Hypocrisy

One of the most common negative views on the Christian faith and of the church is that Christians are hypocrites. Hypocrisy by definition is: the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform. It stems from the Latin word meaning "to pretend." In the Bible, Jesus warns us of following the ways of those he calls hypocrites (Matthew 5-6) who happened to be the religious leaders of the time. His argument was that their outward acts of faith were simply to flaunt themselves as righteous examples, and did not stem from a genuine heart for God. However, he never once calls his own disciples hypocrites even though; Judas Iscariot betrays him, Peter denies him, Thomas doubts him and they all flee when Jesus is captured and ultimately crucified. Hypocrisy is also present in the times of the early church in the book of Acts. In Acts 5, Annanias and Sapphira lie about their earnings from selling their land, "pretend" to be more generous than they actually are and face dire consequences as a result. In Galatians 2 Paul writes about an altercation in which he confronted Peter on the accusation of hypocrisy, because Peter would eat with gentiles and then remove himself when Jewish men arrived. So, we can see that hypocrisy is present both before, after and during Jesus' ministry in the Jewish religious order as well as the Christian church. So, it is of no surprise that it exists today in the church as well.

Here are some thoughts as you continue to wrestle with this idea of hypocritical Christianity. The first is that I am pleased that people outside of the church and the faith accuse the church of hypocrisy. The reason being, I'm glad that they are somewhat aware that Christians are supposed to be morally upright and are supposed to act in a certain way. They know that Christians should be different. Another reason I'm okay with this accusation is because it holds the church accountable for how they act in light of a world that is keeping an eye on us. So I don't have a problem with non-Christians accusing the church of hypocrisy because not only is it true, I think they SHOULD hold us to a better standard. Another point I'd like to make is that the Bible clearly points to the fact that hypocrisy in any religious system that strives to be morally righteous, will have people that are hypocrites and people that will at times, fail. But there is a distinction that must be made through sound judgment in regards to hypocrites and people who are striving. Someone who claims to be something, but knowingly and purposely does something else is a hypocrite. Hypocrites know they are hypocrites and it is something they do maliciously, usually for selfish reasons. Whereas a person who is trying to live in accordance with their worldview, but sometimes makes errors, is not purposely acting against their beliefs. There is a difference in attitude between a person trying to do the right thing and someone who is living a duplistic life. Yes, there are hypocritical "Christians" (not all Christians who claim to be Christian actuallly are) in the church but there are also Christians trying to live the Christian life that Jesus has called us to. But just because there are hypocrites in the church, does not mean that the whole faith is incorrect, nor does it mean that it is impossible for anyone to be a Christian. The image of the Christian life that is shown in the Bible is that one will mature, grow, refine and eventually become like Christ. This is not immediate and will take time. So Christians are progressing towards holiness but are not there yet. So we must understand that about the Christian faith. We must also note that the presence of hypocrites in the church does not mean that all Christians are purposely hypocritical. I think it's safe to say that all Christians struggle with acting in accordance with their beliefs but it is not accurate to state that all Christians are liars. A final point I would like to make is that no one in the church is claiming that Christians are perfect. That would simply not be true. Christians are stating that we are not perfect, and so we need God's grace to be perfect one day.