In the internet age, is seeing truly believing?

He will delight in fearing the Lord; he will judge by what is right and not by what he sees with his eyes, nor decide by what he hears with his ears. (Isaiah 11:3)

For we walk by faith, not by sight. (2 Corinthians 5:7)

In Lanzhou, Gansu, the CEO of a real estate company received a video call from a friend who said they needed 3 million yuan temporarily for bidding purposes. After successfully transferring the money, the CEO called the friend again, only to be told the friend knew nothing about it. It turned out that the scammer had used AI face-swapping and voice imitation technology during the video call, leaving the CEO completely unaware.

In May 2023, a video claiming that a female internet celebrity was kidnapped in northern Myanmar circulated online, attracting attention. The police later investigated and confirmed: "This was a publicity stunt; the video was fabricated."

A few days ago, a certain official in Chongqing received a video showing himself in bed with a beautiful woman. The sender demanded 800,000 yuan as hush money. To avoid trouble, he obediently transferred the money, only to later realize that it was ChatGPT that had transplanted his face onto an adult video...

The World of Montage Realms

ChatGPT said: Today, not only are online rumors rampant, but scams are also widespread. In fact, many touching videos and images are staged. Recently, a video surfaced about someone distributing money to out-of-school children in the impoverished mountainous area of Liangshan, Sichuan. The truth, however, was that it was staged: each child supposedly received 2,000 yuan in the video, but after filming, the money was taken back, leaving each child only 200 yuan as a "benefit fee." The person filming the video gained a large number of fans and donations through this fake act of kindness, sometimes receiving tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of yuan!

Many of the things we see are actually "montage" works planned, designed, filmed, and edited by numerous people behind the scenes, sometimes even a whole team or company. We immerse ourselves in them, only to be deceived by illusions, becoming fish caught in someone else’s net with ulterior motives. Little do we realize, what they are harvesting is traffic and sympathy, using a story—a purely fictional work—to evoke our compassion and charity.

This world—when money and personal gain are at work behind the scenes—drives people to madness. The internet is inherently a virtual space, where everything can be fabricated. With today’s artificial intelligence combined with manipulative creativity, the images you see may not be real, voices can be synthesized, and even time in the virtual world can be freely edited. All of this makes it just as Dream of the Red Chamber describes: “When falsehood is taken as truth, truth becomes false; when truth is presented as false, falsehood becomes truth.”

Seeing Through the Flower in the Mirror

So then, how should we face this world? In the midst of rampant rumors and widespread fraud, how do we seek out the truth? How can we stand firm today and in the generations to come—without losing ourselves or losing direction in life?

As she came in, Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps at the door and said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why this pretense of being someone else? I have been sent to you with bad news.” (1 Kings 14:6)

This is a sorrowful story. The first king of the northern kingdom of Israel, Jeroboam, had a son who fell ill. He ordered his wife to disguise herself as an ordinary woman and go to inquire of the prophet Ahijah—perhaps because he had betrayed the LORD by setting up golden calf idols in Bethel and Dan and dared not reveal his true identity.

But when Jeroboam’s wife entered, Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps and rebuked her: “Why do you pretend to be someone else?” Then he delivered God’s message of judgment against Jeroboam.

At the time, the prophet was already old and his eyes were dim—he could not see. Yet the eyes of his spirit grew all the more perceptive, for God had granted him spiritual wisdom and discernment.

Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? … You have not lied to man but to God!” (Acts 5:3–4)

In the apostolic era, Ananias and Sapphira, as a couple, wanted to gain the good reputation of having given everything to God, while secretly keeping back part of the proceeds from selling their land. This kind of deceitful act should have been unknown to others—but the Holy Spirit knew. Peter rebuked them for “lying to God.” The Holy Spirit granted Peter spiritual eyes like a blazing torch, enabling him to discern the innermost thoughts and motives of the heart and to carry out God’s righteous judgment. This miracle testified to God's great power and established authority in the early church, leading more people to repent and believe in Jesus.

Today, as Christians, how can we sharpen our spiritual eyesight and avoid being blinded by all the illusions of this world?

Trying to grasp the moon's reflection in the water—an impossible pursuit.

Years ago, my colleague Xiao Hu and I were walking in the garden behind the office when she mysteriously asked me, "Do you want to make some extra money, very easily, just by spending a few minutes on your phone every day?"

She was referring to "刷單" (fake order brushing), doing fake transactions to boost sales for others, from which she could earn commissions. I refused, not because I didn’t want to make money, and I didn’t even know at the time it was actually a scam — but simply because it was doing something false for others, and the Lord does not approve.

Years ago, my best friend said that his older brother worked at a guarantee company where the deposit interest rates were astonishingly high. Their whole family’s savings were invested there, and the monthly interest was several times higher than their salaries. He gave me the opportunity to also “earn money while lying down” and retire early.

And I vaguely remember the Scripture saying, "The inheritance quickly gained at the beginning will not be blessed in the end." (Proverbs 20:21) "A person with an evil eye who desires to get rich quickly does not know that poverty will come upon him." (Proverbs 28:22)

I rejected my best friend’s “money making money” gold rush dream. Three months later, the older brother’s company was abandoned, and my friend’s entire family, relatives, and even his older brother became victims—their family savings were completely wiped out!

As I write these words, memories flash before me—how many temptations we face each day, how many deceptions, how many seemingly true stories that move us to tears and touch our hearts. Yet, as Christians, we are at peace with what we encounter; we are not fooled by appearances, we do not fall into traps designed by people, nor are we hooked by money or lust. This is because we have the Lord; because we are in Christ, our lives have been transformed by Him. Through His Word—the Bible—He grants us spiritual wisdom and understanding, opening the path for a new journey in life. Though we live in this world, we transcend it as citizens of the kingdom of heaven. We are children of the Heavenly Father. The bait that Satan casts through the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is completely ineffective against us, God’s children, because we have been freed from the desires of the flesh and have become new creations in Christ.

Today, my job is to review videos and verify these things that deceive the eyes. I know there is truth and falsehood among them—some that appear real are staged and actually false, and some false ones unexpectedly turn out to be true. However, when I take Christ’s heart as my own, I am not confused by this visible world. Outside of work, I never scroll through my phone unnecessarily; I buy only what I need, without greed or attachment, without confusion or delusion.

Because I only love my Lord Jesus Christ.

Opening the spiritual eyes

The internet era has made the world increasingly bizarre and difficult to discern truth from falsehood. The public is swayed and swept along by the clamor of “everyone is a media,” not only losing sight of the truth but also betraying their own thoughts and souls to the “shouts of those who control foolishness.” They become consumers, prey to the bait of money and lust; slaves living for face, material enjoyment, this life, and even for Satan, trapped in nets and deprived of freedom. Breaking the net can only be done through the Lord Jesus Christ.

Lord, grant us faith and open our spiritual eyes, so that we may "turn our eyes away from falsehood" and live "in the way of the Lord." Guide us to walk in the Lord’s path, truth, and life; help us to reject the confusion and all temptations of the new media era. Amid many voices, let me hear only the voice of my Lord. For: "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me." (John 10:27)

This world, I have come, but only as a passerby.

Thank you, Lord Jesus,

for guiding me,

accompanying me,

walking with me through each day’s journey,

protecting me

from encountering temptation,

delivering us from evil.

Amen