Authenticity

There was a great article in the Times on Saturday by Matthew Parris bemoaning the lack of authenticity in Britain today. Everything is spun or perception managed, the truth is covered up by appearance. We live in a world where authenticity has been lost, where appearance is the new reality, where what something really is does not matter as much as what it is perceived to be. So the question now is when is a Lord really a Lord, is it when he or she deserves to be or because they have paid to be? How do I know when a phone-in is a genuine phone in or a fraud? How do I know whether money promised for flood defences is a now promise or a 2011 promise?

It means that we live in a world desperately searching for the truth. It is only found by examining actions and words, if ever there was a society in need of Christians living in the light of the gospel Britain in 2007 is it. As we do so it will provoke questions and confrontations with sin and sinners, but it will enable us to share the great news, to share the truth of our predicament and danger, and the great answer God provides in Christ.