Can Christians Embrace “Cancel Culture”?
By: Julie Lane, FBB Director of Development
As a mother of two teenagers, I often find myself needing a translator for terms my kids use. I’m even forced, occasionally, to turn to the Urban Dictionary to understand what I’ve just heard. Some are new words, but others I thought I understood have had radically new meanings attached. But one term my daughter used recently sent me down a rabbit trail.
She and her friends have been saying, “Yur done,” and, no, that’s not a spelling error. It’s also pronounced differently. When you read “yur done” try to hear it with the tone/attitude of Alicia Silverstone in the 90’s movie Clueless, with her hand on her hip and her forefinger pointed straight at you; that is exactly what my daughter sounds like. Not surprisingly, the term is often associated with cancel culture. When someone does something gauche or says the wrong thing, the mob says, “Yur done,” and the person is essentially “canceled.”
Now my gut instinct is to go against the mob—I can be a bit of a radical at times. But something about that term got me thinking; are there not some things that should be canceled? Don't get me wrong, I am the least woke person out there. I am a Generation X woman who refuses to be called a feminist, and I’m raising a strong feminine (not feminist) daughter and an alfa male son. But when I look at the state of the world today I cannot help but think we’d be better off should some things disappear.
So, recognizing how deeply flawed I am, and fully aware that I should not rely on my own understanding, I did as I try to do with all dilemmas; I looked to the Bible for direction. The first scriptures that came to mind were on forgiveness.
Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times” (Matthew 18:22-23).
Thus we see that the bible directly opposes cancel culture. We are to forgive—repeatedly—even those who sin—repeatedly—against us. Moreover, Jesus also said;
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses (Matthew 6:14-15).
I have already noted that I am a deeply flawed person who needs a lot of forgiveness, so you better believe I will be forgiving a lot! Now, I could go on adding more scriptures on forgiveness (there are many more), but I think I’ve already made my point. I know cancel culture is not only wrong, but clearly not biblical. So, that's not the rabbit trail I took. Instead, I looked around at a world that has lost its way and realized the popular “follow your heart” mantra is nothing more than toxic progressive garbage. If you don’t know what the word of God has to say about following your heart, then listen to this:
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? (Jeremiah 17:9)
Full confession: following my heart has led to the darkest times of my life. I’ve had to learn the hard way that the only time you should follow your heart is when it is aligned with the heart of God. So it is no wonder that a culture pushing self-idolatry is desperately wicked. If you want to see a real pandemic, just open your eyes to the depression, addictions, and other mental health issues found in every strata of today’s society. Toxic progressive thinking has even infiltrated our churches, with Christians also talking about “follow your heart”, sending out “good vibes,” and renouncing shame.
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These ideas are all born of progressive ideology, but they can sound so much like truth they are often unquestioned. Megachurches produce some of the most popular Christian music, but their services also include glitter ceremonies and weird chanting that could be confused with the latest music video awards. The devil is crafty, he has been perfecting these tactics ever since Eve took a bite of the forbidden fruit. He knows that if he can create something just a little bit off, but close enough to the truth that no one notices, he can put Christians on a path that leaves them wandering in a forest of lies. There is a reason that God says in Jeremiah:
I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds” (Jeremiah 17:10).
But there is hope. God knows our hearts are wicked. He knows the devil is crafty and deceptive. That’s why He encourages us to renew our minds by learning from God’s Word what is “good and acceptable” (Rom. 12:2). Now, forgive me if I go down another rabbit trail (I realize I haven’t even finished my first one yet), but I would be remiss if I did not point out that depending on your own understanding is also dangerous.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones (Proverbs 3:5-8).
“Hold onto this; as Jesus’ disciples we are never left alone. If you are born again, God has given you the Holy Spirit as your guide.”
Ok, back to my first rabbit trail. The world is corrupt, it is confusing, and I don’t know about you but I can get very disheartened by what I see around me. Thankfully, God knows how tough it is to live in a culture to which we do not belong (John 15:19; Romans 12:2; John 18:36; 1 John 2:15; John 17:14; John 17:16; 1 John 2:15-17; James 4:4). How, then, do we distinguish between truth and lies? Hold onto this; as Jesus’ disciples we are never left alone. If you are born again, God has given you the Holy Spirit as your guide.
But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me (John 15:26).
When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come (John 16:13).
He also gave us His Word (2 Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 4:12; Romans 10:17). God knows what we have to deal with here on earth (Ps. 103:14); He knows that we need Godly discernment to know and follow His will (Ephesians 5:15-17). He warned us that “many false prophets will arise and lead many astray” (Matthew 24:11, but see also Matthew 7:15; Mark 13:22; Matthew 24:24; 1 John 4:1; 2 Peter 2:1). And He shows us how to avoid false teachers (Luke 6:26; Rom. 16:18; 2 Peter 2:1-3; 18-19). That is why we need to be in the Word daily (Romans 10:17), accompanied by dedicated prayer time in which we seek the Lord and His guidance (Psalm 77:2; Acts 14:23; Zephaniah 3:12; Psalm 27:4, and many many more).
It used to be that casual Christians only attended to spiritual matters on occasional Sundays; now they may not even attend church in person, let alone open their Bibles during the week. They treat God like a genie and only pray when they “need an answer.” But Jesus came to earth and died for our sins so that the veil could be torn and the Holy Spirit could live in us to direct us and guide us as we build God’s kingdom on earth.
Yet, we often don’t even take the time to talk to God. No wonder we are so easily led astray. We are fed a watered-down gospel of rainbows and butterflies. From too many pulpits we only hear of the goodness of God, and the tender mercies of a God who covers everything with grace. God is all that, but He is much more. He is righteous and holy, One Who refuses to even look upon sin (Hab. 1:13). We are to hate what God hates, and we are to change and stop sinning (Acts 26:18; Ezekiel 18:21; Ezekiel 33:9; Isaiah 59:20; Romans 6:18, and Proverbs 3:7, to name a few). Sin is no joke to God;
And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire (Matthew 18:9).
So, if there is something to which you should say, “Yur done,” shouldn’t it be anything that makes you sin? Having listened to a famous Christian preacher or popular Christian song, should you not go to the bible to see if the message is Biblically sound? If it isn’t, even if it’s close, but not quite right, should you not stop listening to it?
“So, spend your time on this earth honouring God and His will ...”
Stop allowing compromise in your life. With God’s help, cancel sin’s hold on you. Seek God above all else, even to the point of personal sacrifice. Our lives are “a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes'' (James 4:14). So, spend your time on this earth honouring God and His will, because you will stand in front of Him one day and you will answer for your actions. That is not the day you want to be canceled. You do not want to hear Jesus say, “Truly, I say to you, I do not know you” (Matthew 25:12).
Do you want to get more background on having a Christian worldview in today’s ”cancel culture”? Thanks to the generosity of donors like you, Faith Beyond Belief is offering our staff-led Worldview Course in a free webinar format beginning Wednesday, January 5, 2022.
