Friday, February 6th

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Friday, Feb. 6

Acts 12:24-25

But the word of God increased and multiplied. And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had completed their service, bringing with them John, whose other name was Mark.

We now live in the age of the internet, social media and the phenomenon of the so-called “viral video.” Someone uses their cell phone to video-record their dog eating an ice cream cone or their baby doing something cute and posts it on Facebook or Twitter and within 24 hours it has been viewed by a million people.

If I see something funny or interesting on the internet and want to share it with one of my boys, chances are that by the time I show it to them they’ve already seen it and passed it on to several hundred of their electronic friends.

We live in the viral age of information; images and words can be spread at the speed of light and reach more people more quickly than ever before in human history. The technology that makes all this possible has created something of a “Pandora’s box” in that the power of instant communication can be used for good, for bad and for the completely frivolous.

Here’s a small example of the good!

A couple of weeks ago we shared a Gospel Story video in all our weekend worship services. It told the story of Matt Caterer, who had a successful music career with a punk rock band before realizing the spiritual emptiness at the core of his life. He shared how a series of events eventually led him into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It’s a great story!

After we showed it in our weekend services we then posted the video on our social media sites, including Facebook, YouTube, and twitter.  In two days the video reached well over 6,000 people and is still being shared and viewed. 

The Book of Acts is all about the spread of the gospel. We see the gospel spread through preaching and teaching; we see it spread through miracles and healing; we see it spread through personal encounters; we see it spread through persecution and suffering; we even see it spread through the martyrdom of men like Stephen and James.

In that sense, the gospel has always been “viral,” that is, it is the very nature of the gospel to spread. It spreads from person to person, from people group to people group, from culture to culture, by any means available and by any means necessary.

The gospel, therefore, is unstoppable. It leaps across boundaries. It cannot be contained by social, cultural, political, economic or religious barriers. It cannot be stopped by persecution, by suffering, by evil or even by death itself.

Chances are you are reading or listening to this because you have already “caught” the gospel virus; if so, are you willing to pass it on to someone else?

Pastor Brian Coffey