I have come to the conclusion that there is a new type of prosperity gospel going around. One that is feathered, and flowered, and disguised with fancy scripting and beautiful sunsets. It is called the Instagram Gospel. The Instagram gospel is slowly deceiving its way into many young girls hearts. It offers them all the feels. It makes them feel good, feel comfort, feel peace without much needed context and slowly girls are replacing their time in Gods word, with time scrolling through perfectly filtered squares of partial truth and out of context verses. It is a serious danger that is disguised by something that looks so innocent and pretty.
In a stage where girls should be creating a foundation of theology by reading their bible, they have begun creating a wobbly base of strung together verses that make them feel warm inside. What I have noticed is that these girls who are not anchored in the truth of God's word, begin to lower their theology to match their discomfort. On the surface the Instagram bible verses are good. It's God's word and it's truth. It is a great way to minister to lost people, it's when the hearts of the viewers think that the verses can fill them the way all of God's word together can. That's when we hit the problem. It robs people of the intimacy they can have with Jesus. Imagine a Bible put together that just consisted of Instagram bible verses. Where would genealogy be? Or levitical law. Or most of Revelation? What about knowing things about Calvinism and Arminianism? The gifts? Or maybe even what happened to Jesus in the 3 days from when he died and then rose again? Or how can God seem so angry in the old testament, and then seem to have done a 180 in the new testament? It would comfort without warning. It would inspire you without giving you the doctrine you need. It would promise you things without allowing you to fear God, making those promises so much more meaningful. It robs you of the deep love and emotion you can feel for Jesus that comes through knowing Him and replaces it with a surface level understanding of who Christ is and what He can do for you.
Let's think about a verse. A verse all over Instagram. A verse in a rising world of girl power and feminism. A verse that is tattooed, placed on coffee mugs, journals, and jewelry. This verse has girls flying to it like bees to honey. It is Psalm 46:5, God is with her she will not fall. This verse has brought false hope to women who desperately need real truth. We cannot, I repeat cannot alter what the bible says to make it fit our situation. If you read the context of the situation the verse is about, it is talking about war. The "She" he is referring to is the City of God.
Is God with us as women? Yes! absolutely! Does this mean we will never fall? Absolutely not. We will fall, over, and over, and over again. Should we think that God is not with us, or that he will leave us, or that he will not help us? No way! We have scripture everywhere rebuking that type of thinking! He will always pick us up after we fall. But we cannot be self-centered and claim verses as ours.
I encourage us as women to study Gods word more. I know it is easy, at least it is for me, to run to things to substitute my time with Jesus. Whether it is a devotional, an Instagram verse, a blog post, a commentary, a worship song, etc. These all will temporarily encourage my emotions to feel close to Jesus. But nothing will ever come close to the deep connection you can receive by reading God's word and drawing close to Him. The more you know God the more you will love Him. So, girls, I am speaking to myself as well, let's stop cherry picking bible verses to perfectly match how we are feeling. Let's not allow our emotions to shape our theology. Let's as women, know God. Really know Him. And that comes from knowing His word.