"Faith is ... the certainty of things not seen" (Hebrews 11:1)
livingwithfaith.org
  • HOME
  • ARTICLES
  • E-BOOKS
  • BLOG
  • ABOUT

A Perfect "tweet"

8/31/2014

 
Picture
Even if you are not one of the world’s quarter-billion twitter users, you probably still know that twitter-sent messages or “tweets” can only be up to 140 characters in length.  Those who use the social media service know that as a result of the restricted length it’s somewhat of an art form to get a perfect tweet.  Anyone can say something in 140 characters, but to really get a worthwhile message across is not always so easy. 

I read recently that a perfect tweet needs to do three things: get the reader’s attention, make a complete statement - preferably without abbreviations, and leave the reader with a memorable point.  Each aspect is simple enough, but it’s the ability to get them all together in such a short form that makes a tweet truly excellent.

In the book How God became Jesus, Michael Bird (forgive what might seem like a pun) makes the point, in passing, that the Gospel of John “tweets” the incarnation. This is what he says: “John 1:14 in Greek is exactly 140 characters: 'The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, full of grace and truth’” (p. 68).  This set me thinking in terms of the perfect tweet. How does John’s statement fit the rules?

Hopefully noticing who ultimately sent the message in John 1:14 gets our attention, so that aspect should be taken care of,  and John’s words certainly make a complete statement without abbreviation. So how about leaving the reader with a memorable point?  That’s where John really excels!  In the space of those 140 characters John delivers the incredible news that God became man, and that the One who is described as “the Word,” or the Son of God, actually dwelt among us. This is a  massive concept in itself, but John continues with two other amazing truths – that this is not just a story, it is something that was witnessed by numerous individuals – and not just glimpsed, but actively seen to the degree that the witnesses could see God’s nature, as being “full of grace and truth.”  That’s really three hugely important statements about the Christian faith all in the same “tweet” space.  

The one thing this “tweet” doesn’t tell us is why these three connected and vital things occurred, and for that we have to turn, of course, to another of John’s tweet-size statements – that “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).   This statement tells us three things, also. It describes God’s love, shows us the need for faith, and tells us the outcome we get when the two things are put together.

Looked at that way, if we  focus closely on his words and think about them, John was able to preach a very large part of the gospel in two amazingly small, tweet-sized statements. How does that apply to us? It should remind us what incredible depth there often is in just a few words in the Gospel of John and, of course, in many other parts of the Bible.  It reminds us why we hear so often that we shouldn’t just read the Bible, but that we should truly focus on all that is in even the smallest statement that tells us something about God. We don’t need to focus that intently on the average tweet to grasp all its meaning, but when it is God who is sending the message, there is often a great deal in the space of only a few written characters.


Comments are closed.

    BLOG

    Follow @livingbelief

    RSS Feed

    For a smart browser-bookmark showing new blog postings, click on the RSS Feed icon.  

    Author :

    Unless otherwise stated, blog posts are written by R. Herbert, Ph.D.,  who writes for a number of Christian venues – including our sister site: TacticalChristianity.org
    ​
    For more about us, see our About Page.

    Categories :

    All
    Behind The Stories
    Bible Study
    Biblical Concepts
    Books Of The Bible
    Christianity & Culture
    Christian Living
    Dealing With Doubt
    Discipleship
    Encouragement
    Faith Hall Of Fame
    Faith & Trust
    Faith & Works
    Family
    Fellowship
    Forgiveness
    Giving
    God
    Gratitude
    History & The Bible
    Hope
    Knowledge & Wisdom
    Love
    Persecution
    Prayer
    Relationships
    Scripture In Question
    Spiritual Growth
    The Christian Calling
    The Christian Faith
    The Life Of Jesus
    Truth
    Works Of Faith

    Archives :

    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014

    Community :

    Picture
    - Charter Member -
© 2014 – 2022 LivingWithFaith.org