Did you read the story about the sports legend who donated $50 million to Texas flood relief? Or the one about the A-list Hollywood actors who are launching a $4 billion “non-woke” film studio? Or maybe you read about the 27-year-old Connecticut police officer who went missing… without a trace.Those three stories spread like wildfire across social media, racking up countless shares and passionate reactions, yet not a single one was true.Years ago in the United States, we had the National Enquirer and the Weekly World News -- grocery aisle tabloids that thrived on the sensational and spread half-truths and fabrications just to make a buck. We laughed, but then collectively dismissed them as utter nonsense.Today, we have Facebook -- as well as X, YouTube, and countless other digital platforms to pump out misinformation. Yes, you can find some real news there, but it’s largely flooded with clickbait, half-truths, and outright fabrications -- all to drive traffic and rake in ad revenue from your attention.Unfortunately, millions of Americans -- including many Christians -- are falling for it. A 2021 study revealed that misinformation and falsehoods on Facebook received six times more clicks than factual news. As the old saying goes, “A lie can travel halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to put its shoes on.” Additionally, a 2024 study found that Facebook’s algorithm encourages users to habitually share attention-grabbing content, even if it’s false. In fact, just 15 percent of the most frequent news sharers were responsible for up to 40 percent of the misinformation, driven more by habit than intention.It’s a biblical issue. Christians are called to be people of the truth (Ephesians 4:25), not fearmongers and gossipers who recklessly spread rumors just because a sensational headline lined up with their beliefs.Sharing lies -- even unintentionally -- damages our witness to a lost world and blurs the line between gospel truth and worldly deception. In an age of digital noise, Christians should be known for standing firm in truth -- not adding to the confusion over what is fact and fiction.Put another way: It’s hard to speak about Jesus with integrity when your online presence reeks of falsehood.That said, even with the best intentions, it can be hard to discern what’s true and what’s not. I recently watched what seemed like an innocent video about food origins with my 9-year-old -- only to realize hours later it was clickbait filled with misinformation. If Christians are to be light in the modern world, we must be diligent in seeking truth.Here are four ways you can spot fake news on Facebook.Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Oscar Wong