The Incompleteness of “He Gets Us”

By Adam Faughn       For some time now, and most famously during the Super Bowl, an ad campaign has captured the attention of a lot of people. The ads feature people in various negative and hate-filled situations, but having their feet washed. The overarching message is that Jesus did not teach hate and then we see the famous tagline “He Gets Us.”     To be fair, I have a certain level of appreciation for ads like these. They may not tell the entire story, but they do at least have some semblance of a message that points people to some aspect of the Christian faith. And, of course, there is no way that a few-seconds-long commercial can tell the entire story.     That said, there is something these ads is missing that leave them teaching an incomplete Gospel and it is the same issue that far too many Christians already have. Is it true that Jesus taught His people to care for the poor and those who are enemies? Yes. 100% yes. Is it true that Jesus told us to seek to help with the outcast and those who are harmed by society? Absolutely yes. While no Christian and no congregation can do everything, it should be clear that we are striving to help where we have opportunities.     However, if we stop there, we are not doing all that Jesus told us to do! The same Jesus Who makes it clear that we will be judged by how we treat the poor, naked, imprisoned, and hungry in Matthew 25 also told us to preach the Gospel–including baptism–to the whole world in Matthew 28. In other words, “He gets us” in order to take us somewhere, and it is not just somewhere up a societal or economic ladder!     Too many Christians, I believe out of a good place in their heart, want the church to become what basically amounts to nothing more than a homeless shelter or food pantry. They love to remind us of the old saying that “people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”     The issue is that, far too often, they don’t even get around to saying what they know!     Jesus cared for people, and we love Him for that. We are amazed at the hungry that He fed and the harmed whom He healed. Jesus did not just give people bread; He gave them the Bread of Life. Jesus did not just heal people; He turned around and taught them (or those around Him).     That is how “He gets us.” He takes us where we are, not to affirm us in our difficulties only, but to take us to a place of greater spiritual understanding and a walk of faith. And that is the message we must share with the world. We are here to help, but it is more than merely a better economic status or more peaceful place in society. It is helping them find more than just “washed feet.” It is helping them find an old rugged cross and an empty tomb, where their only real hope lies.

- Adam Faughn preaches for the Central Church of Christ in Paducah KY. He may be contacted through the congregation's website: http://www.centralchurchofchrist.org Visit the Faughn Family blog, A Legacy of Faith