Facebook Love and Hate

Yes, I've been sucked in to reading just a few more posts on Facebook. It takes willpower to click away. Of course the younger folks have long ago abandoned FB. When old people like me got on board, well, FB became passé. They like Instagram, Snapchat, and other platforms that I don't even know about.

But back to Facebook. I have this deep ambivalence about using it. I feel somewhat accomplished when I go a whole day or more without checking my feed. I feel like I'm more hip, like all the young people. (But I almost never check my Instagram account because, frankly, I just don't get it. It seems much more like a waste of time to me than FB.)

I feel like I have conquered the addiction when I close out that FB tab. Ha ha! I escaped!

But then, I like to know what's happening with friends. I like to see if they have kids or grandkids to be proud of. I like to see when young folks graduate or get engaged. I like to keep up with the news, even sad news, and often follow up when I learn something on FB. I do try to scroll on by the cute kitten videos. Way too many of those.

When it comes to my own posts, of COURSE I like to be liked. I like to be noticed. I like for people to make the extraordinary effort of clicking a button below my picture. Talk about affirmation! But I feel guilty for checking up on my likes. Why do I care so much about other people's approval? Shouldn't I be above all that?

And how engaged should I really be here? Do I want to saturate FB with pictures of every bite of every meal? Or do I want to be a stalker who never posts, rarely likes others' posts?

And then there's the threat of FB (and all the other FAANG firms) knowing soooo much about me. They think they know all about my buying habits. Sometimes they actually get it right. But I like to keep them guessing. Take that you vicious algorithm!

So, for me, there is both love and hate of Facebook. I just don't want to be controlled by some computer. My New Year's resolution about Facebook? Don't really have one. I'll just keep on loving and hating.

On Being Hated

Jesus said that the world would hate his disciples.

¹⁸ “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. ¹⁹ If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. --Jesus in John 15:18-19

The world hated Jesus so much that they crucified him. He challenged people's assumptions, exposed their abuse of power, and criticized their desire for wealth. The downtrodden and outcast really liked him; people in power despised him. Those for whom the system was not working flocked to his teaching. Those who benefited from the system resented his reckless disregard for a time-tested system of honor and reward.

This teaching about being hated really bothers me. I don't want to be hated. I go out of my way to avoid offending people. If the world recognizes Christians by their love for each other, who could hate that? If we forgive and give to the poor and love our neighbors, how could that offend?

That's my disconnect. Jesus says that we will be hated, and he gives us the ministry of reconciliation and love. If we follow him with abandon, why would anyone hate us?

Obviously Jesus followed his own teaching. He loved the unlovely. He gave himself willingly. He lived with humility.

But Jesus also pointed out the flaws in systems and individuals. He called out the abuse of power. He pointed out the hypocrisy of religious elites. He refused to buy into the system of his day. He exposed selfish motives. He debated theology, and challenged dogma. His pushback against the system made people hate him.

And in the modern, Western world, the followers of Jesus don't seem to be hated too much. We try to live out the love component, but don't want to rock the boat. We don't push back against the system. To a large degree, churches and Christians work quite well, thank you, within this system.

We market our causes, leverage social media, and show the world that there is no reason to hate Christians. Yes, I know that elsewhere in the world, believers are tortured and executed. They are experiencing the hate of the world. I also know that in America Christians are overlooked for promotions and marginalized in the media. Christians are often made the scapegoats for all the ills in our society.

But I don't feel hated. Being hated is not my goal. That would be foolish. But Jesus did say that his disciples would be hated by the world. Is that no longer true? Or am I failing to challenge the system like Jesus did?

I think I know the answer.

ISIS vs. Nazis

Militant Islamists want to take over the world, and they brutally slaughter any who stand in the way.  In the 1930s and 1940s Nazi Germany and Imperialist Japan joined ranks to take over the world.  Reluctantly, the U.S. entered WWII after Japan bombed the U.S. military base in Pearl Harbor.  The U.S. rightly stood against the powers of evil sweeping the world.

There are some similarities between ISIS and the Nazis:  brutality, totalitarianism, quest for world domination, indoctrination of young children.  Many believe that we should fight ISIS just as we fought the Nazis.

But ISIS is not exactly like Nazi Germany.  The Germans worked through their existing national government, which Hitler cleverly took charge of.  They conscripted young men to serve in the armed forces and used the power of the government to spread propaganda.  Religion was used by the Nazis only as a tool for the nationalist agenda.  Many religious voices were silenced.  The Nazi quest was a top-down approach, as Der Fuhrer worked his plan.

ISIS is different because it has no single charismatic leader.  A quick Google search of ISIS leaders pulls up no names familiar to me.  There are leaders, but there are many leaders.  The ISIS movement has no formal means of conscription.  This means that their forces are chiefly volunteers.  Which means that their soldiers are true believers.  Unlike Nazi soldiers who merely followed orders, ISIS militants put into action what they truly believe.  ISIS grows from the grassroots.  Pockets of believers may be found in any nation around the globe.  They can be called upon in a moment's notice to work along with the larger evil agenda.  The Nazis had nothing like this.

Militant Islam is much more insidious, and consequently much more dangerous.  Bombs and bullets can stop massive military movements like the current surge in Iraq.  But a more important battle is the the battle for the hearts of people.  So many believe the lie that non-Muslims must be slaughtered, in the name of Allah.  They serve their god by murdering entire villages.

It will take more than the sword to win this growing global conflict.  It will take truth.  It will take bold proclamation of the Lordship of Jesus.  It will take the power of the Spirit of God changing hearts.  It will
take the gospel.  It will take a movement of people who are sold out to the truth, reconciled to God through the cross, and ready to love in the face of hate.