Recently I’ve been reading some insightful posts by bloggers on blogging. (Specifically, these by Carl Trueman, Michael Beasley, and Timmy.) While I don’t think everyone who reads WorshipMatters has their own blog, I know that a good number of you do. And if you don’t, you might leave a comment on one.
So, I want to take this week to talk about how posting or commenting on a blog can be an act of worship to God. He tells us in 1 Cor. 10:31:
“So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
If we should eat and drink to the glory of God, certainly we should blog to the glory of God. Three ways we can do this are through our content, attitude, and motive. Today, we’ll look at content.
Blogs vary widely in subject matter. Many bloggers simply communicate personal updates to stay current with friends and relatives. Others share political or cultural views for a wider audience. Some companies hire bloggers to promote their products or engage potential customers. Whatever the reasons might be, Christians are called to blog for the glory of God. We can’t simply gush about our feelings. Blogging, too, falls under God’s sovereign rule. That means the topics we choose to write about should honor God.
On the positive side, that means we can write about whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, commendable, excellent, and praiseworthy (Phil. 4:8). We can view culture through the lens of God’s Word. Justin Taylor seeks to do this at Between Two Worlds. We can share ways we’re seeking to apply the Gospel to our lives. Mark Lauterbach does this at Gospel Driven Life. We can comment on all of life from a perspective the world doesn’t have: fixing our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. (2 Cor. 4:18) Carolyn McCulley does this by sharing thoughts on being single at Solo Femininity. All of these bloggers, and many more, comment on different aspects of life biblically, authentically, personally, and genuinely – but never sinfully.
Apart from the obvious exclusions (like pornography), here are a few subjects Christians blogs should never contain:
Lies: As those who follow the One Who is the Truth, we should avoid any kind of falsehood, exaggeration, or unsubstantiated claim. Sitting in front of the keyboard, it’s amazing how easily we type things that we aren’t completely sure about, that we never would want to be held accountable to, or that are slightly modified to make us sound more persuasive.
Gossip: One of the most common temptations is spread information ABOUT people we’d rather not talk to directly. This isn’t the same as referencing public knowledge for the sake of illustration, which can be helpful for building discernment. But too often, we share embarrassing or sinful behavior we’ve heard about others simply to exalt our own ego.
Intimate details: Some blogs read like personal diaries, where no attempt is made to curtail offensive language, sinful desires, or immoral thoughts. What holds true for our speech, holds true for our blogs:
“But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.” (Eph. 5:3-4, ESV)
Another factor to consider in blogging is the links we include. I’ve wondered if some bloggers get paid by the link. (If so, I want to find out about it…) While there are relatively few blogs that you’ll probably agree with everything on (including this one), we have a responsibility to delete any that consistently post ungodly content.
Blogging may seem relatively new, but it’s simply another outlet for glorifying God or something else. Let’s make sure it’s the Savior who’s being honored by what we do both on and off the Internet.
Tomorrow we’ll look at using a blog to glorify God through our attitudes.
