Wisdom in the Digital World

Follower counts matter less than whether you’re actually following the One who counts.

You and I face many decisions every day. Sometimes those decisions are difficult. In those moments, where do you turn for wisdom? Perhaps you turn to your father or grandfather. Maybe it is your family pastor, who has been faithfully serving week in and week out for decades. And of course, the book of Proverbs. But the one place that I suspect most thoughtful Christians would not suggest turning to is social media. Although truth and wisdom can be found there, it is in the minority and is often drowned out by the cacophony of voices and “hot takes.”

Despite this reality, social media is where we increasingly spend our time, and surveys continue to show that teenagers are spending many hours every day on social media and are almost constantly online. This raises questions of how Christians can flourish in this new digital age, especially Christian teenagers who don’t know that it is “new,” since this is all they have known. Christians need to take a proactive approach if we are to push against the current of today’s culture and resist the world’s discipling us.

One verse that often comes to mind when discussing the challenges of today’s digital age is found in Colossians. The Apostle Paul tells his readers to “walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time” (4:5). While it has always been true that since the fall we all need wisdom, especially toward outsiders, how much greater is the need today, when one post on social media has the potential to be seen by millions, if not billions, of outsiders—a magnitude of reach likely unimaginable to Paul?

For Paul, the motivation to pursue wisdom toward outsiders was to make “the best use of the time”—that is, to take advantage of every opportunity for evangelism, having “gracious” speech and knowing how to “answer each person” (v. 6). Like the Apostle Peter in 1 Peter 3:15, Paul assumes that the Christian’s manner of life, his walk of wisdom, will provoke questions from a watching world. But do the ways that Christians engage in conversations on social media, even perhaps down to the way we use our always-connected devices, differ from the world around us? It seems clear from Scripture that there ought to be a difference, but sadly, we often lack the wisdom that we are commanded to pursue and exercise in the Christian life. (Wisdom in the Digital World)

One difference between the Christian and the world is the presence of the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22–23). This fruit can be seen in what we say, in what we don’t say, and even by the tone in which we say it. Love is the first fruit listed by Paul, and Jesus declared that “all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). Yet I fear that if we were to examine the collective speech of Christians online, we would discover that we love being right more than we love each other.

Furthermore, the world has a pragmatic approach to social media. If a post will get engagement and attract the attention of the algorithms that control other people’s feeds, the world will share it. The world is driven by the affirmation of its peers and strangers—the more likes the better. On the other hand, Christians should be driven by a grateful, Spirit-enabled desire to please their God and Redeemer, always looking forward to one day hearing the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matt. 25:21). This is a radical difference, and Paul assumed that this difference would be evident to those around us. In the age of the influencer, it is important to remember that follower counts matter less than whether you’re actually following the One who counts.

If you and I are to make “the best use of the time” (Col. 4:5) as Paul commands, we need to first acknowledge the many opportunities that do exist online to be ambassadors for Christ instead of simply ignoring these Great Commission opportunities. Pray that the Lord would help us be good stewards and grant us the spiritual eyes to see the need. Yet we also need to acknowledge the amount of time that we can easily waste online if we are not careful and in so doing miss the Great Commission opportunities that present themselves in our real-world areas of responsibility, whether as spouses, parents, children, employees, students, or neighbors. The wise Christian is aware of both realities.

One of the most terrifying verses in the Bible for me is Jesus’ warning that we will give an account for “every careless word” that we speak (Matt. 12:36). This most certainly includes what we post on social media. Consider how social media has likely amplified and multiplied the number of careless words spoken and shared today versus even only a few decades ago. And if our stewardship of every word spoken will be brought into judgment, surely the stewardship of every minute will be, too. As one Bible teacher has said, one of the great uses of social media will be to prove at the last day that prayerlessness was not from lack of time.

As I often reflect on the need for wisdom and the wise applications of biblical truth for our digital age, I have never concluded that I have arrived. We are all works in progress. And so I return frequently to the incredible promise made by James that “if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him” (James 1:5). This is a prayer that cannot be prayed too frequently and one that I know I need to pray more often. May the Lord grant His church the wisdom it needs to steward the tools and technology of today’s digital age well, so that, ultimately, He receives all the glory.

by Nathan W. Bingham / Tabletalk Magazine - April 2025

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Nathan W. Bingham is vice president of ministry engagement for Ligonier Ministries, executive producer and host of Renewing Your Mind and the Ask Ligonier podcast, and a graduate of Presbyterian Theological College in Melbourne, Australia. He has extensive experience in web development, social media consulting, communications, and content strategy. You can follow him on X at @NWBingham.

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