'Email Virus versus Email Ministry'

"Email Virus, Email Ministry"
I enjoy getting e-mails from friends around the world. Its amusing how often one specific topic or e-mail will find its way to me after being forwarded by several friends. I don't have a lot of time to review them but certainly appreciate the e-mails sent to me concerning Israel, prophetic news, etc. An amusing oddity includes the passionate appeals that I get asking me to read an e-mail and help remedy some wrong by signing a petition, etc. It is actually embarrassing at times. Once again, just recently, I got the e-mail about Madeline Murray Ohare petitioning the FCC to take the Christian programs off of the radio and tv. The friend who sent it to me is an intelligent person and I really felt bad for them that they would forward along something that had no legitimacy about it whatsoever. Ms Ohare has been dead for many years and her atheist organization essentially defunct and her cause passed along to a new generation. I can only imagine what the FCC thinks when they continue to get signed petitions in the mail from gullible Christians who are fearing the terror tactics against the airwaves by a little old lady who has been dead for a long time. The Bible calls it 'silly.' I get a lot of e-mails from the 'Christian Internet Police' - those who think that they are to stand guard and warn the rest of us about liberal or foreboding-types of things threatening our corner of the conservative Christian world. It must make one feel good to think they have staved off a potential, looming threat and help preserve doctrinal integrity, etc. by alerting the rest of us through internet e-mails. However, I do believe there is a far better way to spend our time and resources while on the internet. What would happen if we all resigned from the C. I. P. F. (Christian Internet Police Force) and used our emotions, mental energies, etc. to infuse the web and our friends in-boxes with news, insights, etc. that tended to alert us to the deeper, more needful issues such as: increasing our personal devotions time; praying for all of our leaders; an outline for praying for our brothers of different, yet similar faith traditions, and ask God to use them to help reach a withering harvest; a prayer alert to intercede for erring leaders, and on and on, and on. Right now genuine emotional and spiritual energy are being spent to alert the Christian internet community to be on the defense against things that, most of the time, do not come into play or into focus when compared to the size of the harvest that is being neglected. These things all too often lift up as very important issues of doctrine or faith that, once again, and depending on how it is being reported, will cause the church to turn its efforts and energy toward divisiveness that splinters the ranks. I guess that I become a little more impassioned when an 'alarm' is sent out to critcize, expose, and reject some portion of the Christian community, and I know, personally, that the alarm has been sent out by folks whose personal, verbal attacks have hindered and fractured local churches and brought much greater damage and harm to the Body of Christ than the things that they are warning us about ever have. Its really quite hypocritical. I have to ask the question: given the times we are living in, does the church spend its time more wisely in being alert to pass along things that might seem worthy but will take us away from the real battle, or do we trust God to deal with similar things and we use our time to bless, be a blessing, and focus on how we might more effecively reap the harvest rather than police the church. How credible is the report that you are passing along? Will Father God be happy that you passed along a smearing comment or report about a brother, sister, ministry, or work but didn't take the time to determine that it was true or beneficial to His work to pass it along? I have to think about the landing of the troops in France on D-Day. The campaign to rid the world of Hitler's oppression involved the sacrificial efforts of several different areas of the military and several countries allied together. Can you imagine the further insult that would have occurred to the effort than those that did exist if the Army sent out a notice to their comrades to be on watch and guard themselves against the Marines because the Colonel leading their landing had rejected the third line in the Army hymn. You might already know that countless lives were lost because of the egos of some of the leaders from different nations, knowingly sabotaging efforts at times because of the fear that glory might go to the wrong country when some victories were won. Its a miracle that we did prevail. The fact is, they couldn't get along because they were too busy identifying the issues that made them different even in the midst of a raging battle that was launched to liberate the lives of millions. Yes, Jesus is coming soon, and the church can't get along. Yes, Jesus is coming soon and even in the midst of enormous need and opportunity, there seems to be no fear about carrying along gossip, ill report, propaganda, when our time would be much better spent in the more noble causes of being, as Paul describes us, ministers of reconciliation. The fleshly appetite loves tantalizing tales. Sharing tantilizing tales creates a false concept of comaradarie when one infects another with their virus of contempt. Exercise decorum and use your e-mail for G-mail. Make your e-mail 'heal-mail.' Let's commit to share and spread the 'Good' news. If you are tempted to pass along something that you deem is necessary for the church to know about, then visit a sight such as http://www.snopes.com/ and, at least, try to verify that what you are passing along and are about to infect your readers with is, in fact, legitimate. Does the Word speak to this? I love how Paul describes this dilemma in 1 Corinthians 1: 1-3 - "Dear brothers and sisters, when I was with you I couldn’t talk to you as I would to spiritual people. I had to talk as though you belonged to this world or as though you were infants in the Christian life. 2 I had to feed you with milk, not with solid food, because you weren’t ready for anything stronger. And you still aren’t ready, 3 for you are still controlled by your sinful nature. You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other. Doesn’t that prove you are controlled by your sinful nature? Aren’t you living like people of the world? 4 When one of you says, “I am a follower of Paul,” and another says, “I follow Apollos,” aren’t you acting just like people of the world?" Does the Bible describe maturity? Paul speaks of spiritual maturity in Ephesians 4:11-16 - "This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ. 14 Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. 15 Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. 16 He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love." I guess we have to ask the question about our e-mails, etc. Will they produce a prejudice and ill-affect the recipient? Is it expedient to pass this information along? Who will be helped according to what Scripture describes as being helped? Who will be hurt? Will the information draw the Body of Christ closer or will your e-mail divide and cause distrust? I remember well and often recall Jesus' admonition that is recorded in Luke Chapter 9 and verses 49 and 50. "John said to Jesus, 'Master, we saw someone using your name to cast out demons, but we told him to stop because he isn’t in our group.' 50 But Jesus said, 'Don’t stop him! Anyone who is not against you is for you.'” Friend, we are not the Lord's police department. We are stretcher bearers, water boys and girls, reconcilers, ambassadors, martyrs, and dead people. Leave the strife-generating topics for a more opportune time and focus on healing, reconciling, delivering, and loving. I am concerned that if one begins to assert that they are well-able to speak authoritatively that they are able to pass judgment at a distance (meaning one isn't directly, personally involved and can know all details for themselves), then one is probably doing something that displeases the Lord more than the thing they are reporting on: judging. Trust the Lord with the issues that might seem legitimate but are not expedient. Or, if you are passing along some information found in an e-mail, and you feel you must pass it along, then leave a clear message with it that encourages the recipients to use your notice as a reminder to get alone with the Lord and pray over the issue, asking God to remedy it Himself, protect the church from any fallout, and have mercy on those involved. Let's try it and see what happens. Freddie revfts@usa.net Posted by Pastor Freddie Steel 080408