Sharing Jesus in a Lil Nas X World

Uh-oh, Lil Nas X is at it again. Late last week, he released his new single,“J Christ.” The song (and accompanying music video) features a modern depiction of Noah’s flood and a scene where Lil Nas X is nailed to a cross.

Notable lyrics include, “Back, back, back up out the gravesite,
B**ch, I'm back like J Christ, I'm finna get the gays hyped, I'm finna take it yay high.”

This homo-erotic and frankly bizarre re-interpretation of biblical imagery is, at best, distasteful and, at worst, outright blasphemy.

But if you are aware of his past antics, this isn’t shocking.

In 2019, Lil Nas X released a video for his single, “MONTERO,” which used CGI to depict him descending into hell and giving satan a lapdance. As of January 2024, this video has amassed over 560 million views.

As I type out these words, a throng of Christian bloggers, YouTubers, and internet influencers are clambering to share their instant reaction - and I guess, to some degree, I’m doing it too.

Amidst the predictable display of outrage, (and don’t think Lil Nas X didn’t count on it!), a more fundamental question kept swirling around in my head.

Do followers of Jesus need to be like TMZ - always aware and always reacting to the latest stunts and antics in the world today?

Maybe you chuckle and think, “I don’t care about the ‘art’ produced by some pop star.” Sure, but do you care about mainstream news or politics?

Let’s face it, we are all drawn to different facets of culture and society. And I think it’s worth asking, “Where’s the line between informed and distracted?”

As Jesus followers, our primary role is to make disciples of all nations, so how do we do that best?

On the one hand, I want to be like the Apostle Paul: “For I decided that while I was with you, I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified.” (1 Corinthians 2:2)

But on the other hand, I don’t want to become so detached and isolated from culture and what’s happening around me, that I become irrelevant.

Who wants to be the person who answers questions no one is asking, or speaks in a language no one understands?

The only thing worse than preaching to the choir is preaching to no one.

Paul clearly knew more than just “Christ and him crucified.” He was a student of culture and was well aware of his day’s theology, philosophy, and politics.

He didn’t have Twitter (X?), but his interaction with the Athenians demonstrated his commitment to understanding the people he was sent to reach. He studied their love of religion and debate, and leveraged this knowledge to communicate the Gospel effectively.

Inspired by his example, C.S. Lewis, Martin Lloyd Jones, Francis Schaeffer, and Tim Keller (among many others) demonstrated a brilliant balance of devotion to the Gospel with a profound understanding of current events and the modern mindset.

So if total cultural ignorance is not the answer, but neither is blindly chasing down every trending moment, then what is it?

The answer is finding the balance between the two. That’s easier said than done, but let me give you three quick thoughts for how to effectively navigate this tension:

1. Have the right motivation.

Whether we avoid all non-gospel noise or are up on all the latest news, the foundation for our strategy to reach people has to be the same.

Love.

Paul warns, “If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” (1 Corinthians 13:1).

Everything we do needs to be fueled by God’s power and motivated by His love. You can ruthlessly focus on preaching nothing but the Gospel, but if you don’t care about people, it will be cold and ineffective.

Likewise, you can speak eloquently about every issue, trend, and storyline–and even masterfully weave the Gospel into those topics - but again, without a broken heart, it will accomplish nothing.

2. Seek understanding.

This may be a tough, ego-killing pill to swallow, but the world is not waiting for my opinion on everything. Certainly, it does not need more knee-jerk, thoughtless commentary.

Proverbs 18:2 perfectly captures the majority of commentary today: “Fools have no interest in understanding; they only want to air their own opinions.”

We need thoughtful, Biblical wisdom to help navigate the increasingly dark times we live. But this requires understanding, and understanding requires patience: patience to learn, reflect, and measure our response.

3. Preach Christ and Him crucified.

Finally, and yes - most importantly, we need to preach Christ and Him crucified.

The only hope for this world is Jesus. It doesn’t matter the issue, conflict, or challenge; the core problem is sin.

Lasting change comes only from preaching the Gospel.

If you want to end poverty, preach the Gospel. Laws and programs cannot rid the human heart of greed, laziness, and selfishness, which are the greatest causes of socioeconomic disparity. Only Jesus can cure the underlying sin in the world.

Do you want to end the sex trade? Preach the Gospel. Only the power of God will cure the insatiable lust of our culture, which creates the demand that allows the sex trade to exist; only the power of God will awaken the apathy of those who should be fighting to end it.

I am not trying to oversimplify the evil and suffering in our world today. Injustice and abuse are rampant, and we need to do something about them. But too often, we focus on the symptoms and ignore the root causes.

There is no hope apart from Jesus.
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Lil Nas X’s use of religious imagery is offensive, but what do we expect? The world is in active rebellion against God, and sin produces evil of all kinds in me, much less a world that doesn’t love Him.

Our job is to share Jesus with that world.

Doing this will require a broken heart for the lost, an utter reliance on the Holy Spirit, an intimate understanding of the people we are trying to reach, and an unashamed declaration of the Cross.

None of it’s expendable, so let’s embrace it all, and get to work.
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