Gig Eva

There is a new term y’all need to learn: “Gig Eva”.

It is a term coined by Carl Trueman to identify the wave of Christian influencers online. The biggest names in Christianity are no longer the people speaking on stages, but on couches of podcasts. More influential than buildings are these Christian influencers’ Instagram Reels.

And they are doing so with great success. As a result of this medium transfer, more people are getting access to Christian content in an attractive manner, so much so that Gen Z looks at the beginning of a revival.

This is contrast to what Trueman calls “Big Eva” which was the previous wave of influence, led by big conferences and massive church warehouses.

But, of course, there is a rub to all this. We have to ask why is it that these next gen church leaders are more apt to pick up a podcast mic than to pursue a seminary degree and take on the mantle of a traditional church?

In part, there is no doubt that the traditional path of church leadership is fraught with issues. Seminary has occasionally questionable theology. It is incredibly expensive and debt ridden. It consumes years of young people’s lives.

And yet, this intense education gives the learner more time to sit in the Word before publicly standing on it. This time develops the person’s witness and testimony, developing their character before being sent out.

This is the path Jesus asks us to take. When he calls his own disciples, he asks them to follow him: to be with him, to learn from him, to be like him, and to do as he did.

Before we take the mic we should spend considerable time with him learning. This is prayer and study. There is a cost to this. I am not saying everyone needs seminary, but there is a cost to this following of Christ.

More than the possible lack of education or training is the lack of accountability for this new age of digital pastors. Even in Big Eva, the celebrity pastor got away with more than they probably should because they could hide in the backstage shadow cast by their on-stage presence. Who are these Gig Eva influencers accountable to? Other YouTubers? Controversy only leads to more clicks. Individualism is celebrated.

I am left with a familiar conclusion: digital Christianity is a supplement to the physical Church and not the replacement. Christians need to be active participants in a story of a local church and not passive consumers of digital Christian content.

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