Nothing like a little Johnny Cash at the Super Bowl, eh?
By now, most of us are familiar with the “He Gets Us” campaign that initially sparked some controversy in 2023 when it aired during the NFL playoffs as well as Super Bowl LVII. The campaign debuted in early 2022, and immediately caught a bit of flak for how they presented Jesus. They also caught some heat for spending a whopping $100 million on an advertising campaign, which they said was 100% funded by donors.
Now managed by a non-profit startup called Come Near, the goal of He Gets Us, according to their website, is:
“Our agenda at He Gets Us is to move beyond the mess of our current cultural moment to a place where all of us are invited to rediscover the love story of Jesus – Christians, non-Christians, and everybody in between. All of us.”
Ok, so what’s the problem?
Well, those on the left have criticized some of the donors for being anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ, however the ads themselves have been criticized by those on the right for being too woke and non-Biblical.
Honestly, I don’t care enough to dig into the company and analyze their true motivations or ideals. The website is rather vague and that’s intentional… they’re trying to appeal to everybody with what many consider a watered down version of Christianity. The campaign solely focuses on the aspects of Jesus that culture wants to believe in, and find easy to accept, while intentionally leaving out what culture doesn’t want to believe about Jesus. The scary stuff, the sin stuff. And sure, maybe that can open the door to someone, but overall, I think the message missed the mark. WE get Jesus should be the selling point, not that he “gets” us.
And despite positioning themselves as non-political, the conversation surrounding them has been nothing but.
Their latest Super Bowl ad, focused on how Jesus redefined greatness (perhaps directed towards the notion of “Making America Great Again”), is described on their website as follows:
“Jesus redefined greatness. How does his version stack up with ours? Is being great, as our society defines it, really that great? Or, is greatness quite the opposite of what we think it is? Jesus defined true greatness in a very different way. He showed that the greatest thing we could be is in humble service to others.”
The ad featured various scenes of people serving each other, with Johnny Cash’s rendition of Depeche Mode’s “Personal Jesus” playing in the background. One of their most iconic songs, it was released in 1989 as the lead single from their album Violator. A departure from their usual synth-heavy sound, it featured a rocking blues riff and was later covered by Cash in 2002 and Marilyn Manson in 2004.
Here’s the ad:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6ObkYnfVL8
And naturally, the spot is already the source of a ton of commentary, both positive and negative, from every which way… many being very valid criticisms:
The point of the Gospel is not that Jesus “gets us”, but that He changes us.
— Shane Pruitt (@shane_pruitt78) February 10, 2025
I don’t think #HeGetsUs gets Jesus.
— William Metz🦬🏵️ (@MetzUAC1530) February 10, 2025
Jesus doesn't "get us" He "saves us"
Understanding the difference is a matter of eternal life and death.
— Benjamin Schettler (@BenSchettler) February 10, 2025
Woke commercials glaringly absent until professing christians swoop in with meaningless He Gets Us nonsense that hinders the advancement of the true gospel.
— Ginna Cross (@GinnaCross) February 10, 2025
The "He Gets Us" commercials are blasphemous garbage.
Absolute trash.
— Evan Kilgore 🇺🇸 (@EvanAKilgore) February 10, 2025
I am for any campaign that brings people to the gospel, but, again, He Gets Us misses the mark. There is nothing at all in their ads about who Christ is or why we need Him. It’s not even remotely implied. If anything, an unbeliever walks away feeling affirmed that Jesus is, at…
— Allie Beth Stuckey (@conservmillen) February 10, 2025
The “He Gets Us” ads are biblically illiterate hot garbage.
— CFlow1992 (@CFlow1992) February 10, 2025
He Gets Us really doesn't get the Gospel. Christ is the focus. He is the Savior of undeserving sinners. It's always interesting to see a "Christian" message that intentionally emphasizes the sinner through emotional appeal and not Christ the Savior through biblical truth.
— John Mason (@LivingGodsTruth) February 10, 2025
The point of the Gospel is not that Jesus “gets us”, but that He changes us.
— Shane Pruitt (@shane_pruitt78) February 10, 2025
Of course, others like the fluffy message:
Racists watching that “He Gets Us All of Us” commercial pic.twitter.com/jFl6Y1JmKV
— No Relation, Esq. (@TheCosby) February 10, 2025
I thought the best commercial so far was the one that stated Jesus, he gets us. I liked the music and the message.
— wmcawatts (@dgcwatts) February 10, 2025
Agree that there’s more to the Gospel. Could a message like this be a starting point for opening ears to hear more, including about our need for salvation and repentance? Not sure if the “He Gets Us” organization is teaching about that or not…
— Chaddy (@ChadderdonB) February 10, 2025
The “He Gets Us” commercial with Johnny Cash singing Personal Jesus was powerful.
— Elizabeth (@MishikaMom) February 10, 2025
A viral response dubbed “He Saves Us” was made in response to last year’s Super Bowl ad:
The Christian Super Bowl Ad They SHOULD Have Made
A group known as 'He Gets Us' released an advert during the Super Bowl which, whilst perhaps well intentioned, failed to convey anything of the gospel to the hundreds of millions who saw it.
Here's my take on what they should… pic.twitter.com/isJgzfzaI6
— Jamie Bambrick (@j_bambrick) February 13, 2024
