Borrowed Convictions

We have never had more information available to us—and I sometimes wonder if we have ever taken less time deciding what we actually believe.

Something happens in the world, and within minutes our phones are filled with opinions.

A headline flashes across the screen.

A thirty-second reel explains what supposedly happened.

An influencer tells us what we should think about it.

Someone we respect shares a post.

Someone else stitches a video explaining why that person is wrong.

And before we have read the whole story—much less opened our Bibles—we have already chosen a side.

We live in an instant information society, and I fear it is creating a generation of borrowed convictions.

We know what our favorite commentator believes.

We know what our political party believes.

We know what the preacher in the viral clip believes.

We know what the person with two million followers believes.

But do we know what God’s Word says?

Paul warns us in Colossians 2:8:

“Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.”

That warning feels incredibly current.

The danger isn’t simply that someone on social media might lie to us. The deeper danger is that we might allow someone else to do our thinking for us.

A reel can give you an opinion in thirty seconds.

Conviction takes roots.

And roots don’t grow in thirty seconds.

They grow as we spend time in the Word of God. They grow as we pray. They grow as we study Scripture in context. They grow as we gather with the church. They grow as the Holy Spirit uses the Word to shape our thinking until we begin looking at the world through a biblical lens.

Paul continues just a few verses later:

“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith.” — Colossians 2:6–7

Notice where our roots are supposed to be.

Not in a political party.

Not in a news network.

Not in a podcast.

Not in a social media personality.

Not even in a pastor.

In Christ.

That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t watch the news, listen to podcasts, read articles, or hear what thoughtful people have to say. There is wisdom in listening and learning.

But there is a tremendous difference between someone informing my thinking and someone forming my convictions.

My convictions belong under the authority of Jesus Christ and His Word.

And church, we desperately need Christians with convictions deep enough that the algorithm cannot change them.

Because the algorithm is designed to keep feeding us what holds our attention. God’s Word is given to transform our hearts and renew our minds.

Those aren’t the same thing.

Romans 12:2 says:

“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

Maybe before we share the reel, we should open the Bible.

Before we repeat the talking point, we should ask whether it is actually true.

Before we decide what “our side” believes, we should ask what Jesus says.

Before we become outraged because someone told us to be outraged, perhaps we should slow down long enough to pray.

And maybe sometimes the most spiritually mature answer we can give when everyone demands an immediate opinion is simply:

“I don’t know enough yet.”

We don’t have to have an instant opinion about everything.

But we should be developing biblical convictions about the things that matter.

Because when your convictions are borrowed, they will change depending on who you listened to last.

But when your convictions are rooted in Christ and grounded in His Word, they can withstand the winds of culture, popularity, politics, and public opinion.

Church, don’t let a thirty-second video disciple you more than the Word of God does.

Don’t let an influencer tell you what is true before you have asked the One who is Truth.

Read.

Study.

Pray.

Think.

Test what you hear against Scripture.

And then stand.

Not because everyone around you agrees.

Not because your favorite personality said it.

Not because it received a million views.

But because you have planted your feet on the Word of God and determined:

“This is where I stand.”

The world doesn’t need Christians with faster opinions.

It needs Christians with deeper roots.

“Rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith.” — Colossians 2:7