A recent Facebook meme contained a quote like this:
“If you want to prove your heart is in the right place, it’s not.”
Aptly put.
Consider the following:
- In survey of Toyota Prius owners, the #1 reason for their purchase was “It makes a statement about me.”
- Social media have become bullhorns for shrill cries of alarm, from real to ridiculous.
- On the Left, fears and grievances are nearly endless: climate change, GMOs, BPA, pesticides, guns, income inequality, “the one percent,” racists and homophobes behind every tree and under every rock, Keystone XL (anti)…
- On the Right, we hear about Big Government and its debt, Islam/Islamism, gay marriage, Obama this, Obama that, wealth-grabbers, gun-grabbers, illegal immigration, Keystone XL (pro)…
Friends give rapid feedback and express approval via “like” and “share.” They leave glowing comments or up the ante with frightful assertions, vilifying those who disagree.
Imagine Chicken Little joined by millions of other Chicken Littles, clucking louder and louder while despising those who don’t join in, sharing a desire to be quoted and admired for their concern. The sky still would not be falling, but the commotion would be great.
Key questions: When are we really saying, “Look at me! See how concerned I am about this.”? Do we shout about “the end of life as we know it” to gain admiration of the like-minded? Has “holier than thou” mutated into “more worried than thou?”
So: how often do we display alarm as a public virtue, in order to be viewed as righteous by others?
Christians can be in a pickle when we holler about our worries. Jesus said, “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” When we broadcast our alarm for others to see, are we heeding our Lord? We’re not talking about immediate threat warnings, or prayer requests.
Jesus also said, “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.” In context, He was talking about flamboyant alms-giving. But if we regard the trumpeting of our concerns as righteousness itself, are we similarly guilty?
From climate change to gay marriage, we Christians especially must consider whether our public alarm is expressed because “It makes a statement about me.”
E. Calvin Beisner says
This is a truly convicting post. May the Lord work in all our hearts to deliver us from every form of hypocrisy. Thanks, John.
Bruce Atchison says
What an interesting take on social media. I believe that people are tiring of all of these campaigns to sign this or that petition. I sure am tiring of them. What we Christians need to do is filter all of our concerns through the Bible. When we can speak up for real victims of injustice, we should. On the other hand, empires have fallen and risen while Christianity marched on. Instead of taking back our countries, we must obey Christ’s great commission to go out into all the world and preach the gospel. Everything else takes a back seat to that, though those things still are important. Let’s have a balanced approach to life rather than leaping from one emergency petition to another.