In the past few months, there has been a rash of YouTube videos by high profile users, including the one below, where they share their community service acts online. First and foremost, I will say that I hope this trend keeps gaining momentum because this is a great thing, regardless if the people who are doing it identify as Christians or not. What I have noticed is that Christian churches and ministries seem to be lacking presences in the discussion.
[tentblogger-youtube XHcvMbYoAv4]
[via YouTube]
But here is my question, as online marketers in church tech, should we be advocating for video recording these moments and making great promotional videos to post online too? I am going to give you both sides of the argument and leave it open for you to decide in the comments.
Initial Reaction
My initial reaction is, of course we want to show off what we are doing. If nothing else, this is great publicity to show off to the community to let your neighbors know how you are being God’s hands and feet. The Church has become known in many circles as a place to hate others that are different and “not be very good at sharing.” This could change the Church’s image.
Beyond that, this might inspire others who currently do not attend a church, to consider coming to your church. We are always looking for something to get more people in the pews, to hear about Jesus and join the Body of Christ.
Finally, this is a great way to build relationships within the church and celebrate those that are serving. We want to show others that we value this kind of action and promote others to join in.
Not So Fast
While these are all nice ideas that at the surface seem like great ideas, are they Biblically based? Many of the Bible verses that are used to argue for and against this position are used incorrectly and heretically. Understand the context and know what the Scripture is saying before you argue with it.
The only Scripture that I know by heart against this is Jesus’s words in His famous Sermon on the Mount:
“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” – Matthew 6:1-3
Instantly, this debate needs to define if video promotional videos are self-promoting and self-praising? If so, we are not to do it. Secondly, are their other Bible verses that preach against this (or for it) too?
Sound off in the comments on what you think. Should church tech be creating video promotionals or are they too self-serving?
Chip Holt says
This is something I struggled back and forth over in my own work as a video producer for a mega-church (which I have since moved on from). I have come down on the side that falls in line with Matthew 6:1-3… Not to mention, I always felt awkward filming and producing content promoting “good deeds” for the poor and less-fortunate. I could never shake the sense that we were capitalizing on the suffering of others for the sake of promotion, even though we were helping. Ephesians 2:10 was always used as a reference point and basis for promoting what we were doing, but after looking at the two sections of scripture, I think promoting anything a church does has to be approached with serious caution in motive, purpose and execution, and with the Matthew verse in the forefront of our minds.
Jeremy Smith says
Chip, I love that you are thoughtful in wanting to do this. For me, in the end, that is what it is about. We cannot simply say that “it all is okay” or “we cannot be doing this” but instead understanding our motivations behind it.
Tre Lawrence says
I struggle to qualify my thoughts on this for the same reasons you’ve mentioned: is it testimony or self-adulation? I think it has to be clearly the former.
Look at us? Or look at Him?
Jeremy Smith says
How would you put all that you have done to this point? Is creating videos and images of these events wrong?
Eric Dye says
I love this question and I think it’s worth our time to address. Perhaps it could be viewed or evaluated much like a personal testimony? If we think of the local church body as an individual person and tell the story from that perspective, we’ll find the right balance.
Jeremy Smith says
I think that you could look at it like a personal testimony, but what about the video clips (the B-roll footage) of feeding the homeless or worshipping with God? We always want those “crying moments” that help the viewers connect with the message…. it because very grey and in many ways, wrong.
Paul Alan Clifford (@PaulAlanClif) says
What if instead of broadcasting it ourselves, (I’m also uncomfortable with the idea) we do so many good deeds that people can’t help but notice.
I don’t have a problem being noticed, but doing the marketing of good deeds is icky, at best.
Paul
Jeremy Smith says
Is it though? There were several times where Jesus would purposely gather an audience (the Last Supper, etc) and talk about it. Other times, He would talk about miracles and how God was moved in them. Is that not just what we are doing in our videos?
Jessica says
Personally, I feel a bit uncomfortable with the idea of promoting community activities that a church may do online. There needs to be alot of prayer in considering this matter, and its not a decision that’s just made by a few individuals but has to be agreed upon and “Amened” by all members of the church. The church is Christ’s body, and each member should be receiving the same burden because they all share the same life (which is Christ). If there is no peace about it then better not proceed.
We have to be sensitive to the Spirit’s leading. The Lord wants to come back and gain His church, His kingdom, so in considering matters like this we have to think ‘Lord, will this help you gain what you have wanted all along? Which is to have an expression of your own glory on earth, and let your expression/kingdom have dominion over Satan and the earth”…
Jeremy Smith says
At the same time, I can see the situation where Jesus comes back and much like the parable of the talents looks at us and asks why we buried it. We are given so much, yet we cannot share this with others, even if it is a video of what we did? It’s not an easy decision.
Wes says
I think it’s great! It inspires people to take action 🙂
Jeremy Smith says
What about the concern of ethics or morality by in some ways exploiting a good deed by making it a promotional tool?