We often confuse the raw, here and now, recognizable situation as the true and authentic. But there is only one person who is authentic, Jesus Christ. And the truth is we need a preservative of sorts to reach holiness. In order to even be able to have eyes to see and ears to hear about this truth, we needed to be regenerated by his Holy Spirit, who is sanctifying and preserving us now by his Word and sacraments. 

Raw. Organic. Authentic. Non GMO. Verified. These are the labels we look for on our foods and, heck, some of them we want to use to describe ourselves, our pastor, and our worship services. As I’m writing this, I am enjoying my breakfast smoothie, replete with super fruits, kale, Greek yogurt, coconut milk, and, just to make me feel a little more superior and wholesome, a sprinkle of chia seeds—organic, of course. I think I can actually feel myself getting awesomer with each self-righteous sip.

We now live in a culture that cares about natural sources and baptismal candidates that aren’t going to break the pastor’s back. In a time where our technology can easy distance us from meaningful relationships, we are also concerned about Christian community. But we don’t want the plastic community that tucks their shirts in and pretends like they are more sanctified-than-thou. We want authentic community that is honest about their struggles in the journey.

I get that. I remember well the happy-starchy families that surrounded me in church when I grew up. My pastor had the perfect comb-over, everyone was smiling, and I’d see them all again next Sunday. Meanwhile, I spent the sermon imagining what it would look like if I combed my pastor’s hair the other way. By the time I was in high school, many of the perfect-Sunday families had gone through divorce. Turns out there was quite a bit of scandal going on. And so, just like my breakfast, I wanted to rid myself of the additives. Where were the real people?

However, in our effort to keep it real, maybe we have committed another form of hypocrisy. While it is good that many in the church have worked to break the fake veneer of a Colgate smile, Brett McCracken has written an article worth reading where he asks the question, “Has ‘Authenticity’ Trumped Holiness?” He sums up the argument well when he quotes Erik Thoennes, professor of biblical and theological studies at Biola University,  “There’s this idea that to live out of conformity with how I feel is hypocrisy; but that’s a wrong definition of hypocrisy…To live out of conformity to what I believe is hypocrisy. To live in conformity with what I believe, in spite of what I feel, isn’t hypocrisy; it’s integrity.”

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