{"id":31049,"date":"2022-09-10T15:14:49","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:14:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/scripture-social-media-and-secret-sins\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T15:14:49","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:14:49","slug":"scripture-social-media-and-secret-sins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/scripture-social-media-and-secret-sins\/","title":{"rendered":"Scripture, Social Media and Secret Sins"},"content":{"rendered":"
cerro photography – Getty <\/p>\n

What Our “Instagramification” of the Bible May Reveal About Our Heart<\/strong><\/h3>\n

By Chris Martin<\/em><\/p>\n

In Amusing Ourselves to Death<\/em>, Neil Postman wrestles with the televangelism phenomenon that was sweeping the United States in the 1980s. The entire premise of Amusing<\/em> is that different media may not be appropriate for certain messages.<\/p>\n

Much of Postman\u2019s concern is with the ways in which television was trivializing everything from news to politics, and how \u201centertainment\u201d became more important than truth.<\/p>\n

Postman writes in his chapter entitled \u201cShuffle off to Bethlehem\u201d (bold emphasis mine):<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2026On television, religion, like everything else, is presented, quite simply and without apology, as entertainment.<\/strong> Everything that makes religion an historic, profound and sacred human activity is stripped away; there is no ritual, no dogma, no tradition, no theology, and above all, no sense of spiritual transcendence. On these shows, the preacher is tops. God comes out as second banana.<\/strong><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n

\u2026.<\/p>\n

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\u201cMost Americans, including preachers, have difficulty accepting the truth, if they think about it at all, that not all forms of discourse can be converted from one medium to another. It is na\u00efve to suppose that something that has been expressed in one form can be expressed in another without significantly changing its meaning, texture, or value.<\/strong><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n

\u2026.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe executive director of the National Religious Broadcasters Association sums up what he calls the unwritten law of all television preachers: \u201cYou can get your share of the audience only by offering people something they want.<\/strong>\u201d<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cYou will note, I am sure, that this is an unusual religious credo. There is no great religious leader\u2014from the Buddha to Moses to Jesus to Mohammed to Luther\u2014who offered people what they want. Only what they need. But television is not well suited to offering people what they need. It is \u2018user friendly.\u2019 It is too easy to turn off.<\/strong> It is at its most alluring when it speaks the language of dynamic visual imagery. It does not accommodate complex language or stringent demands. As a consequence, what is preached on television is not anything like the Sermon on the Mount. Religious programs are filled with good cheer. They celebrate affluence. Their featured players become celebrities. Though their messages are trivial, the shows have high ratings, or rather, because their messages are trivial, the shows have high ratings.<\/strong><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI believe I am not mistaken in saying that Christianity is a demanding and serious religion. When it is delivered as easy and amusing, it is another kind of religion altogether\u201d.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

"\u2026 Christianity is a demanding and serious religion. When it is delivered as easy and amusing, it is another kind of religion altogether." \u2014 Neil Postman Click To Tweet <\/p>\n

Postman was not a Christian, but Christians would be wise to heed his counsel here. What he says about preachers on TV should lead us to ask about how we steward the gospel and God\u2019s Word on the internet. Do we make God \u201csecond banana?\u201d<\/p>\n

The Social Media Bible<\/strong><\/h3>\n

When we consider the relationship between the Bible and social media, we would do well to consider media theorist Marshall McLuhan\u2019s famous words \u201cThe medium is the message,\u201d meaning, \u201cHow you communicate something dramatically shapes what you\u2019re communicating.\u201d <\/p>\n

Given that I have spent my career creating biblical, Christian content for the web\u2014of the short form variety on social media and the long form variety on YouTube and blogs\u2014I have often grappled with how Scripture and the social internet relate. The obvious, upfront concern is that the social internet has made communication cheap, fleeting, and driven by that which is most entertaining<\/em>\u2014not that which is most valuable<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, the conundrum in which we find ourselves is one where \u201centertainment value\u201d is the full measure of a piece of content\u2019s value or a content creator\u2019s value!<\/p>\n

Given this harsh reality, should we subject the holy Word of God to such potential threat of trivialization and ill-repute because it cannot measure up to modern standard of \u201cinternetainment?\u201d Worse yet, how do we share Scripture on the internet without letting it simply become another form<\/em> of entertainment?<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve come to the conclusion that Christians would be poor stewards of God\u2019s Word if we don\u2019t share it with others through this medium, but we would be wise to do so with care and with special attention given to the temptation we will face to use God\u2019s Word as a means of personal gain. We should share the wisdom and truth of the Bible on the internet\u2014how could we not?!\u2014but we shouldn\u2019t use it as a prop in the ongoing production in which we are all either actors or patrons.<\/p>\n

Christians would be poor stewards if we didn\u2019t share God's Word with others on social media, but we should give special attention to the temptation to use Scripture as a means of personal gain. \u2014 @ChrisMartin17 Click To Tweet <\/p>\n

Like so many things, whether we share the Scripture in sincerity or in selfishness is a matter of the heart, which can be difficult to discern in a vacuum\u2014this is why personal accountability is so important. Imagine you see a friend sharing a beautiful sunset image with John 3:16 superimposed over the top of it.<\/p>\n

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See also  Why Pastors Must Acknowledge Their Own Needs<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Could this friend be sharing the image to sinfully practice his or her righteousness before men in order to build his or her reputation? Of course. Could this friend also simply be sharing encouragement in hopes of pointing people to Christ with no self-serving intent? This is also possible.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, we shouldn\u2019t be afraid of how social media may cheapen Scripture\u2014the power of God in the Word of God cannot be thwarted by the medium itself. However, we should be concerned about how our sinful hearts may seize Scripture in one hand and the social internet in the other toward a sinful effort to make much of ourselves. This is a temptation that will always lurk in the shadows as long as we lust for attention and influence, which are the twin currencies of our digital world.<\/p>\n

How Americans See the Bible Online<\/strong><\/h3>\n

In 2017, Lifeway Research conducted a study on perceptions of Scripture among Americans, and the study included some data about how the Bible is perceived on social media.<\/p>\n

According to the study, 47% of Americans who use social media say when they see a quote on social media and realize it\u2019s from the Bible they don\u2019t treat it any differently than other quotes.<\/p>\n

47% of Americans who use social media say when they see a quote on social media and realize it\u2019s from the Bible they don\u2019t treat it any differently than other quotes. Click To Tweet <\/p>\n

Within that data point, some of the demographic breakdowns are fascinating and worth attention. Here are a few noteworthy demographic angles of how Scripture is perceived on social media:<\/p>\n