Is Jesus on Facebook?

Looking for feedback. I am serving my Church as a Youth Leader and I have been asked to write and lead in devotions.

Is Jesus on Facebook?

Roman’s:  12 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God"this is your true and proper worship. ² Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is"his good, pleasing and perfect will.

            Many of you here should not only know this verse but also have memorized it since it was the theme for La Grave serve in Grand Rapids.  This past week I was thinking about what I was going to say for devotions and often God surprises me.  As I was in the shower on Monday Romans 12 popped in to my mind and I felt I should talk about a religion that transforms.

            I just joined the twenty first century, I signed up for twitter a few days ago and I am really enjoying it.  I was reading some tweets from friends and I came across a very interesting one.  “People need to realize there is more to faith than posting Bible verses on FB and going to warm countries with lots of poor black people.”  This somewhat blunt statement I think is very true.  Today in our culture it is very trendy to be Christian; everywhere you look there are religious innuendos.  Youth are very much captured by the emotion of religion, that’s why Facebook is covered in “like if you love Jesus” or share if God is your everything.  Posting things like this is not necessarily bad but if that is the extent of your relationship with the Lord then you have a problem.

            Your relationship should touch every aspect of your life as Abraham Kuyper famously said “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, "Mine!.”  You cannot be a Christian on Sunday, post a cute bible verse on Wednesday and then go out drinking on Friday.  James 1:27 says “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world”.  This does not mean you need to give up everything and move downtown to please God but like Pastor Henry preached on Sunday you should be producing fruits/good works. 

            Not everyone is called to go live in Calcutta like Mother Teresa or go to the interior of Africa like David Livingston but perhaps you feel called to start helping David Schurman out on deedz on Friday nights, or trying to memorize scripture, everyone has different gifts and we are called to use all of them.  In Romans twelve we read we should use our gifts “according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your^[a] faith; ⁷ if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; ⁸ if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead,^[b] do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully”.

            When we were on serve Doctor Duane Kelderman preached at the Church we were staying at and during his sermon he spoke directly to us saying.

God has plans for each one of you young people here on SERVE, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. God has plans to use you in powerful ways to build shalom in the world. But you have to believe that to see it. You have to give yourself to that to experience it. You must seek God with all of your heart. I know that many of you will look back at this summer and at this experience as pivotal in your commitment to Christ and his kingdom.