The Effects of Internet/Social Media on a Christian's Life

For about two decades ago, man had only three basic needs: food, shelter,

and clothing. However, it seems like those three are not enough for a man to live

in comfort nowadays. Since its availability to the public on March 1994, the

internet becomes a new necessity not only in our country but also on the entire

planet Earth. What used to be affordable only to the big companies that use it for

their international transactions is now readily made available even to the below-

average families.

Statistics say that as of September 2011, about 30 million Filipinos use the

internet which takes out 33 percent of our total population. And from that

percentage, around 16 to 18 percent were from the Christian community.

For many, it is easy to say that it is a necessity that has to be acquired in

order to improve one’s social and economic status. Yes, it is agreeable due to the

advancement of our technology in this country. It seems like electronics run

everything to make our lives comfortable. When we need to pay our bills but we

cannot go out, we can pay them through electronic banking. When we want to buy

an item that is not readily available in our country, we can shop online and receive

that item from any part of the world.

 And not only that, students also get a great deal of benefits from the

internet. Before, they mostly go to school or public libraries for researches and

projects. But now, they just type and click it from Google or Wikipedia and presto!

All of their school assignment problems are solved.

Aside from these conveniences in banking and research is the rise of the

popular social media that is the newest trend of our society today. Not only does it

connect people near or far, but it also helps to promote a cause coming from

individuals or organizations. These social media serves as a channel for people to

voice out their private or public concerns, but unfortunately, it is also oftentimes

used for some illegal activities and online scams or crimes.

As I mentioned earlier, of the 33 percent of the Filipinos using the internet,

about 16 to 18 percent were Christians. Now the big question is, “How does social

media affect our lives as Christians?”

First, it is not wrong or evil for a Christian to use the Internet. What

becomes a sin is how and how often a Jesus believer uses it. We can learn from

what apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:12 (CEV), “Some of you say, ‘We can do

anything we want to.’ But I tell you that not everything is good for us. So I refuse

to let anything have power over me.”

 The social media is one of the most convenient ways to share the gospel to a

friend or to anyone you meet online. One should be able to take advantage of what

the net has to offer for the sake of evangelism. It is sad to know that for some, they

just use these sites for leisure or social activities that are, although not wrong a

waste of golden opportunity. They spend a lot of time on their personal computers

posting on social networks or playing online games that do not benefit others but

themselves. There is an old quotation which I rephrased that goes, “We can do

Facebook, we can watch Youtube, we can play online games all day and could be

just wasting time. But if we share the gospel online, we could save someone else’s

life.”

The World Wide Web gives us access to move freely and explore not only

our country but across the globe as well. Let us, therefore, use it to spread out the

gospel so that we can take part in fulfilling the great commission that Jesus has

commanded us to work with.

I once logged into a social media site and a notification was sent to me about

an invitation to join an open group consisting of youths from our church. I was

amazed to find some of our young people who took time to create a group on a

social media site that aims to bring themselves much closer to God. They post

questions on how they could be a better follower of Christ and of how they can be

used for the advancement of God’s kingdom. Many of them never fail to post
Bible verses, Christian quotations, and encouraging thoughts and stories. Some

even post their church activities, personal testimonies, and videos to encourage the

brethren who are online.

Indeed we cannot put limits on how we should spread the gospel of Christ. I

firmly believe that the internet is designed by God’s not only to make our lives

comfortable but also to benefit those who need Christ in their lives. We just have

to be wise as a serpent to use electronic media as one of our daily means to be a

witness for Jesus and save the lost.