I believe that God wants an authentic relationship with us and for us to have that relationship among others. Spontaneity is a part of an authentic relationship. However, we cannot confuse spontaneity for authenticity. Spontaneity is not our true self rather it is our momentary self. The momentary (spontaneous) self may be true but it may not properly reflect what we feel beyond and before that moment.
Today those two have been brought into sharp contrast as the spontaneous is often what is displayed and thought to be authentic in our society. We can fall into the trap of believing the spontaneous is authentic, but authenticity implies a time taken to understand, think about, work through and engage with. The time taken is in direct opposition to the efforts of the spontaneous, which by definition must be on a whim or in the moment rather than the collection of moments that are required for authenticity.
Let me give you an illustration about a preacher I have heard on several occasions who is great at spontaneity. This preacher can really connect with people in spontaneous moments of vulnerability. It is a valuable skill, and I certainly try to take note of how he reads the room and he institutes it. (I am quite poor at adapting to a room.) It is almost always after people have disconnected that he goes into this vulnerability. This reconnection is good, but often because it is spontaneous it can lead to errors.
However, because his sermons are built upon the spontaneous, he makes grievous errors in how he interprets the Bible. For example, one sermon he opened with the statement of that last (7th) Beatitude is “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” Certainly, that is a Beatitude, but in no translation that I know of is it the last Beatitude. The last one is “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” In fact, there is a debate for a 9th Beatitude making the opening statement of his sermon not contain even the penultimate the Beatitude depending on your stance. (Matthew 5)
I would’ve given it to him that he misspoke except that he continued in his sermon to reference it as the last Beatitude. Now his spontaneity and lack of authenticity with the scriptures allows me to question him on several things. First, can he read? Second, can he count? Third, if he can read and count, then does he care about the Bible and if he doesn’t should I? Fourth, is he a heretic? On and on it goes. Now, I believe this preacher fully believes in the Bible and God and would not knowingly try to mislead people, but it lays bare the foolishness of spontaneity when you could be authentic.
You see the danger of spontaneity is that to a discerning person you look foolish, but to one who doesn’t take the time to be authentic themselves, you mislead. You propagate lies and mistrust amongst the people, and the many are led astray while the few are frustrated.
Today, we are driven by the spontaneous and we confuse it as authentic because we are inauthentic. Authenticity takes time but it is more worthwhile. Attempting to be authentic yourself will help you discern between that which is spontaneous and authentic. It has helped me.
