Twitter Is Not Real Life
Tweet tweet. Tweet tweet.
Welcome to 21st century American Christianity, a cacophonous medley of accusation, insinuation, and ultimately, distraction.
For those who don’t know, two prominent Christian brothers had a spat on Twitter recently about churches meeting despite government recommendations (and in some cases, commands) to stay home.
The spat was over an article written in response to Grace Community Church’s recent statement in favor of civil disobedience, namely in regards to meeting for worship despite present restrictions in California. Here is the statement:
Here are the relevant articles:
https://www.9marks.org/article/a-time-for-civil-disobedience-a-response-to-john-macarthur/
https://www.9marks.org/article/further-reflections-on-recent-conversations-about-christian-freedom/
Lastly, here is a 30 minute conversation on the whole controversy:
Did you notice anything missing? Where are the twitter posts?
Sorry, not here. No link, no screenshot, not even the names of the tweeters involved (though you could find them easily enough if you were so inclined).
Now why would I write an article about an online incident and not even bother to include some kind of reference to the incident itself? Simply put, because it’s dumb.
Let me clarify. The conversation is not dumb. The disagreement is not dumb. These are challenging times, and we ought to exercise rigorous Biblical discernment. “It’s all a hoax, don’t be a sheep” and “Wear a mask and never leave home or you’re a grandma killer” are equally asinine attitudes. We need to be discussing this stuff, thoroughly and charitably.
What we don’t need are 140 character shots across the ramparts. The American church is under attack! Popular culture, government, and public opinion have now besieged us. Should we cower in fear and surrender to tyranny? Surely not. Should we take up arms, storm our state capitols, and oust the governors and public health officials. Again I say, surely not. The Gospel and people of Jesus Christ have survived far worse than what we are experiencing today. This is not the time for despair or panic.
It is also not the time for cattiness or pettiness within our own ranks. Folks, Twitter is not real life. This is not to say that social media can’t accomplish real, meaningful, Gospel-focused, Christ-honoring good. Nor is it to say that we can’t or shouldn’t disagree publicly at times.
But let’s keep our eyes on the prize. 1 Peter 3 exhorts us, “Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.”
This is not a flippant call to a shallow unity. “Why can’t we all just get along?” is not a Christian message, despite some well-meaning but absurd statements to the contrary on Christian radio waves of late (another article for another day). Just because you worship in a church does not necessarily mean you and I are one in Christ.
The thing is, these two brothers in question are. Neither is a Christian in name only. They share faith, not only in Christ, but also in the Scriptures that reveal Him. They believe in the authority of those Scriptures, and the God Who inspired them.
So let’s save our ire for false teachers, legalists, anti-christs, and the like. Let’s put Romans 14 into practice and honor the differences in Christian conscience on non-essential matters. And for the love of God (and one another), let’s remember that Twitter is not real life.