Technology and the Gospel

Christians have always adapted to the advancement of technology to be able to spread the gospel in different ways to reach more people. It was the Romans who created the road system which made it possible for the early church to travel with the message of Jesus Christ to the known world.
It was Johannes Gutenberg who created the printing press in the fifteenth century, which paved the way for the Bible to go from the hands of the affluent to the common person, from the hands of the religious elite to the peasants. The printing press made reading possible for so many people, which meant more people could read the Bible. The printing press paved the way for the Bible to be translated and mass produced for people to read in their native tongue. This was huge! It literally changed the world and how it communicated. Pastors now were able to print their sermons as pamphlets. Christians were able to adapt to this technology with the work of evangelism. 
Today in the twenty-first century, we have another advancement in technology with the ability to communicate live with anyone from anywhere around the world. Today Christians have capitalized on this by being able to stream Christian content to others in other parts of the world. Today you can read the Bible for free or download it in many different languages. You can even have the Bible read to you. Sermons are not only reprinted but downloaded and streamed. You can be across the country and watch a sermon live.
I am so thankful for our church in adapting and using technology. Just as the believers did in the fifteenth century with the printing press, we are using technology to proclaim the gospel around the world.
We do an event called Harvest America, where we broadcast the Gospel message all across the country. What is unique is that not only did we have people watching from every state of the United States of America, but we also had others watch it from other parts of the world.
Stephenson Weme has been watching sermons from Pastor Greg for a few years now and when there was an opportunity for him to show Harvest America in Kenya, he took advantage of it. Stephenson took a bold step of faith by inviting several hundred people out for Harvest America. God’s hand was upon it as 277 people showed up and there were 89 professions of faith.

Stephensen’s desire is to be a pastor one day and he was wanting to be faithful in providing opportunities for his fellow neighbors and friends to hear the gospel.
What a great reminder for us that technology can be used for good or bad. Technology can be a device to harm or to help. God has allowed mankind to learn and grow and create these tools. As believers, we can use these tools to get the gospel out.

Use Technology to Share Your Faith

With the ability to share a photo with the whole world today, why wouldn’t we want to use it to share the one thing that matters more than anything: what Jesus Christ has done for the whole world!
With technology today, we can have the novelty of communicating with someone like Stephenson in Kenya right now. Why wouldn’t we want to share the gospel with the whole world with the tools at our fingertips? The apostle Paul reminds the church in Ephesus, “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time because the days are evil (Ephesians 5:15–16 ESV).” Paul uses terminology that a merchant would understand: make the most that you can in the time that you have. Don’t squander the daylight. Paul was referring to being a merchant of truth or being productive with the gospel. How many transactions with the gospel can you make in a day? This wasn’t about living your best life; it was about living a godly life to share the best news, the gospel.
Paul is saying, the present time is evil and will come to an end one day, but with the amount of breath you have in your lungs, we are called to share the gospel. Today, we still are called to share the gospel truth with our neighbors but we also can share it easily with the foreigner across the world because of technology.
Just like the first-century church used the advancement of technology to travel in sharing the gospel, or used the printing press in the fifteenth century, we today can share the gospel in lightning speed with the billions around the world with the internet and social media. Use it for God’s glory!