{"id":954,"date":"2021-01-13T23:14:43","date_gmt":"2021-01-13T23:14:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/?p=954"},"modified":"2025-11-24T14:25:20","modified_gmt":"2025-11-24T14:25:20","slug":"beware-of-internet-morality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/?p=954","title":{"rendered":"Following the False God of the Internet"},"content":{"rendered":"

As a group, those who have endured the most hardship are the most devoted to religious doctrine and practice.\u00a0 Those who have the most life experience have come to rely on God being an integral part of their everyday lives.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Even though all generational groups believe in God in relatively the same percentages, there is a trend away from organized religion and towards what is now called \u201cspirituality.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0This \u201cspirituality\u201d means that everyone can believe in God and His commandments in a way that most appeals to them.\u00a0 There is no religious or doctrinal authority. There is no commitment to God, nor his commandments. Into this relative morality void enters the false god of the internet.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Social media requires nothing of its devotees and yet gives one a sense of being a good person, as long you act as most people on-line think is acceptable.\u00a0 Without religious doctrine, you can make up your own rules; which is precisely the cause of so much hate, violence, heartache, and evil in the world. \u00a0Self-righteous rhetoric has become the standard on social media.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The internet and social media are not intrinsically evil.\u00a0 Sharing experiences and learning from others has many potential benefits.\u00a0 However, as with most significant advances in human endeavor, a darker side typically develops.\u00a0 Internet morality has developed into a corrupt counterfeit for the divine and genuine.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

We must stop following the false god of social media for these reasons:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Lies \u2013 There is no Internet Truth Monitor. We would be wise to heed this warning from Facebook \u2013 \u201cDon\u2019t believe everything you read on the internet \u2013 Abraham Lincoln.\u201d There is evil in the world and evil people will use every means to take advantage of others.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Much of what is presented as fact is manipulated to \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0support a falsehood.\u00a0 As David Mitchell sarcastically said, \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u201cOver 85% of all statistics are made up on the spot.\u201d \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Politicians from two different parties can use the same \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0data to support opposite opinions.\u00a0 It all depends\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0on<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0which statistics are used, or ignored, and how\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0effectively they can <\/span><\/strong>be spun.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. A faulty moral compass \u2013 The moral compass of our day consists of pleasant sounding platitudes that reflect the philosophies of men, with God playing a supporting role, only as needed. In the digital age, commercial media has a tremendous influence on morality, or lack thereof.\u00a0 Things that we regularly see on the internet, TV, in the theater and movies would have been scandalous a generation ago.\u00a0 Consider the source.\u00a0 Actors and Hollywood-types do not have a good track record of promoting self-restraint, virtue or integrity.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The jokes of TV comedians are now the only education \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0that many receive on political, moral and social issues. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0This is one of the inherent problems of being \u201cspiritual\u201d \u2013 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0there is no real anchor to keep you from being swept away \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0by nonsense, and most of what we see is just that.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Emotional appeal \u2013 The internet bombards people with messages that appeal to emotions without considering the consequences. We have been taught that it is immoral to say anything that might make anyone feel bad for what they are doing. But, as philosopher C. Terry Warner put it, \u201cIndulgence is a punitive counterfeit of charity.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0This counterfeit tolerance teaches that no one is allowed \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0to judge anything to be good or evil.\u00a0 Relative morality is \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0internet morality – nothing is right or wrong. \u00a0 The result is \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0a world of people making up the rules as they go.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

        \u00a0 \u00a0 There is also an emotional appeal by attempting to take the \u00a0 \u00a0 moral high ground by preaching, \u201cGod is love.\u00a0 God is just \u00a0 \u00a0 love and nothing else; no justice, no obedience, no self- \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 control and no accountability.\u201d\u00a0 \u00a0This is a false sense of \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 righteousness.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

          \n
        1. Dehumanizing \u2013 Internet morality is often manifested by self-righteous expressions of outrage for something that some other group, country, religion, corporation, etc. did and then demanding that the politicians \u201cdo something\u201d to fix the problem. There is no personal commitment other than being offended.\u00a0 It is a virtual feeling of goodness for doing nothing.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          \u00a0 \u00a0 Social media also allows us to mock others for their beliefs \u00a0 \u00a0 without having to justify anything that is said.\u00a0 Many on \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 social media call others \u201chaters\u201d for not agreeing with \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 them, and then spew hateful epithets to convince others to \u00a0 \u00a0 hate everyone that does not agree with them.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

            \n
          1. Anonymity \u2013 It is much easier to be vulgar, hateful, caustic and radical when you don\u2019t have to account for what you say. \u00a0After all, the internet is just words and you can\u2019t get in trouble when you are anonymous.\u00a0\u00a0 Anonymity is a free pass to be your worst self. \u00a0 <\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
              \n
            1. Wasteful \u2013 Much of what we see on social media is not uplifting, beneficial or worthwhile. It is awash in triviality and filth.\u00a0 Wasting one\u2019s life in trivialities is not what God intended for us to do on this earth.\u00a0 Genuine morality teaches us to be actively engaged in being good and doing good.\u00a0 Social media can easily prevent us from doing what we should while giving us a false sense of goodness because we validate others with our \u201cLikes.\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
                \n
              1. It is not true morality \u2013 In a Facebook world, the number of \u201cLikes\u201d someone receives for their opinion is deemed as proof that the opinion is valid and moral. Much of what is \u201cLiked\u201d on social media about family, religion, marriage, gender and fairness is diametrically opposed to what is taught in scripture, including the Ten Commandments.\u00a0 Morality is divine, and popularity has never been the true standard of goodness..<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                We live in a real world, not a virtual one.\u00a0 We must be committed to a morality that lifts ourselves and others.\u00a0 The Ten Commandments<\/a><\/span> have proven over the millennia to be a trustworthy foundation of a moral society.\u00a0 They are commandments of God and not suggestions, or broad guidelines open to loose interpretation.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

                Internet morality is counterfeit. \u00a0Following the false god of the internet might make us feel good in the moment but it has no lasting value because it is neither divine nor genuine.\u00a0 We must return to true morality by following the example of the Greatest Generation \u2013 <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

                1. Make God and religion very important in our lives. <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

                2. Worship God in\u00a0religious services regularly.\u00a0 <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

                3. Obey God’s commandments.\u00a0 <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

                Thus, we will less hateful, less self-righteous, more truly moral, more happy and fulfilled.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

                \"\"<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                As a group, those who have endured the most hardship are the most devoted to religious doctrine and practice.\u00a0 Those who have the most life experience have come to rely on God being an integral part of their everyday lives. Even though all generational groups believe in God in relatively the same percentages, there is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/954"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=954"}],"version-history":[{"count":40,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/954\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1737,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/954\/revisions\/1737"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=954"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=954"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=954"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}