He Who Guards His Thumbs
Jessalyn Hutto
Over the past couple months I've been working on committing Philippians 2:1-11 to memory. In these verses we, as Christians, are called to put our affection and sympathy for one another into practice by being of "one mind." By way of humility, we are told to be "in full accord" with one another. All of this being possible, the book of Philippians says, because we are partakers of the same Holy Spirit.
These commands seem particularly relevant to us today as we seek to successfully navigate the confusing and often frustrating age we live in. Sometimes they seem like impossible standards. Each new headline that passes through my Facebook newsfeed appears to be perfectly fitted to encourage “discord” among believers rather than like-mindedness.
Yet, it would seem from this passage, as well as many others in Scripture, that the divisive issues of our day do not get us off the hook. Rather, they provide a glorious opportunity for Christians to put on display the powerful work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of believers. According to Philippians 2, the Holy Spirit has joined us together in such a real and mysterious way, through the blood of Jesus, that it would be illogical to think only of our own interests at the expense of our siblings in Christ. We are admonished in these verses to "count others more significant than ourselves." The NIV translates that part as "value others above [ourselves]." I love that. When I look at my sister, I am called to care more about her preferences and feelings than about my own. When I talk about my brother, I am to value his well-being and reputation above my own.
Now, at this point, because it is the divisive issue of the week, you may think I am about to start talking about masks and why you should or should not don such controversial fashion statements. I am not. Rather, what I want to talk about is how these verses, which focus on humility and seeking to lower ourselves in our own estimation in the pursuit of unity, speak to the way we talk about contentious issues such as masks, both in real life and online. Perhaps especially online, as the false sense of anonymity it provides seems to encourage less restraint and care than that of a face to face conversation.
Let us remember that our enemy, the Devil, continually seeks to insert a wedge between the various members of the body of Christ by any means possible.
In today's crazy upside down world, that deadly wedge can be as thin as a piece of fabric strapped around someone's face. Such wedges can cause a horrifying rift in the family of God as quickly as a thumb can hit "share" on a position-confirming article or YouTube video. For this reason, and because we know that we have an enemy within (what Scripture refers to as "the flesh" or “indwelling sin”), we should seek to purposefully exercise humility and wisdom in what we say or "share" online as well as how we say or "share" things online.
The Word of God has a great deal to say about the words we use and how we use them. In the battle against sin and the Devil, we cannot afford to check our greatest weapon (the Word of God) at the login pages of Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. Why? Because we know that the war being waged within ourselves and against the cosmic powers of this age carries with it much higher stakes than anything Fox News or MSNBC or your favorite YouTube commentator is reporting on.
Jesus Christ–the Holy Son of God–bled and died for the sake of his church and its “one-ness”. Through his death and resurrection he made it possible for people of all different backgrounds, all different viewpoints, all different political leanings, all different opinions about masks, all different positions on Covid-19, all different levels of education, and all different expertise to humble themselves and live, breath, and post on social media in an understanding, caring, and gracious way. If that doesn’t make your brain explode with the practical implications.... well, just keep reading.
It makes no earthly sense how this can be possible (especially considering the current state of things), but when the Spirit of God resides within a person, what limits would you dare set on Him? When the God who created the cells of the human body and the rings of Saturn through the same effortless breath, promises to transform a bunch of mismatched sinners into a single body with "one mind." Who are we to question his capabilities?
As he transforms each of us through his powerful Word, he transforms all of us. As he makes me humbler, he makes my whole church humbler. As he makes another member of my church holier, he makes all of my church holier. As we grow up together we naturally grow in together and vise versa. For this reason, we must never forget that the words we choose to say (as well as the words of others that we choose to "share") can either work to promote or hinder the unity that God is working to produce in our local church body.
Words or videos that are shared on social media do not get shot out into a void. They are not less hurtful because they are said through a second party or a technological platform. They are sent to the faces of our brothers and sisters in Christ, some of whom (if not many of whom) do not hold to our particular stance on whatever hot topic is trending in our "newsfeed." They, too, have heart-felt opinions, have data to support their views, and are thinking, breathing humans just like us.
Does this mean that we should not share articles or videos that a particular brother or sister in our congregation might disagree with or be hurt by?
Perhaps.
Maybe.
Often.
Over the past couple of months there have been many eye-popping articles, videos, news stories, studies, memes, gifs, whatever you can think of that I felt compelled to share, but after a moment of consideration decided against because I knew it would unnecessarily grieve my brother or sister in the faith. Perhaps because the issue was not one of a biblical nature needing to be addressed, or perhaps I knew I was not an expert in the field, or perhaps I couldn't be sure of the motives or sources of the original video or even my own motives in sharing it, or perhaps I just loved my brother or sister who disagrees with me on the issue too much to post something I knew would unnecessarily wound him or her.
There are many reasons to exercise restraint when speaking or reposting things online. Proverbs 10:19 warns us of the perils of quick, unthoughtful, plentiful speech, and its truth is not diluted by the pixels of a computer screen. We could easily and biblically reword this verse for the digital age:
“When memes are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever restrains his thumbs is prudent.”
But remember I said “maybe” we should remain quiet online when we know a post might offend our brother or sister. I do not mean that it is not good and right to speak and share information online. Social media has made it easier than ever to share what is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and worthy of praise with the whole world (or at least the small part of the world that chooses to see our posts).
Often topics that fall within these categories will be contentious and sometimes they will even hurt feelings. But let us be clear, they should not be contentious or hurt feelings due to the manner in which they are shared. They should only wound in these ways because they are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and worthy of praise. Our posts should only be as contentious as they are inline with God's Word and thus pricking the consciences of those whose eyes are blessed to fall upon them.
There presentation by us, as believers, should always be given in a way that reeks of gentleness, compassion, love, generosity, and grace. The humility of Christ that we are called to imitate in Philippians 2:1-11 demands this type of attitude in all that we do. It does not lessen the importance of sharing what we have become convinced is true (if after thoughtful consideration, we believe it is worthy of being shared), but it does qualify the manner in which we share it. It does mean that we take into consideration our audience and how it will be received. It means that I must think about the person who will watch the video or read the article (particularly the person I know holds the opposing view) and consider how it will affect them. Will this post I am about to share bless or curse them? Will it strengthen our unity or will it allow a foothold for the Devil?
Sometimes this simply means sharing a heartfelt disclaimer about the article or video you are posting and acknowledging the wide range of opinions on the issue. Sometimes this means honestly pointing out the generalizations made by the author or speaker that may not be accurate or charitable. Other times it may mean sharing exactly what you agree with and don't agree with in the post. Doing such things encourages good will and honest dialogue with the people you are hoping to influence.
But this takes so much more time and so much more thought! And by the time we get done doing these things, we may not even care enough to share the article or video!
So much the better.
When we share things on social media, we should not be launching thought grenades at our brothers and sisters in Christ, we should thoughtfully be seeking to edify and educate through loving dialogue. Online platforms are already the worst place in the world to try to change a person’s mind on a subject. We are far more likely to aid in hardening our brothers and sisters’ hearts against us because we have not been generous and gracious with our attempts to persuade.
This would be the Devil’s greatest triumph.
But what if, instead, before we post online (yes, every single time), we humble ourselves and we consider those who will see it as more important than ourselves (Philippians 2:3)? What if, in every word we write or share, we consider whether it will stir up our brother or sister in Christ to love and good works (Hebrews 10:24)? What if, with every click of the “share” button we sought to consider what our brothers or sisters’ actual “needs” are and whether our posts will work to “build them up” in their faith or in fact, tear them down (Ephesians 4:29)?
We have a great responsibility to use our words wisely (Matthew 12:36). Our breath, our vocal chords, our fingers, and our Facebook timelines are all resources we have been entrusted with by our Heavenly Father to do good.
During this strange and difficult time, let us take these resources and seek to bless, lift up, and encourage. Let us promote unity and not discord with each click of the thumb. Let us walk forward in faith, taking captive every thought, every word, and every tweet, bringing them under the Lordship of our humble servant King.
“...who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”