Imagine. Sunday morning church is progressing along. Only one or two people are asleep, but we haven’t got to the preaching yet. The music has been good, people are enjoying themselves. Fairly typical Sunday morning.

         Then, someone who had slipped in just before church started suddenly jumps up.

         “HEY,” he shouts. “I demand pornography! You’re connected to the internet! I demand porn!” To this, Max Chamberlain turns around and whacks the person with that mighty club he calls a cane.

         Well that is a stupid idea, you say. That would never happen and if it did, several of the men would toss him out. After Max was done with him. No one is going to come into a church demanding something like that.

         Probably not, at least not around here. We are a private, non-profit organization. We can put on the screen whatever we want. It is silly to think someone could come into the church and demand something outrageous.

         However, more and more I am seeing people up in arms about Facebook and Twitter and You Tube blocking certain religious writings or videos, calling them hate speech. Whenever I see someone upset over it, they wind up saying that Facebook and Twitter and You Tube are violating our constitutional rights of freedom of religion. Every time someone or some religious group starts that, I think to myself that their ignorance is on full display.

         Facebook and Twitter and You Tube are private companies. They are not taking away anyone’s freedom of religion. But just like we have guidelines as to what will go on our sanctuary screen, they have guidelines they follow. Preaching against various sins is, to them, hate speech. Holding a particular political viewpoint is, to them, hate speech. They have the right to regulate what they allow out there, just as we have the right to regulate what we put out. During the pandemic shutdown, Facebook was very good about letting churches post videos. However, Facebook is re-evaluating what they allow. They now have a new censor board to weed out what they don’t want. Getting a Facebook page is quick and easy. Up loading a video is a snap. Nothing to it and anyone can do it. A whole lot easier than creating your own webpage and posting videos on the webpage. Most churches that have gone the Facebook and You Tube path are going to find out pretty soon that their run is over. And most of those churches will then cry that their religious liberty, guaranteed by the Constitution, is being violated.

         I have been asked why we don’t post our service videos on Facebook or You Tube. We all have watched videos online and they seem to run smoothly, but ours sometimes glitches and jerks. What makes your church video glitch and jerk is the lack of something called bandwidth due to poor internet provision in the area. Facebook and You Tube do not have the same need for quality bandwidth, so their videos run better.

         But that doesn’t matter. What matters is that we are not going to be censored. (at least not until the government gets taken over by the inmates) We have our own webpage, administered by Mary Earle. Uploading our videos to the webpage is a semi complex ordeal. At least it seems complex to me. The content, though, is what we want to post. The entire webpage is full of interesting stuff and Mary works to keep it up and interesting. Just so you know, the address to our page is http://urbanayokeparish.com/  If you haven’t yet, please go and take a look around.

         What does matter is that we will not compromise in order to do things the easy way. We will put the content we want to put out without fear of censorship. Being God’s people and doing things God’s way has never been easy.

         It would make it so much easier if there was a book in the Bible that instructed us on social media presentation of the Gospel. Just think if Paul had the kind of access we have! He would have been ecstatic! Isaiah sang his sermons. Wouldn’t that be neat to hear? We could probably watch Samson bring down the house. For now, though, we have this;

Psalm 119:40-48 The Psalmist is talking to the Lord about His Word.

40.) How I long for Your precepts! In Your righteousness preserve my life. 

41.) May Your unfailing love come to me, LORD, Your salvation, according to Your promise; 

42.) then I can answer anyone who taunts me, for I trust in Your Word. 

43.) Never take Your Word of truth from my mouth, for I have put my hope in Your laws. 

44.) I will always obey Your law, for ever and ever. 

45.) I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out Your precepts. 

46.) I will speak of Your statutes before kings and will not be put to shame, 

47.) for I delight in Your commands because I love them. 

48.) I reach out for Your commands, which I love, that I may meditate on Your decrees. 

         Verse 45 speaks of freedom only coming from the Word of God. All these people right now clamoring for freedom and justice tend to scoff at the Bible, but that is where the answer exists.

         God is good.