21 Day Fast - Day 16: Renewed in the Image of the Word

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. … And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. … No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known. John 1:1-2, 14, 18 (ESV)

The devil’s persistent strategy is to take the good things God has made, corrupt them, and use them against God and His creation. The deceiver used the Garden of Eden against Adam and Eve. He still uses food, sex, ambition, friendship, authority, rest, work, and every other good creation of God in a desperate attempt to counteract the purposes of God. He is doing the same with media.

Media, the plural form of medium, are not inherently neutral or evil. In fact, media reflect the very nature of God. Words—the most basic from of media—define Jesus our Lord, the Word of God. Jesus, the Word of God, came from Heaven to Earth to communicate God’s grace and truth to us. Jesus came to tell us and show us who the Father is. When we communicate grace and truth to one another, we are acting in the very image of our Creator.

Media have been used for good to spread the Gospel of Christ from Jerusalem 2,000 years ago to every continent and nearly every people group on the planet today. The media of preaching and teaching, the printed Bible, Christian books, audio versions of the Bible and of Christian messages, and video presentations of the Bible and the life of Christ have been used to save lives and glorify God.

Let us pray that media will be renewed in the image of the God who is the true and everlasting Word. May the Word of God run throughout our nation and all the nations of the world. May we redeem our own words to convey God’s grace and truth. And may Satan’s work to twist media be halted in our nation and redeemed for the glory and the purposes of God.

Our Father in Heaven, we ask You to silence the lies of the enemy. So many false truths about You and Your Word have been spread through media. May it end in America! Redeem all media for Your purposes. Inspire Christians to use every form of media—print, telecommunications, and online—to proclaim that Jesus is Savior and Lord. May lives be saved and Christians be strengthened as a result. We pray in Jesus’ name!

Dr. Chuck Hetzler
Senior Associate, Christian Union Day and Night

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Selected Resources to Explore for a Cultural Revolution in Media

BOOK (192 pages): Communicating for Life: Christian Stewardship in Community and Media by Quentin Schultze
This book offers a holistic Christian view of communication, showing the vast array of implications for using this gift to responsibly work toward peace and justice.

AUDIO (1:15:45): Thought Leadership in Media
This talk by Alissa Wilkinson, staff writer and critic at Vox.com, and associate professor of English and humanities at The King's College in New York City, was recorded at the Christian Union Nexus Conference 2017. Nexus is an annual conference that equips students and professionals to seek God and to live out their faith and change culture.

BOOK (264 pages): Faith in the Spotlight by Megan Alexander
Megan Alexander is a national correspondent for Inside Edition and a special correspondent for Thursday Night Football on CBS. In Faith in the Spotlight she shares her practical advice for achieving excellence in career, faith, and family and gives us an honest look at thriving in a secular industry as a believer.