Friday, August 18, 2017

Skunk on a Table


Today is my last day off before beginning the fall semester, on-line, at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Tomorrow I will be working in the CVICU, then classes begin on Monday. I'm beginning my eighth class; Introduction to Hermeneutics, which will be the halfway point in obtaining a Master of Theological Studies. I thought I would take the time today to discuss a problem that I have with Facebook.

I have had a problem with Facebook for several years, because of this, I have been off of it several times. What do I enjoy about Facebook? Seeing pictures of my friends and family, also reading what they are up to. What I do not enjoy about Facebook is the tendency by some to purposely through skunks on the table. Skunks stink really bad!

I've noticed that some do this for the purpose of creating a discussion and others do it for martydom. Neither of these reasons are for love. 

"I was very glad to find some of your children walking in truth, just as we have received commandment to do from the Father. Now I ask you, lady, not as though I were writing to you a new commandment, but the one which we have had from the beginning, that we love one another. And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it. (2 John 2:4-6)

The discusser does this, because he/she enjoys a fight. You can call it debate, but it is still fighting. The marytr does this that he may feel superior and acts like he is being attacked if anyone disagrees with the stinking post. 

Recently I had a friend who kept making blanket negative statements about evangelicals on Facebook. I commented on a couple of his post, giving a brief biblical and historical account of what an evangelical is, but because the media and others use the term evangelical broadly he would not listen to me and continued to make these blanket statements.

To clarify Evangelicalism:

  1. Evangelicals are Trinitarian Christians
  2. Evangelicals believe in the Inerrancy of scripture
  3. Evangelicals believe in the centrality of the cross
  4. Evangelicals believe in the importance of evangelism
  5. Evangelicals believe in the resurrection of the dead when Christ returns
  6. Evangelicals believe that while waiting for the consummation it is our duty to make the world a better place in the present

While I still consider this man a friend and brother in Christ I could not continue to see these post. When making a post to Facebook or any other social media sight that could be seen as controversial ask why you are making the post. Are you doing it to cause argument, or to play martyr when someone disagrees with you?