By Dr. John Scheel

According to the latest statistics, I have available at the end of 2014 there were 1,390 Million Facebook accounts. That is about a 97% monthly growth rate! In 2012, Facebook was worth over 1 Billion dollars!

Mark Zuckerberg, a Harvard Student, for Harvard students to see, started all of this. Mark had some differences with a girlfriend, which gave him the idea!

Facebook, when used correctly is a good way to stay in touch with old friends, to make announcements and to keep abreast with your world. I am concerned that ministers, although writing in humor are saying the most disgusting things on the forums of Facebook. We should not take the Word of God lightly or the things of God. Forums that were meant for ministers are readily open to the public. It is embarrassing when saints ask their pastor, “Didn’t he/she preach for us?”

We should be careful how we handle the greatest asset the Lord has ever given us. The Holy Ghost and the ministry are too important to make a joke of it in the manner that some are. I even saw where a fundamental minister said that the story of Adam and Eve was only an allegory and never happened! Brethren this ought not to be.

Pilate made the statement, “What I have written, I have written.” What are we writing today?

Joshua 24:19-25 tells my story. Joshua said, “Ye are witnesses against yourselves…”

Now, leaving the Facebook aside we need to realize that we are spending our lives and a story is being written in God’s book. We will one day face God with the deeds done in our mortal lives.

Jesus made it clear that we will be judged by “idle words”. Jesus had humor and anger, but we must realize that we must live like we want to be judged after death. Idle words are not foolishness necessarily. Idle words entail us discounting the Holy things of God.

A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned. Matt 12:35-37

Dear reader, we must all stand before God concerning our “Facebook” which is our lives, not necessarily a social media. We will Face Up to Our Facebook one day even though we might not even be on social media!

I have always appreciated Dale Wimbrow’s poem, “The Man in the Glass.” Although it was first published in 1934, it is still popular and timely for us.

When you get what you want in your struggle for self

And the world makes you king for a da,

Just go to the mirror and look at yourself,

And see what that man has to say.

For it isn’t your father, or mother, or wife

Whose judgment upon you must pass

The fellow whose verdict counts most in your life

Is the one staring back from the glass.

He’s the fellow to please — never mind all the rest

For he’s with you, clear to the end

And you’ve passed your most difficult, dangerous test

If the man in the glass is your friend.

You may fool the whole world down the pathway of years And get pats on the back as you pass

But your final reward will be heartache and tears

If you’ve cheated the man in the glass.

And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation. Heb 9:27-28

This is not written to condemn or hurt anybody, but we need to examine ourselves.