Rev. Richard Smith
Two words regularly used in our contemporary culture are “authentic” and “genuine”. There’s a plethora of religious writing inviting us to assess ourselves and/or others as to whether our lives portray authentically what a Christian’s life should look like. On a personal level, I kind of like these two words. They have an inviting ring; since in reality we all want what is authentic and real. However, as I will note toward the end, we have to be careful how far we go with this consideration.
If one wants to do some spiritual self-assessment as to how well we’re living the life Jesus calls us to live, how we’re genuinely trying to be faithful, how we’re authentically following him, then there is a checklist shared by the Apostle Paul. It’s the checklist of attributes and attitudes evident in one who diligently seeks to be a lifestyle Christian. Paul says that when we “set our minds on things above” (Colossians 3:2; that is, set our minds and hearts on really following Jesus and doing God’s will), then certain values will be evident in our daily lives and in our daily interactions. These are: compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forbearance, a forgiving spirit, and self-giving love (Colossians 3:12-14).
So, the question lingers…how “authentic” is our spirituality; how “genuine” is our following Jesus? Well, however imperfectly, we will be persons who embody compassion and kindness toward others; we will be people who seek to act gently and with patience toward others; we will be those who know that forgiving others is a premium Jesus-grounded virtue; we will be persons who greatly strive to embody a loving heart and spirit toward all persons.
Thankfully, “imperfectly” is an accepted norm for all of us as we go about our daily lives before God. He’s not looking for obedient robots. He’s not expecting inhuman efforts. He just wants us to love Him, to love others, to do our darn best to live like Jesus, and to know that He walks alongside us in all the imperfect twists and turns of our very human lives. And, in our worst moments of inauthenticity, He will keep on loving us!!!
Now, it’s one thing for us to discern our own faithfulness, it’s another all together for us to presume the need or right to assess someone else’s authenticity! Yes, as I’ve noted before, we must call out injustice, mistreatment, abuse, but we do so humbly and sensitively; we are not given the privilege of being the determiner of someone else’s ultimate faithfulness. That privilege belongs to God alone. As you know, Jesus had some really biting words for those who feel free to judge the lives of others…Do not judge or you too will be judged. For the measure with which you judge is the measure by which you too will be judged (Matthew 7:1).
So, again, there’s merit in discerning our spiritual authenticity, our genuiness as followers of Jesus. But, we will never be perfectly faithful. We will always have need to step up. We will always need to call upon the Spirit to help us progress. The fitting question isn’t, “Are you really authentic as a disciple?”. The fitting question is, “Are you making genuine progress in your desire and effort to be like Jesus?”.
