Churches Are Full of Hypocrites – And Looking For More

Hypocrisy is one of the most misunderstood and misused words in relationship to church or Christianity. There is a massive difference between someone who desires to live right and fails, and someone who desires to look like they live right but isn’t even trying.

I love this church advertisement (whether it is a real ad or not), welcoming more hypocrites to church because, the fact is, we all probably look like a hypocrite at one point or another. No one can really know our heart except for God. And, only God can change our heart.

Don’t we WANT hypocrites to come to church in hopes God speaks to them and change their heart? A church without hypocrites is like a gym without overweight people. It can’t exist.

Who Are We Becoming?

A church isn’t a country club for the perfected. It’s a hospital for the spiritually sick and a school for Christians who want to grow up and learn how to spiritually adult. A church is the place we learn more about God and how He wants us to live. It’s the safe place we go to to BECOME who we know God wants us to become.

We are all becoming. But, like Nate Gallagher said last weekend at Calvary Chapel Vero Beach, are we being purposeful about who we are becoming or are we letting the world and circumstances mold us?

There is Hope for Us All

If you know someone who is going to church, reading their Bible, doing devotions and hanging out with other people who love the Lord, but you feel they are a big fat hypocrite, that’s a GOOD thing! God has a chance to speak to them. Praise the Lord they are in a place God CAN work on them. Pray for them. Pray for you and how you interact with them – and realize someone likely thinks you are a hypocrite too.

How to know you are not a hypocrite

If you are thinking about God, you are on the right track. I believe a true hypocrite is thinking more about how they look than what God wants. In this scripture below, the Pharisees were more concerned over the disciples eating without washing their hands (which was a big no-no according to tradition) than seeing their genuine desire to spend time with Jesus. When was it more important to follow a rule or ritual than to spend time with God?

This may seem absurd at first glance, but how often do you hear about someone gripe or judge someone over how someone dresses or what roll they play at church. This is probably what Jesus is thinking:

You are nothing but show-offs! The prophet Isaiah was right when he wrote that God had said,“ All of you praise me with your words, but you never really think about me.” – Mark 7:6-7

Read this blog: The One Temperature Check That Really Makes the Difference