Jesus—Not Like Us
BY Lydia huang
In the wake of the Super Bowl LIX halftime show, I, your resident social media-less hermit, discovered that the catchy rap lyrics I was bumping to were born out of a feud. Rather than working on my homework, I went on Wikipedia to worry about this pressing dilemma. This wasn’t just a feud, I discovered. This was a saga. Kendrick and Drake had been going at it for years!
So much anger! With no sign of stopping!
This made me reflect on the music that I often listen to without much thought. I realized that much of what we accept as mainstream music revolved around really dark themes—revenge, anger, pride (literally the title of a Kendrick album!), and similar topics.
First, a disclaimer: I am not at all writing this from a place of artistic snobbery or a religious high horse. Like, really.
Kanye was my number two most played artist on Spotify last year. I have screenshots to prove. And honestly, I’m still not entirely sure how I feel about that (but the first 30 seconds of Runaway are just so catchy).
What I am saying though, is that whether you like to admit it or not, the rap and pop milieu often contradicts what we know to be good, beautiful, and true. It deems it okay to create out of slander or hatred, and encourages living and dwelling in these emotions.
What more, these lyrics directly oppose what I believe to be the truth—the reality of God, the person of Christ, and the life we are called to live in response to these truths.
God is a merciful God. [1] Without that foundational reality, forgiveness would seem like a radical, nonsensical idea. Why forgive when you could write an entire song about revenge—about getting him back and making him feel jealous? [2] After all, it’s not like that person deserves forgiveness. But for those who have encountered even a glimpse of God’s goodness and grace, forgiveness is a command. He forgave us when we were undeserving, so how could we withhold forgiveness from others?
Jesus not only taught it, He lived it. In Matthew 18:22, He instructs us to forgive not seven but seventy times seven times. [3] While hanging on the cross, He turned to heaven and said “Lord, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing. [4] He taught us to pray (“forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us”) but He also bore the full weight of betrayal of those He loved the most. [5] Christ didn’t just preach love—He is love. Christ taught us to love radically. [6]He bore the full weight of evil and died for the sins of the world. He forgave in the truest sense: for us, He gave. John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever may believe in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” [7] Salvation comes when we accept this as truth and surrender our lives to Him. True forgiveness, I humbly suggest, is most possible when you (w)rap your head around the fact that God loved us first.
His forgiveness changes us, and it definitely has encouraged me to listen to music that reflects His likeness. I’ve stopped listening to rap because I realized that it neither aligns with my convictions nor benefits me. And, holding on for dear life on the treadmill sans angry music blasting in my ear isn’t so bad! I challenge you in some regard to do the same with certain areas in your life, be it your music or media consumption or something else, that may not be serving your heart and spirit well.
A song that has really moved my heart, almost the opposite of the diss track Not Like Us, is Matthew West’s “Forgiveness.” Every time I hear it, my throat clenches up a little.
It goes,
“It’s the hardest thing to give away
It’s the last thing on your mind today
And it always goes to those who don’t deserve
It's the opposite of how you feel
When they pain they caused is just too real
Takes everything you have to say the word
Forgiveness, forgiveness” [8]
Forgiveness is more than about staying humble. [9] Where forgiveness is, there is the Lord.
Move over, Kanye.
I have no need for Yeezus when I have Christ. [10]
SOURCES
[1] Psalm 32:1 (NIV)
[2] Rodrigo, Olivia. "bad idea right?" GUTS. Geffen Records, 2023.
[3] Matthew 18:22 (NIV)
[4] Luke 23:34 (NIV)
[5] Matthew 6:12-14 (NIV)
[6] John 1:17 (NIV)
[7] John 3:16 (NIV)
[8] West, Matthew. "Forgiveness," Into the Light, Sparrow Records, 2012.
[9] Lamar, Kendrick. “HUMBLE,” Interscope Records, 2017.
[10] West, Kanye. Yeezus. Def Jam Recordings, 2013.