Over a hundred million people, worldwide, watched the Super Bowl. Many, like me, are more interested in the commercials than the actual game. As a creative professional who loves creating stuff that’s fearless, factual and freeing, I enjoy some of the annual, overly-priced, creativity.
Well, it came time for a commercial break. INXS’ “Never Tear Us Apart” played as highly stylized photos, made to look like illustrations, showed various scenes of people washing other people’s feet. The visuals were beautiful. Each image showed contention, sorrow, brokenness, and humility over a pensive piano ballad. It seemed to cover every social issue under the sun. And I was moved.
Then, a jarring thing happened. The peace was interrupted by distorted musical hits and the words: “Jesus Never Taught Hate. He Washed Feet.” Wait. What? As the #HeGetsUs website came up, I sighed. That was an $18 million rebrand of Christianity gone woke.
I hate to see ads claiming hate. It’s lazy. “Jesus Never Taught Hate”? Yes. And No. Certainly, He called us to “love one another as I have loved you” in John 13:34. His Word, however, also clearly tells us to “hate what is evil, cling to what is good.” Notice the Bible says “what,” not “who.” Loving every human being is not the same as loving every human doing. This ad campaign seems to get these things confused. You can still love someone and passionately disagree with the........