“Cancel Culture”

“He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” (John 8:7)

You’ve heard about it and you’ve probably witnessed it in action, or at least the repercussions of it. I’m talking about “Cancel Culture.” It’s the harsh ideology that criticizes, ostracizes, and eliminates one’s credible existence from society by way of offense. It is a type of harassment that takes place by way of social media; but it’s definitely not limited to the internet. It is through accusations, slander and character defamation that companies, celebrities or everyday individuals’ lives can be left in shambles. It is one of the most damaging and controversial concepts of our time.

Through the years, many celebrities have been cancelled for various reasons. Some would seem deserving and others not so much. Nevertheless, this modern day phenomenon seeks to control and destroy without any consideration of mercy. It’s a trendy mindset that overlooks the fragility and flaws that we all possess as humans. There is no person besides Jesus who has not failed or fumbled and consistently lived up to their highest potential. Romans 3:23 states “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

However, this type of thinking is nothing new under the sun. In John 8:1-11, there is a Bible story that reminds me of the vile and uncompassionate society we live in today. In this particular story, there was a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery and was brought to Jesus to be condemned or in modern terms, canceled. The religious leaders (Pharisees) that presented the woman before Jesus not only were trying to cancel her existence, but they were plotting to catch Jesus in an offense so that they could cancel Him as well. The religious leaders reminded Jesus of the law Moses set in place in the Old Testament that commanded anyone who had been caught in the act of adultery to be stoned.

Nevertheless, while they were making their case, Jesus was already in the posture to show the woman grace. They asked Jesus what His thoughts were concerning the matter, hoping to accuse Him of a wrong doing as well. But Jesus, being aware of their motives, kept His silence as He knelt down and began to write on the ground. After the Pharisees posed several questions to Jesus, He stood up and said to the religious leaders, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” And yet again, Jesus stooped back down and began to write on the ground.

I’m not exactly sure what Jesus was writing on the ground, but I’d like to use my imagination and say that perhaps He was writing out a list of sins that the Pharisees committed as well. I would imagine they saw what Jesus wrote on the ground; and after reading their own shortcomings in the sand, felt convicted and filed out one by one until only Jesus and the woman remained. Now after every other sinner was gone, Jesus stood to His feet and asked the woman if her accusers were still around and if anyone had condemned her? The woman let Jesus know that no one had condemned her, and Jesus assured her that He wouldn’t condemn her either, although He had the authority to do so. Jesus quietly forgave the woman of her sins and asked her to repent and turn away from her sins all together.

Thank God that Jesus is not like man. He is both compassionate and merciful towards us. He not only forgives us of our sins, but He actually died for our sins. God knew that fallen man would never be capable of living a life free of sin. So instead of canceling mankind, He sent His son Jesus to this earth to cancel our sin debt on the cross. What a loving God we serve.

So the next time you witness someone being cancelled in our culture, remember to look at them through the eyes of Jesus and have compassion towards them just as Jesus has had compassion and mercy towards you. In the kingdom of God, there is no cancel culture. There is only forgiveness and unconditional love.

Lord, thank you for the mercy, grace, and compassion you show towards me everyday. Help me to show the same mercy, grace, and compassion towards others. In Jesus’ name, amen.