I know the real reason. You still in them DMs, bro. That's the real reason why you won't get the ring and get right with God."
"The fathers," West charged those in attendance. "If it's a household next to yours that's lacking a father, you [be] that father now. You speak up on that block. You set that example."
His wife, Kim Kardashian West, told the ladies on ABC's daytime show "The View" about why he started Sunday Service in the first place.
"Kanye started this, I think, just to heal himself. I was a really personal thing, and it was just friends and family, and he has had an amazing evolution of being born-again and being saved by Christ."
She continued: "People are always asking, 'Well, what are you worshipping?' and 'What is this?' It is a Christian service, like a musical ministry, they talk about Jesus and God," she explained, adding there are sometimes pastors that are his friends and it is not officially a 501c3 "official" church "yet."
New Birth's Instagram stories show West performing "Father Stretch My Hands," and a gospel set to the tune of Ginuwine's "So Anxious" among the setlist Sunday morning.
West has made various appearances on Sundays since January, including a stop in Dayton, Ohio at a benefit event supporting the community affected by the mass shooting.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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