Introduction
Social media gives us, as followers of Jesus, unprecedented opportunities to share the hope we have in Christ. Smartphones, apps, social media platforms and high speed Internet connectivity provide Christians with powerful tools to “pocket share Jesus” with a world full of darkness in need of his liberating Gospel message. The Psalmist reminds us that praise for God should always be on our lips.
I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
Our love for Jesus, the visible ways Christ acts in our lives daily, and the transforming power of God’s Holy Spirit should not be hidden from others. While we are called to personally witness to the reality and power of God in our lives with others around us face-to-face, we should seize hold of the powerful communication tools in our purses and our pockets to share the Gospel message with others in our social networks online and extended digital communities. God uses the voices and experiences of us, his people, to reach others with the liberating Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The prophet Isaiah heard God asking, “Who should I send?” Like Isaiah, when we hear this call from the Lord we should be quick to answer and act!
Then I heard the Lord asking, “Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?” I said, “Here I am. Send me.”
by .curt.
After his resurrection from the dead, Jesus continued to walk among and teach his disciples. Before he ascended to be with God our Father in heaven, Jesus commanded all of his followers to go unto the ends of the earth and preach the Gospel, witnessing to everyone about the love of God and His invitation to everyone to know him through his son, Jesus Christ. Even some of the disciples who saw Jesus in the flesh and walked with him doubted, but he encouraged them to believe and tell others about the reasons for their faith. At the end of his Gospel, Matthew shared what we now understand to be the “Great Commission” of Jesus.
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
This website is an interactive book and media sharing project by Wesley Fryer of Oklahoma City. In addition to print versions, a hyperlinked eBook version is available on pocketshare.pressbooks.com.
I invite you to participate in this project and connect with others using the hashtag #dw4jc as you serve as a digital witness for Jesus Christ. Read the chapter on “Hashtags” to learn more about how we can use them to amplify the verses, stories and testimonies about Jesus which we share, and also help us connect to each other as Christians seeking to be digitally bold for the cause of Christ.
