AUTHENTICITY

Blog sermon comin' at ya:

My thoughts today are revolving around the idea of living a truly 'AUTHENTIC' life for Jesus. It seems the more 'real' someone is about themselves and their walk with Christ, the more of an impact they can have on others. This has me re-thinking the famous portion of Scripture that declares, "The truth shall set you free".

What if when we live 'truthfully'... it actually sets people free?

Being authentic requires admitting faults and weaknesses. I remember, while in college, hearing a pastor describe his anger towards and questioning of God after a car wreck had taken the life of his wife. His brutal honesty about how he was feeling and doing... has impacted the rest of my life. He wore no mask of fake happiness and supernatural joy, only brokenness and dependence upon a God he couldn't see... or even feel. It freed me up to passionately pursue a relationship with God, without the condemnation that came every time I'd slip up... or doubt.

So I find,... honesty has longevity.

Being authentic means you identify with those around you... ALL of those around you. How often has the world seen us Christians as thinking we are somehow 'better' than them. We even have a cliche that perfectly sums that type of thinking up, "Holier than thou". The person that lives in the reality that they are "saved by grace" and "but for the grace of God, there go I" understands that there are no 'levels' or 'degrees' for humanity. No one is higher. No one is lower. We've all sinned, and we've all been covered by the righteousness of God... a righteousness that has nothing to do with what we've done, and everything to do with the bloody sacrifice of a majestic Lover. This recognition causes the authentic individual to never walk past, look down upon, or consider unrelatable any other human being, but instead to see everyoneas someone that Jesus loves... and is worthy of our love.

So I find,... even those that do not validate my opinions... are pretty neat.

Being authentic means admitting that we can fall into the trap of just "doing" Christianity. How easily and how quickly can something wonderfully healthy and life-transforming become something of a ritual? Following Christ can be like that. It can be boiled down to accepting a set of doctrines and beliefs and setting into place certain practices and regulations that left to themselves... become lifeless and void of power. What a trap... and what a load of crap. Relationships include monotony, of course, but they also should include intense intimacy.

So I find,... unless I'm head-over-heels-in-love with the Master, serving Him becomes a drag.

Being authentic means we recognize that if we aren't careful, we will become part of a subculture that doesn't impact people or the world around us at all. One of the biggest blessings that I've enjoyed, that I didn't realize at the time, was having to work a secular job while attending Bible College. I would go to class each day from 7:30am to 12:30pm and then I'd rush to work at a lumber yard in Oregon from 1pm to 7:00pm. It was a busy four years for me, but a wonderful season where I learned that I couldn't survive in the "holy bubble". What's a "holy bubble" I hear you asking? Well, at Bible College everyone smiled, greeted each other with a hug, shared Scriptures with one another and spent huge amounts of time singing to and studying about God. Nobody doubted. Nobody lusted. Nobody sinned. It was glorious. It was uplifting. It was happy. It was a "holy bubble". Now, at work, it was a completely different world. Everyone cussed. Nobody hugged. Everybody complained. People back-stabbed and gossiped. It was... real. I saw many of my fellow Bible College students who needed employment come and go at the lumber yard over four years. Most of them didn't last. They couldn't handle the temptations, the pressures, the life outside the bubble. Many God-followers today struggle in this same way. They have no problem existing in their little Christian subculture. They enjoy their Jesus-community, and that's great. But if living in a "Jesus-community" means that we have removed ourselves from this world in totality, then how are we ever going to make a significant impact for the cause of Christ? God bless Bible Colleges, churches, youth groups, Bible study home-groups, Youth For Christ fellowships and all the rest - we need them, they're awesome! But may we never forget that the call is to be "IN the world"... but not "OF the world".

So I find,... sometimes I gotta step outside my "holy bubble" for the sake of those who are dying without authentically being introduced to the Love of my life.

What's so great about being "authentic"?

I'd suggest that it's only authenticity that will make an impact. It's significance echoes in eternity. It allows us to enter into real relationships with others and truly grow together.

But mostly... it sets people free. Starting with me.