Scroll through your Twitter or Facebook feed. What do you see? Opinions, rants, soapboxes, humor, advice, etc… Social media is an ever-growing network of people voicing their every thought. Take a look! Facebook asks a simple but dangerous question right at the top… it says “What’s on your mind?” That simple question lays in wait for an unsuspecting “scroller” to post before it ensnares them like a booby trap in a battleground.
Far too often we see people we know entangled in pointless online “battles” over the most meaningless things. I just don’t understand it… how is arguing with someone online that is 500 miles away beneficial ever? But… many of us fall into this snare consistently.
Christians… beware of what you say online.
Be an example. Show some restraint. Know what you believe and stand by it, and if necessary the time will come when you can voice your opinion or belief in a way that is beneficial to you and those around you.
Matthew 15:18 says,
But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person.
That being said… don’t be defiled! The same Jesus who lives in your heart can change the way you speak and the way you respond to and correspond with people.
Social media isn’t an entirely bad thing though! Many churches (the one I serve at included) use social media to their advantage. How can we turn such a negative breeding ground into a ministry that shines bright on Jesus and glorifies the Father?
- Guard your tongue!
Matthew 7:16-20 says,
You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.
Luke 6:43-44 says,
For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush.
As believers we are to be recognized for our fruit, and believe it or not that doesn’t exclude our online alter-ego. We should work hard to guard our tongues in the same way online as we do in reality.
James 3:6 says,
And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell.”
Psalm 34:13 says,
Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit.
The way I look at it is if I couldn’t imagine myself saying it in person, face-to-face, in a loving non-confrontational way then I shouldn’t voice it at all until a God-honoring way to do so is revealed to me.
That doesn’t mean we can’t stand for things and be actively involved in our world…because I absolutely believe that is necessary. As Christians we should actively support causes we believe in, but those causes should be moral and Biblical issues, not personal agendas or meaningless quarrel laden discussions. In the end, we should be seen in light of Jesus. After all, it is Jesus that we are compared to by the world!
Don’t be known as a keyboard warrior, a political loudmouth, or a misinformed ignoramus. Be known first and foremost as a disciple of Christ.
- Be an encourager!
Ephesians 4:29 says,
Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.
It is rare for me to log onto a social media outlet and logout feeling encouraged. I would say that is true for most of us. The world can be depressing. As we watch the world slip through the cracks to Hell we all need encouragement and a reminder that our Savior lives!
How about instead of spamming your friends and online acquaintances with yet another “shared” page or news article we post something about Jesus. It’s a revolutionary thought! If we are to be all about Jesus then how come it is rare for our online accounts to reflect that?
Let’s challenge ourselves to leave a positive mark online before we log-off each and every time.
- Learn and provide great online resources to your friends.
The internet is a vast and interesting place, which makes it hard for me to believe that the only thing believers nowadays can find to post about or share are typically fake or entirely incorrect internet articles meant solely for stirring up conflict.
Just as a side note… if you see a story about aliens landing, Tupac or Elvis being alive, a fan-favorite celebrity dying, or an asteroid heading towards earth please check your sources before posting! If no major news sites are covering the story then it isn’t true!
I just really don’t understand how we as a generation can have so much information directly at our fingertips and can still be so ignorant and find time online to argue or post about pointless things! Use your time and resources wisely… and share useful things with other believers and the world. Make a case for Christ!
I challenge each of you to use your time on the internet wisely. Limit your social media and increase your studying of God’s Word and the many theological resources available online from many or the world’s greatest known and wisest theologians.
The internet can be a wonderful thing and another resource to be used in developing a greater understanding of God! Use it to its full capabilities to make disciples and not to stir up conflict.
Beware of online traps. Watch what you say online.
I’ll leave you with the words of Jesus in Matthew 12:33-37,
Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, son the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.
Tanner Royalty 