1286) When I taught high school Bible, we had a weekly competition called, “Bible Rivals”. This would be what some of us old-timers called “Sword Drills” when a Bible reference is called out and you try to find it in the Bible as fast as you can. Whoever found the verse first would win a “genuine plastic trophy,” which was literally what they were.

There’s something about hearing the word, genuine, that gives us the idea of value. In 2 Timothy 2:15, Paul tells us we are to present ourselves approved by God, not ashamed of what we have done for him. This word “approved” means to be proved genuine.

It’s hard for us to determine if others are genuine, even when we think we can. Motives are not always evident, but God knows, and he’s looking for workers for him who are genuine in their faith.

Genuineness is valuable.