According to his web site, Branch has been ministering Christian gospel since 1991. He states that his desire is "to be a model and a messenger of the gospel’s transforming power especially (but not exclusively) among the hip-hop generations."
Branch received a bachelor's degree in Bible from Lancaster Bible College and has a master's degree in theology from the Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS). His master’s thesis, "Theological Implications of Hip-Hop Culture", provided the inspiration for his solo album, The Thesis.
Thesis Pieces
The Ambassador Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Praise to Yahweh Nissi
Shout to the Banner—Shabach
This LP is two sided—for the man on the block
And for the flock who thinks keeping God's commandment is hot
On one side we wanna represent Christ to the Culture
Hip-Hop mostly knows Him for making tight little posters
Or a sculpture, but they can't view Him like they're supposed to
And the life in Christ has never even looked like an answer
Except for locked up crooks and Big Mas with cancer
So, Ambassador is back to give you his thesis
The greatest need in Hip-Hop is the input of Jesus
[Hook]
It's the thesis we need this
The story in short
Hip-Hop properly submitted to the glorious Lord
It's problematic 'cause
It can be scary to like
But... Jesus makes everything right
But... Jesus makes everything right
My topic—the redemption of Hip-Hop you got it
But I told you that this thesis is at least two sided
Can't just introduce Christ to the culture like an evangelist
The church needs to be schooled on hip-hop culture so plan for this
I'm a Christian admitin' were wastin' our wisdom
If we don't engage the streets, peep the nation of Islam
They promote a better culture and faith integration
But no resurrection or message of grace that can save men
So God's diggin' in the meeting place
Looking for those needing grace
To launch out from the over crowded breeding space
What will He find?
Just what He designed—Hip-Hop's got missionaries
He brought up for these times
It's the thesis we need this
The story in short
Hip-Hop properly submitted to the glorious Lord
In "Thesis Pieces," The Ambassador discusses the need for Hip-Hop to be submitted to the lord. He takes a two-sided approach to representing Christ to the culture and the church on Hip-Hop culture. While Hip-Hop mostly knows Christ for making tight posters or sculptures, they need to view Him as they are supposed to. The gospel has never been preached to them as it is supposed to, so they cannot fully understand the life in Christ. Ambassador believes that the greatest need in Hip-Hop is the input of Jesus. He acknowledges that introducing Christ to the culture is only one side of the equation, and the church needs to be schooled on Hip-Hop culture, too. The Ambassador makes an appeal for the church to engage the streets and connect with those who need grace.
The Ambassador uses the phrase "It's the thesis we need this; the story in short: Hip-Hop properly submitted to the glorious Lord" as a hook. This phrase emphasizes the importance of Hip-Hop's submission to the Lord without any explanation. Then he says, "My topic--the redemption of Hip-Hop you got it, But I told you that this thesis is at least two-sided." He clarifies that while he wants to redeem Hip-Hop, he recognizes that both the culture and the church need to learn from each other. The Muslim community promotes a better culture and faith integration, but not the resurrection or message of grace that can save men. Therefore, the church must launch out from the over-crowded breeding space to do what God designed it for.
Line by Line Meaning
Looks like it finally came around like the hands of a clock
It appears that the time for this message has come, just like the predictable movement of the clock's hands.
Praise to Yahweh Nissi
Giving thanks and honor to the Lord, acknowledging Him as the banner for victory.
Shout to the Banner—Shabach
Urging others to join in on praising God, specifically in the Hebrew term 'Shabach' which means to shout and triumph.
This LP is two sided—for the man on the block
The album has two sides - one for the people on the streets and the other for the church-going flock.
And for the flock who thinks keeping God's commandment is hot
The album is also for the church-goers who believe in following God's commandments ardently.
On one side we wanna represent Christ to the Culture
One side of the album aims to show Christ to the hip-hop culture.
Hip-Hop mostly knows Him for making tight little posters
The hip-hop community only knows Him superficially, akin to making simplistic, shallow graphical posters.
Or a sculpture, but they can't view Him like they're supposed to
The community can at best view Him as a work of art, but fails to understand Him in the way that they ought to.
'Cause the gospel's never been preached to them like its' supposed to
The message has not been communicated to them in a way that they can truly understand and connect with.
And the life in Christ has never even looked like an answer
The hip-hop community has not yet seen Christ's way of life as a solution to their problems.
Except for locked up crooks and Big Mas with cancer
The only ones who seem to have embraced Christ's life are the criminals behind bars and those who are terminally ill.
So, Ambassador is back to give you his thesis
The artist Ambassador is back to present his views on a particular topic.
The greatest need in Hip-Hop is the input of Jesus
The hip-hop community is in dire need of Jesus' teachings and guidance.
It's problematic 'cause
It is a difficult issue to tackle because
It can be scary to like
It can be frightening to be associated with.
But... Jesus makes everything right
However, Jesus can make everything right.
My topic—the redemption of Hip-Hop you got it
The artist's topic is the saving of the hip-hop culture.
But I told you that this thesis is at least two sided
The artist had previously mentioned that his opinion on the topic is from two perspectives.
Can't just introduce Christ to the culture like an evangelist
It is not enough to merely preach and convert the hip-hop culture to Christianity.
The church needs to be schooled on hip-hop culture so plan for this
The church needs to be acquainted with hip-hop culture to know how to integrate Christianity into it.
I'm a Christian admitin' were wastin' our wisdom
The artist admits that Christians are squandering their knowledge and insight.
If we don't engage the streets, peep the nation of Islam
If the Christian community doesn't reach out to the streets, they will lose them to other religious groups such the Nation of Islam.
They promote a better culture and faith integration
The Nation of Islam provides a more attractive way of living and community integration.
But no resurrection or message of grace that can save men
However, they do not offer the salvation through the grace of Jesus Christ that truly saves people.
So God's diggin' in the meeting place
God is actively seeking people to communicate with in a place of gathering.
Looking for those needing grace
God is searching for people who need His grace to save them.
To launch out from the over crowded breeding space
God wants to use these people to preach His message from overcrowded places.
What will He find?
God wants to know who can be used as messengers of His grace.
Just what He designed—Hip-Hop's got missionaries
God will find exactly what He has planned for - mission-driven individuals who will use hip-hop as a means of spreading His message.
It's the thesis we need this
This is the thesis we need to consider.
The story in short
The bottom line of the story is
Hip-Hop properly submitted to the glorious Lord
The essence of the story is hip-hop culture understanding and living according to Christ's teachings.
Contributed by Sydney T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.