Tag: hypocrisy

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2 Thessalonians

A hypocrite? Or an example?

Paul and the Thessalonians

Too often, Christians are called hypocrites. Too often, they are.

But Paul wasn’t.

Apparently, when he came to Thessalonica, he noticed from the beginning some problems with people who were lazy.

It was so bad, he actually straight out laid down a rule: “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” (2 Thessalonians 3:10)

But Paul didn’t just lay down this rule, he lived it. Although he had every right to earn his living from the gospel, he never insisted on taking advantage of that right. Instead, Paul said,

You yourselves know how you ought to follow our example.

We were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it.

On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. (2 Thessalonians 3:7-8)

Why?

We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow. (9)

And because they lived this way, they could come down hard on those who didn’t.

He told the Thessalonians to keep away from such people. He criticized these idlers sharply, saying they weren’t busy, but rather busybodies. And he commanded them in the Lord to start working. (11-12)

Many people often quote the passage where Jesus says, “Don’t judge or you will be judged.”

But what Jesus was condemning was not righteous judging, but hypocritical judging. He was condemning those who were quick to judge others’ faults but couldn’t see their own. (Matthew 7:1-5)

But in Paul we see someone who not only judged, but was truly an example of what a Christian is.

Now Paul makes clear that we are to only judge those within the church not those outside. (I Corinthians 5:9-13)

But if we are to judge those within the church, the one thing that we need to be careful of is that we are not hypocrites, but truly examples of the life that God has called us to live.

People should be able to look at our lives, and not only see someone who talks the talk, but walks the walk as well.

This is not to say that we must be perfect before we can judge. But we do need to constantly keep a humble attitude before God and others, looking more to our own faults than to the faults of others.

The closer you get to Jesus and his light, the more clearly you should be able to see the dirt in your own life.

If you can’t see any dirt, then you’re not as close to Jesus as you should be, and you’re in danger of falling into the kind of hypocrisy that marked people like the Pharisees.

How about you? Are you a hypocrite? Or an example?

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1 Thessalonians

That we may win respect

1 Thessalonians

Hypocrisy.

If there is a word that people like to throw at Christians, it’s hypocrisy.

And too often, it’s all too fitting.

Unfortunately, it was also true in the time of Paul. By the way some Christians were living, they were bringing Christ into disrepute. And so Paul dealt with that in writing to the Thessalonians.

In chapter 4, he’s talking about how we should walk in a manner that pleases God.

Yesterday, we talked about being a clean temple for God.

In the first century, as is true today, sexual morals were extremely loose, and so Paul exhorted the Thessalonians to be sexually pure, and not defile their bodies which are the temple of God.

When we live impure lives, we blend into society rather than standing out from it. And as God’s temple among unbelievers, we are called to stand out.

Paul then shows the Thessalonians another positive way to stand out from society. He told them,

Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other. And in fact, you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia.

Yet we urge you, brothers, to do so more and more. (1 Thessalonians 4:9-10)

The world knows all about lust. They know much less about what true love really is, and most spend much of their lives trying to find it as a result. But Jesus said,

By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. (John 13:35)

When we as Christ’s church love each other, it attracts them.

When the the world sees Christians couples who still love each other even after years of marriage it attracts them.

When the world sees such diverse people in one church caring for each other despite their differences, it attracts them.

When the world sees the church reaching out to touch the lives of those who are hurting, it attracts them.

Why? Because they see something we have that they don’t.

And so Paul tells the Thessalonians, “You do love each other. But do so more and more. Let your light shine ever brighter through the love that you have.”

But there was another problem that the Thessalonians had. A number of them were lazy. Perhaps they thought the Lord was coming soon, so they thought, “Why work?” And they were just leeching off of other Christians.

In doing so, however, they brought disrepute to the name of Christ.

And so Paul says,

Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody. (11-12)

We cannot live as leeches and shine the light of Christ. Nobody likes a leech.

Further, we’ll see in 2 Thessalonians that not only were people leeching off others, they were being busybodies. And people were looking at them, and saying, “Is this what a Christian is?”

And so Paul admonishes them, “Work. Don’t be dependent on anyone. For in doing so, you’ll win the respect of those unbelievers around you.”

How about you? When others see you, what do they see? Do they see a person filled with the love of Christ? Do they see people who are diligent in all they do?

Do you stand out in this world for the right reasons?

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Romans

Looking at ourselves

Romans

Paul specifically talks to the Jews in this passage, and as he does, he’s trying to get them to understand one key thing:

If you’re going to claim you’re right before God based on his law, it’s not enough to just know it. You need to live it as well. And so he tells the Jews,

Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and brag about your relationship to God; if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law;

if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth — you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself?

You who preach against stealing, do you steal?

You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery?

You who abhor idols, do you rob temples?

You who brag about the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? (Romans 2:17-23)

In other words, “You guys are so proud of yourselves because you have the law. You’re so proud of yourselves because you’re God’s ‘chosen people’ and he has given you his truth.

You think of yourselves as those who know it all. And if anyone wants to know about God and how to live, they need to come to you because, ‘You know.’

But are you practicing what you preach? Or are you saying one thing and doing another?

He then tells them,

As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” (Romans 2:24)

I have to admit, as a teacher of God’s word, this passage scares me. Because I don’t want to have God’s name blasphemed because of me. I don’t want people to blaspheme God because I’m a hypocrite.

And yet, often times, I do fail. I am a hypocrite sometimes. And sometimes I really struggle to do what is right.

Worse, I struggle to do what I preach. So often, when I preach or write these blogs, I’m talking to myself.

In the end, all I can do is fall on my face at the throne of God and ask for his mercy.

And that’s the whole point. All of us need God’s grace. Because if we are going to claim righteousness based on God’s law, we need to keep that law perfectly. And none of us can.

How about you? Do you realize just how much you need God’s grace in your life?

If you’re thinking, “I’m pretty good. I’m much better than a lot of people I know,” then you need to take a much closer look at your life. Because none of us are as good as we’d like to think we are.

And until we truly understand that, we will never really understand our need for God.

When you look in the mirror, what do you see?

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Matthew Matthew 23

Cleaning out the inside

Matthew

Jesus continues his scathing of the Pharisees and teachers of the law by saying,

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 23:25-28)

Scathing indeed. The Pharisees and teachers of the law were held up as so righteous by the people. But Jesus exposes every filthy thing in their hearts, their greed, their self-indulgence, and their utter hypocrisy.

He called them whitewashed tombs which look so beautiful on the outside, but are filled with rotting bones on the inside.

How about you? What would Jesus say about you if he saw you? Would he call you a whitewashed tomb? A cup that is clean on the outside and filthy on the inside?

It is so easy to put up a front. In fact the word “hypocrite” originally came from the word for “actor.”

But God looks beyond your exterior to your heart. And when he does, what does he see?

For that matter, what do you see? Can you even see the areas in your heart that are ugly in the sight of God? Or are you so blind that while you can see everyone else’s sin, you can’t even see your own?

I suppose the real test is this: Do you feel compassion for those “sinners” around you because you know just how much mercy you yourself have received from God, and continue to receive day by day?

Or do you just feel utter contempt for them, thinking, “I would never do something like that!”

What is in your heart? What needs to be cleaned out from your cup?

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Luke Luke 12

Hypocrisy

Luke

It’s interesting to me how Jesus used the same illustrations to bring out different points. This passage is an example.

Earlier, when he had sent his twelve disciples out, he talked about how everything concealed would be revealed, and how all that was hidden would be made known.

There were many things that he had taught the disciples in private that the multitudes did not have access to. But he was telling them that this was not to be the case forever.

Instead, he told them that what he had taught them in the darkness, they were to bring into the light. And that which he whispered in their ears, they were to proclaim from the rooftops. (Matthew 10:26-27).

Now Jesus uses these same pictures in a different context. He told his disciples,

Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. (Luke 12:1)

He then told them that while they may hide what is in their hearts, it eventually would be revealed.

The things that they said in the darkness, thinking that no one heard, would be heard in the daylight. And the secret things they had whispered would be shouted out from the rooftops.

In short, you can play being the good Christian, but if there is hypocrisy in your heart, if you are saying one thing, but living another, it will come out sooner or later, either on earth or in heaven.

So let us not simply play at being righteous. Let us be honest before God and others. Because if we aren’t, the truth will come out, and we will be revealed for what we really are.

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Luke Luke 6 Matthew Matthew 7

Sermon on the Mount: Hypocritical judging

The gospels

One of my favorite comedy groups when I was growing up was Isaac Air Freight. (Does anyone still remember them?)

They did a lot of Christian comedy sketches, and one that’s always stuck with me was one called “Final Minutes” which was loosely based on “60 Minutes.”

In it, they interviewed a couple called “The Loggers.” They were Christians, who had a very “unique” characteristic. They literally had logs sticking out of their eyes.

Because of that, they were constantly knocking things down with them. And all the while, they’d criticize other people.

When the interviewer asked them about the logs in their eyes, they both asked innocently, “What logs?”

“Well,” the interviewer said, “There are these huge logs in your eyes. You’re constantly knocking things down with them.”

“Hmmm…they never seemed to bother us before.”

And that’s exactly how a lot of Christians are today. They are constantly criticizing others, while failing to see their own faults.

Jesus tells us, “You think you’re the one to help the blind by judging and criticizing them. But you can’t even see the problems in your own life. Their problems are but a speck compared to the logs in your own life.

You’re blind, and you don’t even know it. And if you who are blind try to lead others who are blind, you’ll both fall into the pit.

You think you’re a teacher for the ignorant. But your students will become like you, taking in all the faults that you don’t even know you have.” (Luke 6:39-40)

He caps it by saying,

You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. (Luke 6:42)

What is Jesus’ point? I think the main point is humility.

One of the biggest planks in people’s eyes is pride.

There are times when we need to confront our brothers and sisters about their sin. Jesus commands us to do that. (Matthew 18:15)

The apostles reiterate it in the epistles. (Galatians 6:1)

But with what attitude do we do it? With pride? With an attitude of, “I am better than you.”

Or with a humble and gentle spirit that realizes that you need God’s grace and mercy as much as they do.

So before you rebuke someone, ask God, “What sins are in my life? What logs are in my eyes? I can’t help others if I myself am blind.

Am I suffering from pride? Am I suffering from unforgiveness? Am I suffering from the very vices the person I’m criticizing is suffering from?”

And as God reveals these things to you, repent.

If you cannot come to a person in full humility at your own weaknesses and need for God’s mercy, you should probably put off confronting them until you can.

Because even if they learn from you to avoid the sin you criticize them for, they’ll also learn pride, hypocrisy, and every other sin you’re carrying with you.

As Jesus said,

A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher. (Luke 6:40)

What logs are in your eyes?