It has been said that one of the biggest reasons for atheism in our world is Christianity--those who profess to know Jesus and yet do the very things that He came to condemn. I meet people every week that once they share the Gospel message; they begin to use the hypocrisy of Christianity as a crutch and excuse for not wanting a relationship with Jesus Christ. Its truly sad to hear, because that excuse won't fly when they see Jesus face to face, and it wont atone for the sins that they have committed.
As we look into the Book of Luke in chapter 6, we can see that the first 11 verses of Jesus' conversation was being directed towards the Pharisees, those people who claimed to be true believers, but who were primarily concerned with their outward religious appearance, and yet their hearts were not good. Starting in verse 12 there is no mistaking that Jesus' words were for everyone who followed Him and who would call themselves Christian.
These teachings that were given here were much like those given in the beatitudes Matthew Chapters 5-7. The word, "Beatitude" is from the Latin and it means, "Blessing." These writings were to be a description of what it means to follow Jesus--what it means to be "Christ-like." They are the very standards of Christian living and they are to show contrast between the values of the world verses those of the Kingdom of God. And they show us the contrast of what we as believers can expect from the world and what we can expect to be given from God.
As Jesus concludes the teachings in this chapter He starts to lay out some verses to show us how we can tell when a person is and isn't following His Word or abiding in His will--it is by the fruit in their lives.
"For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit...A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks." Luke 6:43-45 (NKJV)
Our speech and actions will reveal our true underlying beliefs, attitudes and motivations. We cannot continue to portray our good exterior image if our heart is not truly in alignment with the Lord and His will. It will only be a matter of time before the true beliefs and feelings of our heart will surface.
Jesus begins to finish his speech as outlined in this chapter but not before making a pointed challenge to all those who profess to follow Him as "Lord." He says to them, "But why do you call Me Lord, Lord, and not do the things which I say?"
And this same question holds true for us today. There are many who profess to be Christian who knowingly live their lives with sinful patterns that they know are directly against the will of God. I am not talking about those who are trying to do the right thing, but they stumble in their walk. I am speaking of those who have said the prayer of confession and have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior, but they never made Him the "Lord" of their life. They are the ones who continue to live their lives in whatever manor they choose to feed those fleshly desires without abiding in the Lords commands for their life.
It is not mere words, nor even generally ethical behavior or religious practice, that mark true believers, but whether they "do" what Jesus says. I think it's dangerous for us to write a blank check on God's mercy and grace.
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. James 1:22-25 (NKJV)
Hey Christian, we're going to blow it from time to time. This does not make you a hypocrite! And there is going to be times where you don't feel like doing something that you know to be right by God, but we must continue to do the right thing knowing that it is the Lord's will. Making mistakes while legitimately trying to do the right thing, or doing what is right even when you're tempted to do something else don't make you a hypocrite.
Hypocrisy isn't falling short in our walk, it is never intending to give your life to fully to Jesus-never intending to allow the Holy Spirit to change your life, all the while putting on religious behavior in order to gain attention, approval, acceptance or admiration from others.
Hey, if someone says to you, "I don't want to know Jesus because of all the hypocrite Christians out there," then ask them, "What's that got to do with you and God?" Ask them, "If you know what it means to be a true Christian, then why not live out what you know to be right?" And then tell them, "Another man's failures is never an excuse for not doing what God wants."
I want to encourage you today to not let the notion of being labeled a hypocrite keep you from proclaiming your being a Christian and sharing your love for Christ. That's exactly what the enemy wants us to do; tuck our wings in and stop flying. Its not cliché to say to others, "I'm not perfect, but I do know that I am forgiven."
STUDY QUESTION: What can we learn from the scriptures contained within this devotional with regard to being a follower of Jesus Christ?
PERSONAL INVENTORY: Is there anything in your life that you are not laying down and allowing the Lord to clean up and remove? Are you willing to allow God to change every aspect of your life in accordance with His will?
APPLICATION: Go to the Lord right now in prayer; ask Him to show you anything that He wants to remove or cleanup. Be willing to allow Him to do this and stand in faith and on the strength of the Holy Spirit.
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