Jesus vs. Cancel Culture

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Scripture: Matthew 5:43-45 (ESV)

43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

Devotion:

            The topic I am writing about today is pregnant with danger. Nevertheless, my spirit burns within me, and I cannot hold back what I am about to say. I ask you therefore to put aside your prejudices and previous partisan commitments and pay attention to what I say and if you judge it to be worthy of Christ keep it with you and if not discard it like so much rubbish. As I begin, I pray that I may turn neither to the right nor to the left but turn to scripture and to scriptures Author.

            Jesus’ teaching selected for today comes from his famous sermon on the mount. He is contrasting his teaching with the teaching of the Hebrew scriptures. Even though the Hebrew scriptures do not explicitly teach hatred for one’s enemy it is certainly implied in many places. For example:  Deuteronomy 23:3–6, Psalms 139:21-22, among others.

            Jesus is now giving his plan to meet with those who would seek and (almost) succeed in cancelling him and his ministry. When Jesus was teaching during his ministry, he made enemies to be sure. The religious leaders of his day certainly were not Jesus’ greatest fans. In fact, they would eventually seek the ultimate cancellation of Jesus. His death on a cross as a common criminal.

            How did Jesus respond to these people who opposed what he was doing and preaching? He warned them. Sometimes with harsh words. However, he never showed anything but love toward them. Even when hanging on the cross he says in Luke 23:34 “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” His resurrection on that first Easter Sunday provided the ultimate refutation for those who desired his cancellation.

            How can we apply what scripture teaches here to our own lives? There are a few points we can make on the way in which we are to live our own lives. First, never try to cancel anyone. Cancelling someone goes against the very creation story of humans. We are all created in the image of God and have a certain dignity and worth because of that fact. As Jesus says here in today’s scripture “he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” Next, we must speak the truth in love toward those who would try to cancel us. We must confront our enemies not to destroy them but to try to change their hearts. Finally, we must remember that our cancellation by humans is never permanent as there is always a resurrection for us at the end of the day.

Prayer:

            Lord Jesus, hear us as we pray this day. Help us to understand how we are to love those who do not love us in return. Let us be diligent to pray for those who would seek to harm us, whether materially, emotionally, or spiritually. Help us to be patient in waiting for our resurrection. Keep us in your care as we seek to be salt and light both to the just and the unjust today. Amen           

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