Why Would I Want to Be a Hypocrite?
Luke 6:41-42, ESV
41 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 42 How can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,' when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother's eye.
Many people who have encountered both Christianity and Christians have walked away from that experience with a sour taste in their mouths. And that is completely understandable given how Christians (and those who wish to be) approach salvation and sanctification.
Let me explain. As Christians, we are exhorted through scripture to become like Jesus, the only perfect sinless person to ever exist. And speaking for myself, I can pursue that with zeal by identifying areas of sin in my life and trying to, 'pull it out by the roots.' There are a number of issues with me attempting to become holy by my own might. Not the least of which is, I'll never make it. For the same reason that I couldn't before I became a Christian, I can’t earn my salvation or even force my sanctification here on earth. I was born in sin and already failed to meet God's perfect standard. Even if somehow God would say, only going forward you must be sinless to obtain salvation I cannot be rid of my old sinful nature so I will still fail, no matter how hard I may try.
Another problem with that approach is that it leads to a profound sense of legalism which is really a reliance on righteousness based on works. Which completely misses the point of the Gospel. After all, if works-based righteousness were sufficient to obtain salvation, the Israelites of old should have had a corner on the path to heaven. With 622 commandments to guide their every waking moment, their daily lives should have been like a Bob Ross paint-by-the-numbers way to reach salvation in 622 easy steps. Clearly, that didn't work, or Jesus’ long-foretold coming would have been unnecessary.
So we Christians try hard to eliminate sin by focusing on sin management or we think that we can earn our salvation if we somehow live a good enough life. Or, we think we can obtain God’s favor if we just ‘make it to the next level’ of sin control by sanctifying ourselves a wee bit more.
The result is an obsessive focus on sin. And not just in our own lives but in the people we encounter around us. Some of the sin identification is legit and is valid. An example could be for someone who has a weakness for strong drink, it might make sense to avoid parties where booze might flow a little too freely and become a snare.
Or if gossip has been a problem, they might have to avoid certain people who incessantly gossip lest they fall back into that pattern of behavior. It is far too common that exposing ourselves to that which we are weakest against is likely to result in further sin;
While that may be a valid use of sin identification used to screen out undesirable circumstances, it often leads to ‘scope creep.’ So instead of identifying circumstances and discerning the spiritual risks, Christians can stray into judging people in those circumstances. And when a non-believer is judged by a Christian that way, the result is predictably negative.
If that has happened to you, may I offer some thoughts.
A.For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23
- Being a Christian doesn’t change the fact that we all failed (sinned.)
- We all need a messiah to save us.
B. God works through people society rejected or experienced significant spiritual failure:
- Moses murdered a man
- David committed adultery and murdered a man
- Lot drank too much (which led to incest.)
- Abraham lied to save his own skin
- Jacob was a thief
- Rahab was a prostitute
- Solomon fell into sin through multiple wives
- Jonah hated Ninevites in general
- The angels announced Jesus’ birth to shepherds (not the high priest)
- Matthew was a tax collector (considered a traitor to Israel)
- Saul / Paul murdered early Christians
- Peter disowned Jesus
- All the apostles ran away from Jesus
And the list can continue on and on. The point is God used each of these people to do great works to further his kingdom on earth. We all have failed and spiritually judging others is never a Christians job. In fact, scripture explicitly warns us not to do that.
Luke 6:37-38, ESV 37 "Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven;”
So realize that if you were condemned by a Christian, they are not fulfilling Jesus’ message & commands to us. Know that God doesn’t call you to be like others. He calls you to join His family through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
And if you choose to become a Christian – just know that you have a right standing with God. And further on in life as you exert yourself to become more like Him, you will miss the mark. Acknowledge the failure, turn from it (repent), and ask for forgiveness. God is generous to forgive and will not turn away an honest repentance. And the amazing thing about sin is that even when we sin, the moment we recognize that we are sinning – we are no longer hypocrites. And we have all been (or will be) blindsided by the discovery of sin in our lives that we didn’t know we had. And in the very act of identifying sin in our lives, confessing, and repenting of it renders us hypocrites no longer. At least until we sin again, and the process of identifying sin in our lives, confessing it, and repenting of it occurs again. So this tells us there is a pattern of life the Christian should rightly expect. We are called to lie for Christ. Inevitably, we discover a sin in our lives. At that point, if we continue in that sin, we earn the title of hypocrite (from the Greek - taken to mean dissembler, pretender, or actor.) But the moment we repent and confess, the title no longer applies and the cycle begins anew. So every Christian at some point between the moment of sin and the repentance wears the title of hypocrite. But, there are no shortcuts to earthly sanctification. We place of our faith in Christ, the Holy Spirit will indwell within us, and it is the Holy Spirit who helps reveal to us our sin and changes our nature to become more Christlike.
So if this process must occur for our sanctification while on earth, then I suppose we have to be hypocrites for a little while in order to progressively become more Christ-like.
If that be true, then yes, call me a hypocrite. For each time I sin, I'll confess to all who will listen that Jesus my Savior has already paid for that sin and I will repent of it. For there is no other way to fulfill God's commands to us about how to live.
What about you friend? If being labeled a 'hypocrite' is all that stands between you and an eternity in heaven, what are you waiting for?
Acts 2:38-39, (NIV)
38 Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off — for all whom the Lord our God will call."
