If we are to live with wisdom, as ambassadors for Christ, we must know and think about our world. [i] If we are to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves, we must consider. [ii] If we wish to speak into this world without being fools, we have to take the time to look and learn before speaking. [iii]
Any effective servant understands the nature and context of his service. As servants of Jesus, we live and proclaim and apply the unchanging gospel to a changing world. The effective servant of Jesus understands the gospel, and understands the world.
The world in which we live is distinguished by many things; but one of the primary features is the internet and its rippling effects. This is the digital age.
We will be looking at several aspects and issues of this technology-driven society.
Compartmentalized Information
This is the age of information. Never before have we had so much potential for receiving data, and so little capability for implementing that data. This is an age of much knowledge and little thought.
Because of the nature of the internet, people are fed bites of information in a disconnected format. Those who read and think on the side can still use this information well. However, those who are raised on this fragmented world have a very hard time piecing things together into larger systems or even cause-and-effect relationships. As Bruce Hindmarsh, a historian and professor at Regent College, said about this: “We experience the world as fragments”. [iv This causes a tendency to think in a disconnected manner.
This seriously hampers our cognition. The world is not fragmented—it is interconnected in complex, organic ways. Parts form wholes, and the wholes are more significant than the parts. If we see the world as parts, we do not see it as it is. If we cannot apply and integrate information it does us no good. Yet the abundance of trivia in this information age can lull us into a false sense of wisdom.
Life and wisdom is not merely about knowing facts, but about internalizing truth and integrating knowledge in practical ways. Information is only useful when it helpfully informs our decisions.
I fear this compartmentalization of information has leaked into the Church as well. We are deceived into thinking the Christian life is about knowing doctrine. The Christian life is about living doctrine, [v] which is a whole different level. Sanctification is a daily normal relationship with Jesus, not a high bible trivia score.
Background Noise
In addition to receiving the data of the world in fragmented format, the digital age also absorbs so much of our time with business and noise that we fail to meditate and mull over things. If we have a question about the world around us we have no time to do anything other than type the question into our browser and take whatever fragmented answer we receive.
Our minds are constantly buzzing, constantly full. The noise of the world is relentless, distracting us from Christ and depriving us of silence.
As followers of Jesus we are told over and over again to look to Christ, to focus on God. [vi] The world seeks to distract us and pull our attention away from Jesus. Christ spoke of those who receive the words of truth only to be pulled away or distracted by the lures and business of the world. [vii] We can look at what happened to Peter when his surroundings distracted him from Jesus while walking on the water. [viii] C. S. Lewis also talks a lot about the strategy of distraction the devil employs to break us away from Jesus in his work "The Screwtape Letters."
Jesus is our source for all things spiritual. [ix] We are strengthened only by his might. [x] We live only through his life. [xi] The world is desperately trying to separate us from that source, because no amount of rules or good intentions can sanctify us—only God can. [xii]
As for the lack of silence in modern culture, modern people are very uncomfortable with silence and even more so with stillness. Jean Fleming talked about how we “have become a people with an aversion to quiet and an uneasiness with being alone.” But make no mistake, we need times of quiet contemplation as people to maintain mental health, and as Christians to maintain spiritual health.
We see the importance of being alone and quiet in the life of Jesus. He was always sneaking off to mountains and other “desolate places” just to get quiet time with God. Matthew 14:23 and Mark 1:35 are two examples.
quality of Information
Ironically, because of the unparalleled abundance of information, there has never before been more need for personal discernment.
It should not be too much of a shock to discover that there are plenty of illegitimate ideas and falsified data on the internet. We have to look for signs of peer review, credentials (where needed), and quality of thought in what we take in on the internet.
Again, we are to be wise as serpents. Christians are not to be pulled about by the tides of opinion. [xiii] We should be the last ones pulled in by empty political rhetoric or deceived by scams and conspiracy theories. Let us strive for thought and quietness and the truth of Scripture and the fellowship of God. These things will mature us.
Under Grace,
John Fritz
John Fritz is the Volunteer Coordinator for Thoughtful Life Ministries and the primary author of the Thoughtful Life Journal, which is published weekly from March through September. The purpose of this blog is to challenge and encourage those who have a desire to cultivate a more meaningful walk with Christ. Visit our Homepage to learn more about the ministry and our annual two-week summer Discipleship Program for teens and young adults.
[i] 2 Corinthians 5:18-21; [ii] Matthew 10:16; [iii] Proverbs 18:13; [iv] “How Facebook and Twitter Change Us” on the Desiring God podcast; [v] Colossians 1:9-14; [vi] Hebrews 12:1-2; Colossians 3:2; [vii] Matthew 13:1-23; [viii] Matthew 14:28-31; [ix] John 15:4-6; [x] Ephesians 3:16; 6:10; Colossians 1:11; [xi] Galatians 2:19-21; [xii] Galatians 3:1-3; 2 Corinthians 3:18; [xiii] Ephesians. 4:14-16