Your Social Media Accounts Are Not Your Own
You may have created the account, but as with everything else in your life, it all belongs to God.
Q1: What is your only comfort in life and in death?
Answer: That I am not my own, but belong—body and soul, in life and in death— to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ.
The first question and answer of the Heidelberg Catechism instructs Christians that the our lives do not belong to us, and this is wonderfully good news. Contrary to the messages and pressures of the world, the individual Christian is not the center of their own universe. In losing their life, the individual Christian gains the precious reminder that their entire existence is held secure by the unchanging and unstoppable power and love of the Creator and Sustainer of all things.
Christian discipleship consists of many things, but at their core all of the challenges and struggles of discipleship revolve around reminding ourselves, constantly, that we are not the kings and queens of our existence. Our authority and stewardship over our lives - be it work, family, marriage, finance, food, drink, fitness, the very words we speak to one another on a daily basis, and countless other aspects of living - is not ultimately for our gain, but for God’s glory. Every day, every dollar, every drop of water that comes from the sky comes from the Lord for our blessing and benefit that it might result in praise to the one from whom all things flow.
Social media, by design, tempts us with the belief that we can be the kings and queens of our existence - or at least, a small slice of it. We create accounts thinking that these are ours to command however we see fit, and treat them as though these are ours to use for whatever purpose we deem good and right. But if our lives belong to the Lord, and with it all the features and realities of living, our social media accounts are no exception. Our social media accounts are not our own, but belong to the Lord.
How would that change the way we use them? I can think of four ways.
First, if our social media accounts are not our own, it should immediately change how we treat others using them. Christ does not treat us the way Christians often treat each other, and if our social media accounts are truly under Christ’s ownership, we ought to be compelled to treat other Christians the way Christ treats us. I could copy and paste a slew of ethical exhortations from Scripture on this point, but it goes without saying: if Christians were truly discipled on their tech and media habits, we would be the most distinct people on the Internet.
Second, if our social media accounts are not our own, it should raise the question of why we have these accounts in the first place. Just as God has given members of the body unique gifts for unique purposes, God has placed some people in Digital Babylon to where social media is a vocation itself, or a necessary aspect of fulfilling a vocation. Social media is not mandatory for everyone, and using social media “just because” isn’t an appropriate answer. In the absence of a clear and compelling reason for why you have your account, maybe you should consider logging out of it1 so you can tend to things God has truly given you to steward.
Third, if our social media accounts are not our own, it should cause us to see our social media presence as being driven by the Lord’s purposes instead of our own. To be clear: there is nothing wrong with using our social media accounts to promote our work, sell our products and services, or swap memes and Reels in Instagram group chats. But if our social media accounts are not our own, those cannot be the primary purpose for using social media. God’s cause is that his name be glorified throughout all the earth; what would it look like for your social media usage to reflect this even while enjoying other lesser benefits from social media?
Fourth, if our social media accounts are not our own, we should understand suffering on social media for the cause of Christ as a legitimate category of biblical witness. 1 Peter speaks plenty of the kind of suffering that can legitimate count towards following Christ and the kind of suffering due to foolish or sinful behavior. Much “suffering” from supposedly bold and outspoken Christians falls into the later category. But suffering for proclaiming Christ and his Word, in spaces hostile to the Gospel, while walking in the fruit of the Spirit is not a meaningless waste of time, whatever arena it may occur in. “He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to the one who judges justly” (1 Pet 2:22-23)
Your finances are not your own. Your job is not your own. Your education is not your own. Your family is not your own. Your health is not your own. Your hobbies are not your own. Your life is not your own. Neither are your social media accounts. All of it belongs to the Lord, because as the rest of the answer from Heidelberg Q&A 1 states:
He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood,
and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil.
He also watches over me in such a way
that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my Father in heaven;
in fact, all things must work together for my salvation.
Because I belong to him, Christ, by his Holy Spirit, assures me of eternal life
and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him.
Thanks for reading. This one has been sitting on me for a while as I continue to think through the implications of my Digital Babylon framework to the Christian life. There are ideas in here that I know I need to flesh out separately, but those will just have to wait.
If you’ve enjoyed this piece, please consider subscribing and sharing with your friends! And remember: together, all of us are passing through this temporary digital empire towards the celestial city.
- Austin
I need to write on this at some point, but I am very pro-owning your own social account for each major platform for safety purposes. As the social media landscape expands, the possibility that someone can take your name, image, and likeness and impersonate you in a space where you would never know.
“using social media ‘just because’ isn’t an appropriate answer. In the absence of a clear and compelling reason for why you have your account, maybe you should consider logging out of it1 so you can tend to things God has truly given you to steward.”
1000% yes.
Literally the only reason I have an instagram account is because He told me to make one for the sake of posting what He tells me to post.
I’d rather not be there at all, but it is not up to me!
Deleted every account of mine yesterday! except Substack, of course. I love your concept of "The Digital Babylon." There's really something to that. Would love to read your extrapolation of that idea.