Social media is the new cool now. There’s really no denying that. Young, old, male and female, Everybody and their grandma is on Facebook, twitter, instagram and etc.
Over time there is the struggle to project a certain image on social media, especially with young people, the desire to be accepted, to be liked and to be perceived as cool. Majorly because the more “accepted, recognized, and liked” you are, on social media, the more your popularity soars, and the more “likes” and “followers” you get.
Now how does this affect us as Christians? After all isn’t our purpose to please God and not people? (See 1 Thessalonians 2:4)
Apostle Paul sums it up neatly in Galatians 1: 10 here:
“Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant.”
This should be the summary of our lives in Christ, but sadly social media has awaked a dangerous temptation to do the exact opposite. I say dangerous because a lot of Christians fall into the sin of “people pleasing and approval seeking” without even realizing it.
Think about it…how many times you put up a status update, or a cute little Christian tweet because you know you’re going to get a lot of “likes”, retweets and comments?
How many times do you listen to a sermon, and take notes on your smart phone, not so you can go back and study, but because you know those notes will make “good twitter quotes”?
Now, I’m not saying there is anything wrong in tweeting Christian quotes and bible verses and putting up Christian status updates. But check it; what is your real MOTIVE?
You can tell everyone it’s because you want to encourage and bless people, and indeed, they most likely are getting blessed, but ARE YOU GETTING BLESSED? What does God really think? Remember he sees every heart and knows every motive.
Luke 21: 1-4 (NLT)
While Jesus was in the Temple, he watched the rich people dropping their gifts in the collection box. 2 Then a poor widow came by and dropped in two small coins.[a]
3 “I tell you the truth,” Jesus said, “this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them. 4 For they have given a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she has.”
This little story right here shows us exactly what happens when we do stuff like that. Jesus sees every heart. Some people who saw that widow drop that coin might say she’s stingy, she’s doesn’t appreciate God enough, she doesn’t have enough “faith” to give more, but Jesus saw her heart. He sees EVERYTHING and he knows the “why” of EVERYTHING!
Proverbs 21: 2 – 3 (MSG)
We justify our actions by appearances;
God examines our motives.
Clean living before God and justice with our neighbors
mean far more to God than religious performance.
Our “performances” don’t mean anything to God. Think about it; how many of those cute Christian quotes do you apply to your own life?
How many times do you rush to your notifications to check your retweets and followership after tweeting or posting an update?
How do you really feel when you tweet a quote that you think will definitely get you a gazillion retweets and nobody seemed to notice?
If you can answer these questions honestly, then you are on your way to making a positive change. As ministers of reconciliation, we are on social media to bless, edify, and promote Jesus and not to set ourselves up on a pedestal. So whatever we do and say, our motives should be to bring glory and honor to Christ.
Finally, Colossians 3:17 (NLT) And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.
About 4Lah
4LaH is a versatile and talented broadcaster with vast experience in Entertainment Broadcasting. Having hosted several shows, both on Television and Radio, and also lending her voice to several audio adverts and jingles, she currently works as an on air personality with 99.3 NIGERIA INFO LAGOS.
4LaH is a motivational speaker, a bible study class teacher and committed to inspiring young people (especially those in the entertainment industry), to achieve God’s purpose for their lives. She loves music, books, food and cats.
One Response
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