This past week, two major courtroom decisions put social media companies under sharper scrutiny. In one case, a New Mexico jury found that Meta harmed children’s mental health and safety and violated state law, awarding a $375 million penalty. In another, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and Google liable in a case involving youth addiction to Instagram and YouTube, awarding $6 million in damages. Both cases centered on the claim that these platforms were designed in ways that harmed young users.
Christians should pay attention to that, not because the courts are our moral compass, but because these verdicts confirm something many parents already suspected: what enters the home through a screen is not harmless just because it is common. The fact that a behavior is normalized does not make it wise. The fact that technology is convenient does not make it spiritually safe.
Scripture has already trained us to think this way. “Do not be deceived: ‘Bad company corrupts good morals’” (1 Corinthians 15:33, NASB). In Paul’s context, that warning addressed human relationships and corrupting influences. But the principle still stands. If a person, voice, platform, or pattern steadily shapes the heart away from purity, self-control, truth, and reverence for God, it is not neutral.
The modern problem is not merely that children see bad things. The deeper problem is that many digital systems are built to keep them looking. Reports on these recent cases point to claims involving addictive design features and failures to adequately protect minors. That matters because temptation becomes even more dangerous when it is personalized, constant, and portable.
Deuteronomy 6 places the responsibility for spiritual training on the home. Parents are told to keep God’s words on their hearts and teach them diligently to their children. That is not a once-a-week assignment. It is daily formation. It happens while sitting, walking, lying down, and rising up. In plain terms, discipleship at home cannot be outsourced to the church, the school, or a device.
That means Christian parents and grandparents need more than complaints. We need a plan. We should know what apps are shaping our children. We should know what kind of humor, imagery, music, and values are discipling them. We should be willing to say no, not because we enjoy being restrictive, but because souls matter more than trends.
This is not just a children’s issue either. Adults are often just as distracted, agitated, and spiritually thinned out by digital habits. We may condemn the culture while feeding on it for hours each day. That is hypocrisy. Jesus said, “Be careful what you listen to” (Mark 4:24, NASB). That command still applies when the voices come through earbuds, autoplay, short videos, or endless scrolling.
The answer is not panic. It is sober-minded repentance and deliberate discipleship.
Families need regular Bible reading, honest conversation, and practical boundaries. Put devices down. Open Scripture. Pray together. Ask direct questions. Talk about lust, anger, vanity, envy, foolish talk, and the fear of the Lord. Make the home a place where truth is spoken plainly and often.
The courts may force a public conversation about online harm, but Christians should have been leading that conversation already. God has never asked His people to raise children in surrender to the spirit of the age. He has called us to raise them in truth.
And that work cannot be left to an algorithm.
