Make the Most of Social Media

Would the apostle Paul be on Facebook? Would Peter use Instagram? What about John on Twitter? Any answer we give would be a guess. But each of these men would have almost certainly used social media in some way. At the very least, they would have used digital communication to contact brethren and spread the gospel to the world.

The easiest way to know this is that the Church of God uses social media today. It is a way to connect with people as never before. We can reach them anytime, anywhere.

Things were much different in the first century. In Acts 17:17, Paul “reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers, and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there” (NKJV).

The original apostles used the tools and technology they had on hand. Namely, this was speaking face-to-face or writing a letter. Even with these limited resources, they were able to do an awesome work.

Today, God’s Work “reasons” with anyone who comes into contact with our materials—we can show them the truths of the Bible. We are present in the social “marketplaces” online, and our ministers are ready to help answer whatever questions people have. This is all done through modern means.

Yet these are apostles and ministers who are ordained by God to preach and teach. What about you as a lay member in the Church? How should you be using social media? Should you be using it?

There is actually strong biblical evidence that, yes, you should!

We will get into some of the ins and outs of how to get the most out of social media. But first, let’s dig into the incredible emphasis God’s Word puts on interpersonal connections with fellow brethren.

Bible Evidence

While the New Testament Church used the communication tools they had at hand to stay in touch, they were much the same as brethren today. They were of like mind and had the same beliefs. You can meet any other baptized person and feel an immediate connection.

Because of this, the first-century brethren stayed in close contact with each other. The main form of long-distance communication was through letters. In them, we can see that fellow Christians were constantly thinking about and praying for one another. This is all recorded in God’s Word.

To get a sense of how important personal connections were in the New Testament Church, read this lengthy passage from the book of Romans. Fulfilling his role as an apostle, Paul wrote a letter to the city’s congregation that covered important aspects of godly conduct and elements of prophecy. Yet how he closes the letter reveals something that every Christian can apply. Take note of how much real estate Paul devotes at the end to greetings and salutations:

“Greet Priscilla and Aquila my helpers in Christ Jesus…likewise greet the church that is in their house. Salute my wellbeloved Epaenetus, who is the firstfruits of Achaia unto Christ. Greet Mary, who bestowed much labour on us. Salute Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen, and my fellowprisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me. Greet Amplias my beloved in the Lord. Salute Urbane, our helper in Christ, and Stachys my beloved. Salute Apelles approved in Christ. Salute them which are of Aristobulus’ household. Salute Herodion my kinsman. Greet them that be of the household of Narcissus, which are in the Lord.

“Salute Tryphena and Tryphosa, who labor in the Lord. Salute the beloved Persis, which labored much in the Lord. Salute Rufus chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine. Salute Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brethren which are with them. Salute Philologus, and Julia, Nereus, and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints which are with them.

“Salute one another with a holy kiss. The churches of Christ salute you” (16:3-16).

“Timotheus my workfellow, and Lucius, and Jason, and Sosipater, my kinsmen, salute you. I Tertius, who wrote this epistle, salute you in the Lord. Gaius my host, and of the whole church, salutes you. Erastus the chamberlain of the city salutes you, and Quartus a brother” (vs. 21-23).

Wow. Look at all the connections made here! The Greek word for “salute” and “greet” are the same and can mean to enfold in arms, embrace, bid welcome, and wish well to.

There are also varying levels of greetings here. Some are generic: “Salute Philologus.” Many are more personal: “Salute Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen, and my fellowprisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me.”

Realize these greetings are recorded for all time in God’s Word. He decided to keep them in there so we can learn from them.

Brethren, we today should also be greeting and saluting fellow Christians around the globe. What an awesome blessing that we live in an age when this is easier than ever!

Let’s drive the point home further. It was not just Paul who said we should be greeting and saluting one another. Look through the other epistles in the New Testament. Make it a Bible study and take note of the personal connections recorded throughout these books.

These greetings and salutes were part of Church culture in the first century. But they can be seen another way—as a command of God: “Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss” (I Thes. 5:26).

In most Western cultures, we do not kiss when we greet one another. But we do hug. Put another way, Paul is telling the Thessalonian brethren to hug one another for him. Peter and John said similar things.

Again, sending a letter in the first century was the best way to give greetings from afar. We can do that much more easily today with phones, email and, yes, social media.

Yet social media can get complicated. There is always the latest application or online trend. There are privacy concerns and the potential for scams. Here are a few simple tips to manage your online presence—and make the most of social media.

Focus on Real Relationships

The main reason to use social media is to bond more closely with fellow Christians and family members. The vast majority of posts you put up or articles you share should be to this end. (You may also use your social media accounts for business, but that is beyond the purview of this article.)

The greatest limitation of social media is that it is a filtered version of real life. It is good to carefully think through everything you post online, but a robust presence on Facebook and Instagram will do little by itself to deepen true friendships.

A better way to engage through social media is to use it as a reminder to reach out to those you care about. Liking a friend’s post or commenting on it is fine—but do not stop there. Reach out to them in a more personal and direct way.

There is a hierarchy of communication here. A text or direct message is better than a comment on a post. A phone call is better than a text. A video call is better yet. And, when possible, face-to-face is best.

Each of these forms of communication are more and more personal and direct. They allow you to grow closer to the other person.

In addition, keeping most of your digital communication one-on-one limits most of the other issues that can crop up with social media usage.

Know How to Use It

Many of the potential pitfalls of social media use come from not fully understanding the applications and services.

Consider. It is fairly easy to visit a website and set up an account. It is pretty easy to post something. It is relatively easy for you to comment on your friends’ posts.

In order to get the most out of social media, however, it requires a little more know-how. Put it this way: If you are committing to use social media, you should also commit to learning about it.

Even for the tech-savvy, this is a daunting task. The privacy settings—who gets to see your posts and comments, how public everything is, whether others can search for you—can appear unwieldy and confusing.

If you feel a little computer illiterate, never fear! Find others who can help you manage these things. They can help you set it up and learn how to manage it. You should do your own research too. A simple search for “how to use Facebook” will get you to many videos and blog posts to give you the basic knowledge you need.

Make it a habit to regularly check your privacy settings to ensure you know who is seeing your profile and what you are posting. As a general rule, it is best to keep things as private as possible. Some apps such as Facebook have a Privacy Checkup feature that can walk you through this process. On other services, you may have to weed through the menu to make sure you know what is going on.

In whatever you are doing online, do not be naive! Social media is a powerful tool that has many positive aspects. But it is like the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in Genesis. There is some good in there—but there is a whole lot of evil too.

As you learn more about various social media platforms, determine to use them wisely and cautiously.

Manage Your Friends List

Another point to consider is managing your friends list. This is another part of committing to social media. Do you need to be friends with everyone who sends a request? The answer is probably no.

It is best to ensure you can keep up with your commitments on social media. A good way to do this is set rules of whose requests you will accept. Just because someone is a friend or acquaintance in real life does not necessarily mean that person needs to be your friend on social media.

If you only have time to commit to staying in touch with your immediate family and a few Church brethren, make those your rules. If you live in an area with a small congregation or attend alone, you will likely want to cast your net wider so you can more easily fellowship.

In all of this, be open and honest. If a Church member sends you a friend request and you feel you will not be able to regularly stay in touch, consider letting that person know why you did not hit “accept.” It can be simple as, “In order to ensure I can commit to stay in touch with my contacts on social media, I have to limit who is in that circle. Thank you for thinking of me though!”

If things are getting unwieldy with social media, it may be time to cull your friends list. Keep it manageable!

Make sure you always keep others’ feelings in mind. Facebook and the like is all about social networking. Have a plan to smooth over such things if others realize they are not seeing your posts or if you needed to remove someone from your contacts. Be kind but direct.

Online Etiquette

The first social media platform, Six Degrees, was launched in 1997. Since then, this form of communication has grown and come into its own. What has also grown up with it is some rules of etiquette—some best practices:

Who needs to see it? Ask yourself this question whenever you are about to share an item or post something. Such things almost never need to go to everyone on your friends list. If you are sharing a recipe, it should probably only go to your cooking buddies. If it is something more related to the Church, keep it to your contacts who are brethren. If it is work-related, then it should be limited to your work contacts.

Research how to manage different groups and contact lists. This can help you more easily manage who sees what and when.

Ask for permission. Most often, those we are close to will not mind if we post a photo of them or tag them. But we should not assume this is the case! Some people do not want pictures of themselves online—or they may think the snapshot is unflattering. It could be that a person does not want pictures of their children or home online—preferring to keep parts of their lives private.

Don’t preach. For those in the world, being overly opinionated, constantly talking about politics or posting about religious leanings is seen as rude and unattractive. For Christians, we must be careful our posts do not slip into preaching or teaching—leave that to the ministry.

Should I say it another way? If a comment you are making in response to someone’s post is more personal in nature, say it another way. A direct message or text message is more appropriate here—avoid starting a personal conversation for all to see when personal information is involved. As an added bonus, your one-on-one conversations can help build deeper bonds with that person.

Should I be saying it at all? Before you post anything, ask yourself this question. Would you say something similar during fellowship after Sabbath services? Your online conduct and demeanor should match how you portray yourself in real life. Whenever in doubt, do not post. Use God’s wisdom!

Support God’s Work

Another benefit of social media: You can help do God’s Work! And it is easy. The Restored Church of God has accounts on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. On Facebook and Twitter, there are also accounts for The Real Truth magazine.

Here is where you come in. By liking those pages, you will keep up to date on the daily posts from those accounts. All you need to do is like those posts (it is a thumbs up on Facebook and a heart on Twitter), and you will be helping to increase the reach of those posts. This simple action will mean God’s truths will be featured on more people’s news feeds. All because of a few simple clicks from you!

But, in a way, doing everything this article contains will help support God’s Work. If you have a good social media presence, it puts a good face on the Church. This helps fulfill I Peter 2:12, which states, “Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that…they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.”

As with your actions in everyday life, your conversation and conduct online is seen by those who do not know God’s Way. Peter’s words show that what we do is noticed.

We have saved the best for last. The Restored Church of God has its own private social media platform called Team Hub. There, you can keep up with fundraising efforts, join groups with those who have similar interests and simply spend time with those of like mind—without all the extra work of managing a public social media account. Ask your minister how to join.

Bringing things full circle, staying in touch with brethren helps build unity in the Body of Christ. Let’s all determine to greet and salute one another—both offline and on social media!