The Gospel Isn’t Clickbait: A Rebuke to Performative Evangelism and the Rise of Content-Driven Christianity.

A message to Believers..

There is a growing sickness within the body of Christ—and it’s not just lukewarm faith. It’s something more sinister: a perversion of evangelism itself. A generation of so-called digital disciples has mistaken content creation for commission, debate for discipleship, and clout for calling. And God is saying: This has got to stop.

The gospel is sacred. And when sacred things are turned into clickable thumbnails, something holy has been profaned.

The Battlefield Has Changed

We are no longer in first-century Jerusalem or the open courtyards of Athens. People don’t gather in marketplaces for dialogue and spiritual exchange. They dwell in screens—phones, tablets, laptops. The public square has become digital, and yet many Christians are still operating with ancient tactics, shouting into crowds that don’t exist, and calling it outreach.

The paradigm has shifted. So must the approach.

Consent, Not Coercion

Even as a saved believer, the last thing I want is for someone to walk up to me out of nowhere and say, “Do you know Jesus?” Not because I reject Jesus—but because I reject forced interaction. It’s not evangelism when it’s an ambush. And ironically, preaching Christ in a non-consensual way is a contradiction of the very gospel you’re trying to share.

Christ doesn’t barge into hearts—He knocks. And if your message violates the boundaries of those you’re “reaching,” then it’s not ministry. It’s spiritual harassment.

Jesus Didn’t Preach Like That

Let’s get one thing straight—Jesus wasn’t out here yelling at strangers in the street. People came to Him. He spoke when the Father led. He moved in discernment, not desperation. He didn’t beg for attention; His presence commanded it.

Yes, He taught in open spaces—but even then, it was in the Spirit’s timing. Today, someone standing in the street yelling Scripture without wisdom would be arrested for disturbing the peace—and rightfully so. That’s not persecution. That’s a lack of awareness and relevance.

Clout vs. Calling

We’ve replaced the Holy Spirit with a camera crew. We’ve exchanged the burden of the gospel for a branding strategy. Christian influencers parade through streets with a microphone in one hand and a GoPro in the other, turning sacred conversations into public performances.

Let’s be honest: it’s not ministry. It’s content farming.

It’s not for the Kingdom. It’s for likes.

And the fruit isn’t repentance—it’s disgust, mockery, and deeper rebellion.

The Illusion of Instant Transformation

Many of these digital “evangelists” truly believe one public conversation will transform a soul. But when you put someone on the spot, especially in front of a camera, you don’t get humility—you get rebellion. You get defensiveness. You get the exact opposite of what you hoped for.

Spiritual change doesn’t happen under pressure. It happens in privacy, through process, by presence. And none of that happens on camera.

Trauma from Misrepresentation

Let’s be real: people want truth, but they’ve seen so many lies in the name of Jesus, they won’t even step near the circle of conversation. They’re not rejecting Christ. They’re rejecting the distorted, commercialized, manipulative version that’s been shoved down their throats.

You want to reach them? Unwind the damage first.

Deconstruct the lies.

Prove you know Him.

Then speak.

Debate Isn’t the Mission

Too many of these content evangelists think they’re “winning for the Kingdom” because they embarrassed an atheist in a sidewalk debate. But salvation isn’t a debate—it’s a miracle. And if your goal is to be right, you’ve already missed the mission.

The goal is to plant, water, and reflect Christ. That requires more than having clever answers—it demands the character of Christ. And that begins with five things these content preachers rarely carry:

Trust

You can’t preach to someone who doesn’t trust you. If they don’t know your heart, they will never listen to your words. Jesus didn’t just preach truth—He embodied it in how He moved, how He lived, how He related. People trusted Him because they saw integrity in Him. Today’s content-driven evangelists have no relationship, no credibility, no foundation—and yet expect immediate conversion. But in the absence of trust, all you’re doing is talking at someone, not with them. And that’s not evangelism. That’s noise.

Credibility

It’s one thing to quote Scripture. It’s another to live it. If your life doesn’t carry the fragrance of someone who walks with God, then no verse you quote has weight. Paul said, “We are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing” (2 Corinthians 2:15, NASB). But what do you smell like? Can people smell holiness, humility, and wholeness—or do they smell desperation, performance, and ego? Credibility comes from consistency—not content.

Spiritual Intelligence

Not all conversations are meant to be had. Not every moment is a “gospel opportunity.” There’s a reason the Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of wisdom and understanding. Evangelism without discernment is recklessness. You need to know when to speak, when to stay silent, when to sow, and when to walk away. Jesus said, “Do not throw your pearls before swine” (Matthew 7:6). But today’s evangelists don’t even know who the swine are—because they don’t ask the Spirit, they just hit record.

Knowledge of the Word

If you don’t know what the gospel truly says—stop preaching it. The problem with many digital evangelists is that they’re parroting verses out of context, weaponizing cherry-picked Scriptures, and carrying secondhand doctrine. The Word of God is not a bag of slogans. It is a sword, and if you swing it carelessly, you will cut the wrong person—and dishonor the King who forged it. Study. Learn. Grow. Don’t proclaim what you haven’t first digested.

A Presence of Love—not a Performance of Conviction

Love doesn’t need a stage. It doesn’t need a camera. It doesn’t need to go viral. Love walks slowly. Love listens. Love weeps. Love sits in silence when the soul is too raw for Scripture. But what these videos capture is not love—it’s a scripted performance of forced conviction. And that’s why it never bears fruit. Because love—real, Spirit-born love—is never manipulative. It’s magnetic. If they don’t feel loved, they won’t care what you say. But if they feel loved, they may remember everything you said—even if they reject it in the moment.

Cameras Kill the Conversation

What’s worse is that these “gospel encounters” are posted online for the world to judge. Now the person who was put on the spot has tens of thousands of strangers mocking, commenting, and dissecting their unbelief. And what do you think that does?

It doesn’t bring them to Christ.

It burns the bridge.

You didn’t evangelize.

You traumatized.

Salvation Is Not a Debate

You can’t argue someone into the Kingdom. You witness. You sow. You leave the results to God. And when you plant a seed, you don’t demand instant fruit. Sometimes you walk away, and they still don’t believe. That’s not failure. That’s faith.

If you did your part, God will do His.

The “Kind-of-a-Christian” Is More Dangerous Than the Atheist

Here’s the truth: I find myself rebuking the kind-of-Christian more than the atheist. Why? Because the atheist has an excuse—they’re blind. But the lukewarm Christian has no excuse. They carry the name of Christ and profane it.

These pseudo-evangelists don’t even understand that only God can change the heart of a man. And yet they parade around like their voice is the key to heaven.

When You Don’t Know Christ, Don’t Preach Him

If you don’t actually know Christ—how can you tell others about Him?

How can you represent a Kingdom you’ve never been to?

How can you explain a gospel you’ve never surrendered to?

That’s my problem. These people are proclaiming a Christ they don’t possess. And it shows.

The Necessary Rebuke

I’ve struggled with how to say this kindly—but there isn’t a kind way. And maybe there shouldn’t be. Because rebuke is love when it calls people out of deception. It’s not mean-spirited—it’s merciful. Jesus flipped tables. The prophets confronted kings. Paul named names.

Why? Because truth doesn’t coddle compromise.

Conclusion: Let the Remnant Rise

This is not a call to abandon evangelism. It’s a call to restore its holiness.

The gospel is not a video package. It’s not a TikTok trend. It’s not a debate stage.

It is life, and life more abundantly.

It’s time to stop playing God on camera and start walking with Him off-screen.

It’s time to silence the influencers and raise the ambassadors.

It’s time to let the false fall, let the staged be exposed, and let the rebuke refine the Church.

Because if you truly knew Christ…

You’d never try to film Him.