Am I A Hypocrite?

Day 258

Reading: Luke 12:1 - Luke 13:35

The Law of Moses was about works. You had to do something to attain rightness with God. Jesus whilst walking on earth begins to point out the mistakes of the religious folk. Religion is concerned with actions or works whereas God is interested in a relationship stemming from the heart, a clean heart. As I read today's passages I was struck by how Jesus spoke against hypocrisy especially Matthew 13. 

The word hypocrisy in the bible is from the Greek word hypokrites. This word was from the theatre where an actor in Greek and Roman plays used masks to augment the voice. From this general meaning, the word was applied to people who pretended to be something yet they were not in real life. Jesus warned that we be careful of the leaven of hypocrisy. Yeast is mixed in the dough when baking bread and left to affect the dough. Hypocrisy has a way of affecting every area of life. Why would Jesus warn the believer of hypocrisy? The following are just thoughts as God was convicting me as I thought about hypocrisy in my life.

• Hypocrisy warps one's mind. A hypocrite has a bad perception of themselves and others. They see themselves as perfect and everyone else as having the problem. So the Pharisees sat on the high seats waiting to be served yet they were not right with God. A hypocrite is unteachable. When the only people you learn from are 'Me, Myself and I' be warned hypocrisy is slithering up your life.

• Hypocrites are hard-hearted people. They only care for themselves and never others and don't have an equal footing for everyone. Some people only have compassion for their family and never for others. When you hear them have compassion on others outside their normal circle it sounds hollow. That's not Christlike. To be Christlike is to have compassion for everyone.

• Hypocrisy makes one not see the difference between pretence and reality causing the hypocrite to judge others yet they are guilty of the same sin. Hypocrisy begins in the mind leading to a false sense of superiority. The Pharisees were educated in the law and saw themselves as superior to the rest of the people. 

• Hypocrisy is about double standards. The Pharisees said no work on Sabbath even telling Jesus off for healing a lady in the synagogue yet they would untie their animals to feed. When you have standards for people that you don't observe you are being a hypocrite. Many times we judge people with a different weighing scale from the one we measure ourselves. For example, when we point a finger at someone and point out their mistake but we aren't willing to check the planks in our lives we are being hypocritical. 

• Hypocrisy is appearing to be a saint in church and yet Monday to Friday no one can see your faith in God. Today we wear masks to hide who we really are. This is hypocrisy at its root. We lie to ourselves and others when we are not genuine. In this day and age of fake news, many are fake news because hypocrisy has masked their lives. Many people today are not just cunning operators but crafty dealers in life who think that they can outwit God. God is not mocked!

• Hypocrisy will cause one to not take responsibility for sin. God rejected Saul for rejecting His word. God gave Saul instructions that he didn't comply with. When confronted he shifted the blame to the people and didn't take responsibility.  When you are full of yourself you will do anything to justify yourself. 

The cure for hypocrisy is repentance. Genuine repentance will allow the Holy Spirit to tenderise the heart. Unless the heart is dealt with and we see ourselves as God sees us we won't move from that state. A broken and contrite heart is what God seeks. An intimate walk with God will ensure hypocrisy is at bay. 

Memory Verse:

Decree:

Luke 12:15

And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.” (italics mine)