{"id":600,"date":"2010-05-24T14:25:04","date_gmt":"2010-05-24T21:25:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sharefaithblog.wpengine.com\/?p=600"},"modified":"2017-10-09T10:34:40","modified_gmt":"2017-10-09T17:34:40","slug":"online-evangelizing-great-commission-web","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sharefaith.com\/blog\/2010\/05\/online-evangelizing-great-commission-web\/","title":{"rendered":"Online Evangelizing – The Great Commission and the Web"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

When you get right down to it, what is the Internet? In its raw, unadorned, plain-and-simple, purpose-defined essence, what is it?\u00a0 No, it\u2019s not the Antichrist, a modern-day bogeyman, or the Orwellian Big Brother. What is it? At the risk of oversimplification, the Internet is a means of communication. Now, admitting that Jesus\u2019 Great Command\u2014to make disciples\u2014is applicable to all Christians, how does this command apply to our activity on the Internet, this amazing means of communication?<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re reading this article\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

you\u2019re using the web. Have you ever thought about how <\/em>you use the Web? With its bazillion different usages, it could be that you do everything from online banking to ordering movies. When you think about the Great Commission, how are you applying it to your life? For reminders, here is what the Great Commission says:<\/p>\n

And Jesus came and said to them, \u201cAll authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in\u00a0the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.\u201d (Matthew 28:18-20) <\/em><\/p>\n

The Great Commission applies to our activity on the Internet just as it does to our daily interaction with unbelievers, our mission trips to Mexico, and our witnessing to a nonbelieving neighbor. So, how do we combine the Great Commission and the Web?<\/p>\n

Maintaining a Good Testimony<\/strong><\/p>\n

In this week\u2019s edition of Time magazine (May 31, 2010), the cover features a huge mosaic of Facebook profile pics with the word \u201cFacebook\u201d in its familiar white-on-blue logo printed atop the pictures. The title reads, \u201cFacebook\u2026and how it\u2019s redefining privacy. With nearly 500 million users, Facebook is connecting us in new (and scary) ways.\u201d The title is a bit on the fear-inducing side, as is the story itself. As the author goes on to say, \u201cThere\u2019s something unsettling about granting the world a front-row seat to all of our interests.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re among the 500 million Facebookers, like it or not, you\u2019re displaying to the world a persona. Sure, you\u2019ve created it yourself, selectively retained or published favored bits of information, and even ratcheted down your privacy settings, but your testimony remains visible to at least some people. What\u2019s it like?<\/p>\n

The Internet is a lot like driving. It can draw the worst out of people. When I first dipped a wary toe into the waters of Facebook, I was aghast some of things that a few of my Facebook friends were sharing. I had never known these friends like I thought I did, and when I checked out their \u201cinterests,\u201d read their comments, checked out their pictures, and saw the groups that they were part of, I started wishing I didn\u2019t <\/em>know their online persona.<\/p>\n

My point here is not to level an accusing finger at Facebook. You can take it or leave it. What I am emphasizing is that you have a testimony on the Internet. You can blow it, or you can employ it for Great Commission purposes. When you comment on blogs, review an Amazon purchase, tweet, update your FB status, or \u201clike\u201d a group on FB, how does it detract or enhance your Great Commission efforts? The stewardship of your testimony is more important today than it ever has been, because global visibility is way easier. That can be a good thing or it can be a bad thing. It all depends on how well you integrate the Great Commission to your online testimony.<\/p>\n

Sharing the Good News<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Internet isn\u2019t just about maintaining a good testimony. It\u2019s also about sharing the good news as the title of this post suggest. Keep in mind that the Internet is a means of communication. As such, the Internet is a means of communication for the Good News of Jesus Christ. The application of Great Commission living to the world of the Internet is probably obvious enough, but it bears some repetition.<\/p>\n

Great Commission + Internet = building relationships with disciple-making in view.<\/em><\/p>\n

Your activity on the Internet is a barometer of your obedience to the Great Commission. That statement isn\u2019t an attempt to make you feel guilty. That statement is an attempt to encourage you to view the Internet as a disciple-making forum. If the Internet is a means of communication, and if we should communicate Christ (2 Cor. 2:17), then we ought to communicate Christ even on the Internet.<\/p>\n

How do you do it? Use your web-savvy to start a blog. Blog your faith. Furnish Facebook friends with Scripture verses and Christ-focused quotations. Post links to gospel information. Be unafraid of sharing the Good News over email. People are reading things on the Internet much more than they are reading gospel tracts\u2014pieces of paper with gospel literature printed on them. While there is nothing wrong with giving people tracts (many people have met Jesus in this way), realize also that there are a lot of people reading stuff online, too.<\/p>\n

Please realize that Great Commission disciple-making is not about spamming your address book with a printed sermon or unleashing a 24\/7 Twitter storm of Scripture verses. Keep in mind, rather, that online evangelizing is like any other form of evangelizing. It\u2019s about forming relationships that are gospel-focused, and God-glorifying.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When you get right down to it, what is the Internet? In its raw, unadorned, plain-and-simple, purpose-defined essence, what is it?\u00a0 No, it\u2019s not the Antichrist, a modern-day bogeyman, or the Orwellian Big Brother. What is it? At the risk of oversimplification, the Internet is a means of communication. Now, admitting that Jesus\u2019 Great Command\u2014to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[4148,4142],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-600","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-church-technology","7":"category-outreach-ministry"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nOnline Evangelizing - The Great Commission and the Web - Sharefaith Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sharefaithblog.wpengine.com\/2010\/05\/online-evangelizing-great-commission-web\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Online Evangelizing - The Great Commission and the Web - Sharefaith Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When you get right down to it, what is the Internet? 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