Be Genuine This Christmas

Be Genuine This Christmas

A Suspicious World

We live in a suspicious world.

Some of that suspicion is earned. Spam calls, online scams, and ads about things that are just way too good to be true have trained us to keep our guard up. Jesus even tells his followers to be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” Wisdom matters.

But somewhere along the way, suspicion became our default posture toward people.

We assume hidden motives. We question sincerity. We reward sarcasm and irony, while quietly distrusting anything that feels earnest or straightforward. Being genuine can feel naïve in our culture.

Two Responses to Jesus

Yet the Christmas story tells a very different story.

In Matthew 2, we meet two responses to the birth of Jesus. King Herod reacts with fear and suspicion. He clings to power, assumes threat, and eventually causes deep harm because he cannot imagine losing control.

The wise men respond differently.

They travel for years, guided by a star, simply to worship a child they believe is king. They arrive with open hands, honest intentions, and generous gifts. They are sincere. They are genuine. And because they are wise (read not foolish) they discern Herod’s ill intent and choose another way home.

Genuineness, Scripture shows us, is not the opposite of wisdom. It is the fruit of it.

The Cost of Sarcasm

In our culture, sarcasm often stands in for intelligence. It can feel safer to hide behind irony than to risk honesty. But sarcasm has a cost. It creates insiders and outsiders. It shields us from vulnerability. And over time, it can quietly wound the people closest to us.

Being genuine is harder.

It means saying what you actually mean. It means resisting the urge to deflect with humor. It means showing up as your real self instead of a carefully protected version of yourself.

But it is also deeply healing.

Many of us have experienced how relationships change when we speak more plainly, listen more carefully, and assume less about others’ intentions. Genuineness creates space for trust. It opens the door to reconciliation. It allows love to be seen and received.

An Invitation This Christmas

The wise men didn’t follow Jesus out of obligation. They followed because they truly wanted to worship him. They were all in.

That is the invitation of Christmas.

Not to perform faith. Not to posture. Not to protect ourselves with constant suspicion. But to genuinely pursue Jesus. Honestly, openly, and wholeheartedly.

So here’s a simple challenge for this week: when you’re tempted to reach for sarcasm, pause. Consider silence. Or better yet, choose sincerity.

Be wise, yes. But also be genuine.

Because when we genuinely follow Jesus, it doesn’t just change us. It blesses the world around us.