I have been considering, for some time, the purpose and use of social media and their impact on our lives. On one level I am convinced that they fill an addictive need in our lives for immediate feedback and personal gratification. This seems to be a good explanation for why we have so many different connections to the internet and social media. We can’t seem to go anywhere without thinking about and then looking at a device to see what the latest tweeters say, what our friends are doing on Facebook when they are supposed to be with their friends or family (they are there but are they?) or what our newest email says. This all seems to feed and deepen our need for some virtual connection to a world that gives us a stimulus that we seem to be unable to get anywhere else.
So, does that make them bad? Should we stop using social media? Some would say yes on both counts. I say, not so fast. Properly used, I see great benefits in social media, especially for the Church and believers (my main audience here). One cannot deny that these mediums of communication provide the Church a means to communicate more often and quicker with a society that is so on the move that pinning them down to tell them anything is about as hard to do as catching a greased pig.Through these mediums we have the means to pour grace filled thoughts and gospel saturated nuggets into peoples lives, like never before. We also have the means to communicate about needs and events happening in the Church and community quicker, cheaper and more often than before (consider a the expense and time involved in a mailing campaign verses that of the same campaign via social media).
I can’t help but think about the encouragement a pastor can provide through social media by speaking into the lives of people he may be very hard pressed to make contact with throughout the week. An encouraging word and spiritual reflection from the pastor can have an enormous impact on the life of a believer. No, it is not a sermon, it is not even on par with a Sunday School lesson, but it is or can be the gospel poured out into people’s lives where they are now, and we all know the inherent power of the gospel.
There is also an inherent benefit to the congregation in that they learn more about each other as they communicate and share about their lives. Church members find themselves having a connection on Sunday with people they might not normally talk to for lack thereof. They find themselves wanting to get together to talk in person, to pray for each other and speak encouraging words of grace into each other’s lives.
I have an attitude about social media that is driven by the fact that it is there, the people are there, so I should be there shinning the light of the gospel. Are there inherent dangers and even the potential for spiritual sicknesses to develop by misuse of social media? Why, yes. Just as there are the same inherent dangers in the misapplication of spiritual teachings, which lead to legalism or the abuse of grace. I have in mind a blog or two about proper use of social mediums and good communication skills, but I will stop here with this thought…if you are engaged in the use of social medium and you are a believer in Christ, try to view them as an avenue through which you can pour the gospel into the lives of others and try to keep from making them your source of connection, belonging and relational fulfillment. Let them be a tool, which pushes you into the real lives of others with the hope of the gospel.
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Lately a vision of the Christian life has been growing clearer in my mind, and as it grows, I find more application for it. The picture originates in John Bunyan’s classic, Pilgrim’s Progress and relates to our focus as Christians.
Every day Christians encounter other people. We interact with them, share conversations with them, join them in play, work, eating and a multitude of other activities. We invest our lives in people all the time. Sometimes we invest large amounts of time in the lives of others. Sometimes we invest a small amount of time.
I often wonder how much of myself to give to other people. As I evaluate that question, I often feel guilty about not giving enough as opposed to feeling like I have ever given too much. The question is, how do we determine who to invest in and how much of ourselves to give and who to avoid altogether?
This is where Christian from Pilgrim’s Progress comes on the scene. When Christian was walking as he should and thus staying out of trouble, it was when he had a singular focus, namely the Celestial City. He chose his paths based on where they led as opposed to what they looked like. When he chose well, he chose the one that led to the Celestial City.
Along the way he encountered various people. Some were fellow pilgrims and others were not. Some served the Prince of the Celestial City; some served the wicked prince. As he encountered these people, he sought to discern of which character they were. If they were pilgrims, he would join them in their journey, and they would spend hours together comforting, strengthening and exhorting one another on their common goal of reaching the Celestial City.
On the other hand, when they were not pilgrims he sought first to set them on the right path and thus make them pilgrims. Failing that, he sought to be rid of them. This may seem harsh, but it is probably the wisest course for any believer. Christian sensed that if they would not follow the Prince of the King, then they posed a threat to him. He reasoned that they might just as well refocus his attention away from the Celestial City as he would focus theirs on it. That danger was too great to risk, and so, he separated from them. Now, to be sure, his efforts to convert them were concerted, and he reencountered some and made the attempts anew, but when walking rightly, he always chose to view every encounter with another person through a gaze focused on obtaining heaven.
My vision of the Christian life is this: We must have a singular focus, a heavenward focus, and in every encounter with another person, we must have as our goal to maintain that focus and turn their focus there also. Barring that, if the encounter threatens to distract us and put us in danger, we must reject it, we must flee and only return to it if God puts it in our way again having prepared us better to walk through it without being harmed.
This is an analogy and all sorts of exceptions may apply, but I believe that such a vision of the Christian life captures well how Christ taught us to live and minister. I pray that God would help us to have the wisdom to always walk with heaven in our gaze.
Most of us are familiar with the imperative of Christ concerning our duty to make disciples:
[18] And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. [19] Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [20] teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20 ESV)
Sometimes this commission to the Church is received joyfully and acted upon with passion and conviction, but I think too often it is given lip service and nothing more. We think it is a good thing to do and hope that “the Church” will do it, but as those under the authority of Christ with the promise of his continual presence, we still ignore the individual responsibility.
Now, I am one who believes in the final perseverance of the saints. In other words, I believe that one who is truly redeemed by Christ’s blood will persevere in obedience to God into eternity. Nevertheless, I am convinced that, while the promise to the disciple is that if you obey and make disciples, then Christ will be with you, the converse is true too, namely that if you disobey and do not make disciples, then Christ will not be with you. The simple fact is that if we disobey this commandment, to make disciples, then we are giving evidence that perhaps we have not been redeemed, we are not children of God and co-heirs with Christ.
To encourage you and me to take this command seriously I direct our attention to 2 Kings 7:9. Here we see how four lepers discover their responsibility to share the good news of God’s deliverance. Samaria was besieged, the people were starving and these four lepers, in an act of desperation, at night, determined to go into the camp of the enemy. God confused the enemy, who mistook the approach of the four lepers as the approach of the armies of Egypt and the Hittites, and they fled leaving behind everything. Their tents were full of food and gold. At first, the lepers received their deliverance selfishly. They took gold and food and hid it for themselves. But then they realized that what they were doing was wrong. They said to one another, “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news. If we are silent and wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come; let us go and tell the king’s household.” (2 Kings 7:9 ESV)
By receiving the good news of salvation by grace, through faith in Christ and keeping that good news to ourselves, we are not doing right. The day of good news, the day of Christ’s kingdom coming, should not be hidden; we must not be silent concerning the gospel. I fear that many will remain silent and find Christ unreceptive when they approach him at the judgment. He will say to many, “You called me lord, but you did not share your good news with others, depart from me, for I never knew you.”
I pray that isn’t the case for you or me. Let us share this good news with the world!
Image used with permission from dan and FreeDigitalPhotos.net
