“We looked too long for God and truth through words alone.”
—Richard Rohr
Facts are not use when facts are the weapons, twisted beyond recognition. Beautiful quotes from the wisest of experts will mean little when words can’t be trusted. Even Truth itself gasps for air when shrouded in layers of lies.
As artist-poet William Blake admitted, “A truth that’s told with bad intent beats all the lies you can invent.”
In agreement, Benjamin Franklin wrote, “Half a truth is often a great lie.”
Facts don’t lie, but people do. Words aren’t fake, but people are. Truth is a person, not a set of ideas—and this points to what we’ve been missing.
The genuine and the imposter
I’ve heard it often: There’s no hate like Christian love. People are leaving the church, not because of Christ, but because of Christians who look nothing like Christ. Both claims are backed by an abundance of anecdotal evidence. Some of the worst people living among us fly the banner of faith. How do you respond? With agreement, bewilderment, sadness, defense?
How can Christianity be real, when there’s so much hypocrisy? That’s the question millions fo abused and confused people are asking—on social media feeds, podcasts, in private conversations. Are you listening?
When self-centered wants have their way
The apostle Paul was well aware of the problem as he penned his letter to the church in Galatia.
Yes, that’s the one where Paul speaks to Christians who have “cut yourselves off from Christ; you have fallen away from grace,” by listening to false teachers. “I wish those troublemakers would castrate themselves,” he mutters in Galatians 5:12. I’m sympathetic with his frustration.
In verses 19-21, the apostle brutally describes these Christians who are “cut off” from Christ, living not for Jesus, but for self.
It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: Repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. (From Eugene Peterson’s paraphrase, The Message).
Is this a life worth having?
A tree choked with foliage, yet curiously infertile, a barrel with no wine, a book with no pages, the facade of a mansion with no home behind it, a thorn, but no rose, an emperor with no clothes, a story no one knows, or remembers, a futile faithless fruitless parody of Christianity.
Fruit can’t be feigned, even in our fake-it-until-you-make-it culture. I know—I once tried it—I would describe the result as living in a fog of disconnected denial, and distance from people and things that matter. Someday I’ll tell you about it.
Meanwhile, I’m reminded of the bowl of plastic lemons I once kept on my kitchen counter to give the room a pop of color. Over time, I because discouraged by such perfect inauthenticity. I replaced them with a bowl of homely, handpicked citrus—fragrant, zesty nutrition for body and soul, but useless as decoration.
How to spot a real Christian in the wild
Not by their facts, their words, nor impressive credentials. Not by books they’ve written or degrees they’ve earned; not the number of followers or the size of their church. Not by pristine theology, their voting habits or place of birth. Not by their position, age, or gender, or celebrity endorsements—how can you spot a real Christian?
You will know them by the fruit that emerges as they stay close to Jesus, who freed them to be just like him.
Galatians 5:13-14: “Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows. For everything we know about God’s Word is summed up in a single sentence: Love others as you love yourself. That’s an act of true freedom.”
Galatians 5:22-23: The fruit of the Spirit, (which is the character of God):
Love when it’s easier to hate.
Joy where complaint is the norm.
Peace in the middle of chaos.
Patience when tempted to quit.
Kindness in the face of contempt.
Generosity where others are selfish.
Faithfulness when it’s easier to run.
Gentleness where people are cruel.
Self-control when self-indulgence is the rule.
It’s not difficult to imagine the difference a fruit-bearing person can make.
Blessings are not fruit
If I’m prosperous, successful, and attractive; if my marriage, children, investments are doing great—it must mean God is pleased with me. #hashtag blessed, right?
No.
If we assume God’s lavish goodness is proof of our getting it right, we’ve missed the point of any blessing—our plastic-lemon lives will discourage rather than pay God’s goodness forward. In fact, the “easy street” seldom leads to Christ-like character—we are warned to be wary of riches.
“This is what God does. He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty….Live out your God-created identity. Live generously toward others, the way God lives toward you.” (Matthew 5:45, 48 The Message).
If you do, a skeptical world will notice.
Yes!! This resonates with me. Not only affirming what I know to be true, but also as a challenge not to display my “fake lemons”to the world. Authenticity is rare and just what we all need.
And excellent post, if that wasn’t obvious.❤️