Hypocrite. It’s a word much loved by people who spot sin and
failing in others. The definition of the
word is: “a person who claims to have
certain beliefs about what is right but who behaves in a way that disagrees
with those beliefs.” I do not know a single Christian (including
myself!) who could say that they have never acted in a hypocritical way. Jesus tells us to follow Him, in love,
service, self-sacrifice, humility, contentment, forgiveness, and purity. God says, “Be
holy, because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:16, NIV) I honestly believe that is the way He wants me
to live and I pursue that life. But, I
fail, sometimes miserably, from time to time. In the opinion of some that makes
me a hypocrite. What do you think?
True hypocrites pretend that they don’t sin, lie to
themselves and others when they do, and only own up to their ‘humanity’ when
backed into a corner! God despises that kind of life. Jesus reserved His most
scathing words of scorn for people that actively tried to impress others with
their holiness while indulging in sinful behavior. "You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel. “Woe
to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the
outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and
self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish,
and then the outside also will be clean. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and
Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful
on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything
unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but
on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness." (Matthew
23:24-28, NIV) But, He met sinners of
the worst sort with tender grace and amazing forgiveness without excusing their
sins.
Some suggest that the answer to the accusation of ‘hypocrisy’
is to abandon all aspirations to live a holy life that pleases God. “What’s the
use?” they ask, “we’re all going to fail.”
Christians cannot set aside God’s demand for lives that are marked by
holiness. We must continue to pursue the
beauty of a life devoted to the Lord, characterized by His nature. We will continue to preach the Word including
what He says about sins that are ‘normal human behavior’ in our era. At the
very same time, we will be transparent about our own temptations, failings, and
sins. It is not hypocrisy to hope to
live better tomorrow than I did today, but it is if I pretend that I already have
achieved a life that is yet a work in progress.
Don’t let the accusation that you are a ‘hypocrite’ cause
you to fall silent about the love of Jesus!
Instead, we admit – first to ourselves, then to God, and finally to
others that we are not all we hope to be, nor are we all that we will be as the
Holy Spirit works in us.
Here is a word from the Word: "So we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be accepted by
God because of our faith in Christ—and not because we have obeyed the law. (kept
all the religious rules) … But what if we
seek to be made right with God through faith in Christ and then find out that
we are still sinners? Has Christ led us into sin? Of course not! … I realized I could never earn God’s approval.
So I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with
Christ. I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me. So I live my life in
this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself
for me. … For if we could be saved by keeping the law, then there was no need
for Christ to die." (Galatians 2:16-21, NLT)
That hypocrite? Some
Christians are active hypocrites, claiming to be much better than they are.
Most are actually God’s treasures, imperfect people who are saved and loved by
a perfect God, growing in His beauty; sometimes falling, sometimes standing,
but always looking to Jesus in faith.
______________
Cursing ev'ry step of
the way,
He bore a heavy load
To the market ten
miles away,
The journey took its
toll.
And ev'ry day he
passed
A monastery's high
cathedral walls,
And it made his life
seem
Meaningless and small.
And he wondered how it
would be,
To live in such a
place?
To be warm well fed
and at peace
To shut the world away?
So when he saw a
priest,
Who walked for once
Beyond the iron gate.
He said, “Tell me of your life
Inside that place?”
And the priest replied:
We fall down, we get
up!
We fall down, we get
up!
We fall down, we get
up!
And the saints are
just the sinners
Who fall down and get
up.
Disappointment
followed him home,
He'd hoped for so much
more.
But he saw himself in
a light,
He had never seen
before.
'Cause if the priest
who fell,
Could find the grace
of God to be enough,
There must be some
hope,
For the rest of us.
Then there must be
some hope,
Left for us.
'Cause we fall down,
we get up
We fall down, we get
up.
We fall down, we get
up.
And the saints are
just the sinners;
Yeah, the saints are
just the sinners,
Who fall down and get
up!
Kyle Matthews
© 1997 Universal Music - Brentwood Benson Publishing (Admin.
by Brentwood-Benson Music Publishing, Inc.)
CCLI License # 810055
Jerry D. Scott, Pastor
FAITH DISCOVERY CHURCH
