As part of our ongoing series through the book of 2nd Kings, Pastor Scott recent taught a message that highlighted the moral depravity of Israel as detailed in Chapter 13:
He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin; he did not depart from them. … 6 Nevertheless, they did not depart from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, which he made Israel to sin, but walked in them; and the Asherah also remained in Samaria. … 11 He also did what was evil in the sight of the LORD. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin, but he walked in them – 2nd Kings 13:2,6&11 (ESV)
This has been an ongoing theme throughout 2nd Kings. And it serves as a warning to us, to be aware of moral depravity going on in the culture around us and not to let it numb us. One such example would be the current Woke Agenda, which is basically a form of social control that tells us to agree and not question popular social agendas. It encourages ignorance and hushes up anyone that disagrees using cancel culture which is basically about control and power.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer experienced an extreme form of cancel culture, to the point of being killed in order to silence his unpopular opinons. He wrote this about keeping quiet in the face of moral depravity:
Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless.
Not to speak is to speak.
Not to act is to act
May we truly be awake spiritually, aware of the moral depravity in culture around us, and willing to speak the truth in love no matter how much that upsets the work around us.