I’m sure you wrote down reasons above that are pretty common, as we all struggle with the same things.
But what I want us to think about now is this: the longings that led us to media addiction can all be satisfied by having a relationship with Jesus Christ.
So maybe we became addicted to media because we were looking for acceptance and love: there is nobody in the world, no game, movie, TV show, social media or Internet activity that will provide you with the acceptance and love that Jesus will.
Or maybe out of boredom we turned to media to provide us something to look forward to, something to provide a thrill and some excitement. The thing is that we can now turn to Jesus, who is a real live Person, and we can talk to Him and hear from Him which is the most exciting thing that any human being could ever do. He’s the God of the Universe, the Savior Who died for you, the Mediator who prays for you; surely it would be the most thrilling thing in the world to interact with Him.
And any other reason for turning to media that we can think of, Jesus is the solution and is much better than media. It’s possible to become so thoroughly in love with Him that He entirely consumes us. That’s when the real joy and blessings start flowing into our lives.
Today as we continue our discoveries, I will share a passage of the Bible with you, and this time I’m going to ask you to show me where you see the gospel in it.
Now the amazing thing about this passage is that it was written in 700 B.C. This passage was found among the Dead Sea Scrolls which were proved to have been written around 700 years before Jesus was born as a man in Bethlehem. So keep that in mind as you read this passage.
Isaiah 53:3-11 NIV He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. (4) Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. (5) But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. (6) We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. (7) He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. (8) By oppression and judgment he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished. (9) He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. (10) Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. (11) After he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.