Sharing our faith through FaceBook and other internet sites.

From time to time emails and posts surface urging the reader to pass the message on if they are a believer in Christ. The express intent is to share the message of Jesus Christ. (Even worse are the Christian chain letters that speak of blessings or answers to prayer or avoidance of “bad things” if the message is passed on to some many people.)

I usually do not participate.

Here are my reasons.

First, some messages are poorly written so that the message of Jesus Christ, or the definition of what it is to be a Christian, is at best vague. Sometime bad theology characterizes the message.

Secondly, more and more people are ignorant of who Jesus Christ is; therefore, a mere mention of him in a brief FaceBook post is likely not to be thorough enough to inform the reader of the basic points of who Christ is or why one ought to trust in him.

Thirdly, reposting such messages does not, in fact, establish one to be a true follower of Christ, any more so than plastering one's vehicle with Christian bumper stickers would.

Fourthly, a true follower of Christ is to also be a transparent follower of Christ. This means that my friends on FaceBook, etc, ought, over time, to see that I do not live in sin, that my speech does speak of Christ and the Gospel, that love and truth, as spoken of in the Bible, is seen, while taking the Lord's name in vain, crude/course speech, deceit, and numerous other signs of conformity to sin are absent.

In other words, as you get to know me through the internet you also ought to see the God of the Bible in me and to hear that my boast and glory is in the God who has had mercy upon me through Christ.

Reposting “Christian” posts may not be harmful but if not accompanied with speech that shows fellowship with God such posting is at best shallow, and at worst, is hypocrisy.

Christians are not perfect people, we are still between being forgiven of our sins through a confession of Christ and being brought into Christ's glory. No one of us will be the witness that we ought to be 100% of the time. I am not trying to be critical in the sense of sending a blasting message of condemnation to 'reposters'. However, I am challenged myself to think of being a thorough Biblical, witness to the God who-is through my life on-line.

May each post by each believer add up to a grand testimony of God's grace and truth.