How could someone choose a person with the name Bad Bunny to be the performer at the halftime show? How could Jesus eat meals with sinners? In an age of deepened political divide in the US, the symptoms of disunity are ever apparent in the empty talk of the Super Bowl Halftime Show.
1 Timothy 1:
5The goal of our instruction is the love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and a sincere faith. 6Some have strayed from these ways and turned aside to empty talk. 7They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not understand what they are saying or that which they so confidently assert.
Some assert that Bad Bunny is not American because he sings in Spanish and therefore should never have been chosen to perform at the quintessential game of America. The sentiment is a reflection of the paltry support the federal government gave the United States territory of Puerto Rico when Hurricane Maria hit, incidentally during President Trump’s previous tenancy. When the disciples gathered on the day of Pentecost, they spoke Aramaic when in attendance were people who spoke languages from “every nation under heaven” (Acts 2:5). Who are we to criticize what language is used to sing? Can we understand all the lyrics of songs sung in stadiums at any time?
His lyrics were worldly, but who are Christians to judge when, at Turning Point’s alternative halftime show, Gabby Barrett sang about infidelity and Lee Brice about drinking as form of stress relief. Doesn’t seem very Christian to me. So, Bad Bunny sang a song that was not unlike King Solomon having many wives and concubines. Who are we to judge? By the way, Mr. Brice, the Kingdom has already come (Acts 2). The Kingdom is among us. And in the Kingdom, there are sheep and there are goats, and those who believe in Jesus will be separated like it’s written in Matthew 25. Not everyone who believes in Jesus will stay in the Kingdom (Matthew 7:21). Even demons believe.
When you read Matthew 28:19 in Greek, it does not say to “make disciples.” It says to “disciple the nations.”
“…μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη…” (mathēteusate panta ta ethnē)
How are we going to teach the nations if we do not learn to speak their languages? How are we going to bring unity among people unless we love with purity and sincerity?