Have you ever written a post on Facebook or tweeted something you knew was going to be controversial? I think the answer is assuredly yes. The answer might be yes for all of us. The better question to ask, though, is do we ever check our hearts before we post or tweet it? Do we examine our motives? Are we posting to plant our feet in the ground of the gospel or are we trying to cause a stir?

It’s easy to joke about stirring the pot, but let’s face it: stirring the pot is not a fruit of the Spirit. Stirring the theological pot also stirs up division and strife. And we don’t want to be people who cause strife, do we (Proverbs 20:3)? The Bible certainly doesn’t paint a pretty picture.

But let me rewind a second, here. When I say, “stirring the pot,” I don’t mean not posting something that is going to turn some heads. I have posted many things that will cause believers and unbelievers alike to get angry and comment. That’s not wrong. Honestly, it comes down to knowing your own heart. Knowing something you post is going to cause many negative reactions isn’t bad. It is only sinful if you are posting it to simply stir the pot or get into heated debates. You shouldn’t want to debate people on social media. You shouldn’t want to post something merely to cause controversy.

Why should you not want to debate people on social media? Because it can reveal that you’re a quarrelsome person. Nobody wants to be a quarrelsome person. However, there are some people that take pleasure in getting into quarrels. It fuels them. That’s not good. In doing this, we forget something: the whole world is watching.

This devotional was taken from my book Gospel Smugness: Displaying Christlike Character in Evangelism.