The Importance of True Genuineness in Discipleship: Part I – Why Genuineness is Important

Society today is inundated with insincere motives and some just flat-out fake people.  The “reality” television shows have given us “showmances” that are developed only to gain an advantage against another contestant or for entertainment purposes.  We constantly hear about politicians that are found in midst of the very sin that they condemned in public.  Our lives are filled with people and influences that are just plain disingenuous.

People in general are in need of a fresh breath of authenticity.  Most folks today are searching for something real, something genuine.  In generations past the issue was credibility, in the sense of establishing that you knew what you were talking about.  In this generation, where a vast amount of information on any subject is literally at your fingertips, the issue seems to be more about if you are “real”.  That is to say, are the concerns that you espouse are your true concerns, or are you simply attempting to fill a hidden and personal agenda.

Christianity is always in opposition to the fallen world.  Whether it is freedom from heartless rituals like in Jesus’ time, wholesomeness in the face of sexual depravity as in the early church, integrity in the face of corruption as during the time of Luther, or sincerity in the face of duplicity as in today’s culture, the Church of Jesus Christ has always stood opposed to the sinful state of the culture around it.  It is this tension between the Gospel and the sin depraved creation that draws people; Christ offers what the world cannot.

We must work prayerfully and diligently to guard against insincere motives when dealing with this generation.  If we do not our message will de indistinguishable from all of the other “static” in the lost person’s life that promises “real change.”  It is not good enough just to check our motives, but we must ensure that we do not project the appearance of an ulterior motive.  To do anything less is to risk not reaching this generation and failing to fulfill the great commission.  The next step, now that we understand why the relationship between genuineness and discipleship is vitally important, is to look at what we need to do to make sure that our message of hope is received and not disregarded as “spam”.