BMCFerrell and Oral Roberts University are bringing the gospel to the metaverse.
Christian media agency BMCFerrell and Oral Roberts University hosted the first-ever Christian Metaverse Webinar on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A panel of six media and technology experts discussed and answered the hot question of the day for church leaders: “How can the church glorify God in the metaverse?”
Their overall reply: “Come and see!”
And that’s exactly what many churches from around the United States and abroad did! The insightful, hour-long session provided viewers with wisdom and understanding on the benefits of using the metaverse to tell others about Jesus.
The session opened with a prayer from Ben Ferrell, CEO of BMCFerrell, who believes all media is a gift from God and can be used for His glory.
“This virtual universe is given to us to communicate the gospel, the Word of God, and glorify God,” said Ferrell. “The psalmist said, ‘Ask for the nations and I will give you them.’ When over 120 million are gathering in metaverse—that’s a nation.”
Ferrell believes through the effective use of technology and sound wisdom these platforms can be used to share Christ with others.
The session continued with Mike Mathews, ORU’s Vice President of Technology and Innovation, laying a biblical view (or spiritual perspective) of the metaverse. He enlightened viewers about what the metaverse truly is.
“Many people describe technology as being evil,” Mike shared, “and I understand. I can see where their concerns come from, but what I believe is that God is not offended by technology, nor would He be afraid of technology. However, He never wants us to give technology credit. He wants us to worship Him, not technology. When we can put that in balance and keep it balanced, then things can make more sense.”
James River Church in Springfield, Missouri, is among the first churches to take advantage of this new technology.
The speakers spent the rest of the session providing in-depth and clear-cut answers to the following questions:
- What opportunities does the metaverse present to churches?
- How does the metaverse fit into the landscape of new technology?
- What challenges must the church overcome to utilize the metaverse?
- How can churches use the metaverse to reach people for Christ?
Speakers included Ian Utile, Futurist and CEO of attn.live; Sean Cline, Vice President of Business Development and Production at BMCFerrell; Jesupelumi Wickliffe, ORU’s Chief Digital Strategist; Frankie Cortez, Metaverse Engineer at BMCFerrell; and Joycelyn Russell, Digital Marketing Coordinator at BMCFerrell.
To watch the first-ever Christian Metaverse Webinar, visit How the Church Can Glorify God in the Metaverse – BMCFerrell Webinar – YouTube.
