The Plague of Chain Emails

1Timothy 4:12, 15-16 Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity...Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.

I received an email this week which had a blurred and obscured picture attached. The picture was claimed to be "miraculous" and the caption told horror stories about those who had not forwarded it including the deaths of their children. The people who the caption claimed to have forwarded it naturally hit the lottery. The imperative at the end was of course, send to 10 people immediately. After seeing so many different varieties of these spam emails, mostly forwarded by Christians, someone suggested a devotional addressing what kind of an example we should be setting would be welcomed. I agree.

I know there are bigger fish to fry. I know that in the light of a fallen world, the eminent return of Jesus and the eternal lives hanging in the balance, spam email may seem almost trivial. But consider for a moment the words in the key verses from the Apostle Paul. All Scripture is the divinely inspired Word of Almighty God. It all matters and it all counts. Here we see Paul instructing Timothy how he is to "represent", as the youth like to say today. We are to set an example for each other. That example needs to be set in our speech (including email), our lives, in love, in faith and in purity. Why? So everyone can see your progress! God is imploring us to be diligent in these matters. The dictionary defines diligent as:

Done or pursued with persevering attention; painstaking

The example we set needs to be pursued beloved; with persevering attention. It needs to be painstaking. Paul finishes off the thought by reminding us that the consequences are far more than trivial indeed. It is how we and those that would hear us are saved. There are eternal ramifications for what we do and the example that we set. Consider for a moment some thoughts.

1) Does the email seek to glorify God or does it take glory away from God? The example I referenced above calls a picture "miraculous" and transfers the power of life and death from God to the picture. The Prophet Isaiah reminds us that God will not share His glory:

For my own sake, for my own sake, I do this. How can I let myself be defamed? I will not yield my glory to another. Isaiah 48:11

God will share many things but His glory is not one of them. Before hitting that forward button we need to remember the words of the Apostle Paul:

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God-- even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved. 1Corinthians 10: 31-33

Whatever we do it should all be for the glory of God. That means we need to be cautious of doing things that are not bringing glory to our Father. Paul is warning here about causing any to stumble and yes, even email can do that. This brings us to point number two.

2) Consider who is receiving the email and appreciate the fact that you cannot control who they will then forward it to. Nothing seems to spread faster than a bad email. Bill Gates giving his fortune away, the missing child story after the tsunami, fake amber alerts, or false political slander. It is all there. If only the Gospel would spread as quickly as chain email!

But consider for a moment to whom you are sending the emails to. Consider that they may not be as advanced in their walk as you. Their faith may not be as strong as yours. Their ability to discern may not be as developed as yours. Suddenly, what you thought was benign, is actually crippling to some. Consider again the example I gave above. In that email trail as I scrolled down I saw someone add this notation as they forwarded the picture of death:

"Hey...gotta send it.  You can delete it if you want to.  FYI....I know that God takes care of me and mine."

If you truly knew that God took care of you and yours, then you do not "gotta send it." Those statements are at complete odds with each other. What it reveals is what James warned us about:

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. James 1: 5-8

This is the very double mindedness James was warning against. The words stating that you know God takes care of you are empty and hollow if your actions are to then not believe God and forward an email such as this. But beyond that, you do not know who is receiving the email. Sure, maybe you only send it to 10 people but if they all send it to ten more that is 100 people you do not know who would not have received the email at all if you had not first sent it. You don't know which of these you are actually causing to stumble. That should be a frightening and sobering thought.

This is especially true for the emails that are dressed up in the glory of God but end with a caveat that is decidedly unchristian. You all know the ones. Some nice pictures of waterfalls and woodland creatures, maybe some bible verses, maybe some nice words about God. Then at the end the demand that you forward the email to everyone you know or else you don't love God. Or even worse, the dreaded verse the most abused verse in chain emails appears:

If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. Luke 9: 26

"So don't be ashamed and forward this email to 100 people". Folks. I have checked all commentaries, historic and contemporary, and I can assure you chain email is NOT what Jesus is referring to. He was referring to picking up your cross daily to follow Him. He was referring to not holding onto your own life but rather holding on to His. Sacrificing our lives to Christ is about thinking of everyone else before ourselves . That brings us to point number three to consider.

3) Does the email build others up or tear others apart? Does it strengthen faith or weaken faith? I know, it's just an email right? Consider these verses:

All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify. Let no one seek his own, but each one the other's well-being. 1Corinthians 10: 23-24 (NKJV)

Things may seem perfectly harmless to you but do not edify the body. God has made us all unique. What causes one to stumble may not cause you to stumble. While it may seem that nothing can shake your faith, that may not be true for your brother or sister. We are meant to build each other up:

Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.- Ephesians 4: 29 (NKJV)

Does the email you are forwarding impart grace to the hearer or some kind of standard for blessing that is not of God? Does it promote controversies rather than the work of God? Paul instructs Timothy:

As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God's work--which is by faith. The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. Some have wandered away from these and turned to meaningless talk. 1Timothy 1: 3-6

Some are still wandering away, turning to meaningless talk. Myths instead of the truth which brings us to the last point to consider.

4) Is the email you are sending even true? I would wager that 95% of the alleged facts in chain emails have been falsified. They are simply untrue. A routine Google search would probably debunk these emails in less than five minutes but too often we can send the email on without first checking the veracity of the facts. Of the seven things Proverbs teaches are an abomination to God, a lying tongue is one of them. When Paul talks about rules for holy living to the Church at Colossae he teaches:

Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Colossians 3: 5-10

What do we find in the middle of these verses? Amidst anger, rage, idolatry, malice, slander, and filthy language? Untruths. We are to be renewed in the knowledge of God. We are to put off the old self. The truth to the world is malleable. It can be molded to shape what they want. Opinion is stated as fact. Spin becomes an acceptable point of view. The world teaches that the truth contains shades of grey but the Bible teaches that the truth is black and white. There is right and there is wrong. Shades of grey exist to make us feel better about the fact that we are doing something deep down we know is wrong.

The key verses implore us to watch our lives and doctrine closely. That includes our speech and email is part of what we have to say. It is part of our representation of Christ. I am not speaking about sending an occasional joke here or there, or inspiring pictures of the creative powers of God. I am speaking about chain email that serves to take glory away from God, does not edify people or is simply untrue. I am speaking about thinking about who is receiving the emails and where they might be in their walk. Not everyone is at the same place in their walk and their faith.

Send a bible verse today or a promise from God. Let God use you to spread His Word.

Break the chain.

Reverend Anthony Wade September 18, 2009