A major reason why people say they don’t want to be Christians is the hypocritical nature of people in the church. Corrupt preachers and perverted priests only make the problem worse. During most of my first year in college, I wanted nothing to do with the church because of hypocrisy I saw portrayed.
The definition of a hypocrite is to say one thing, but do the opposite. A hypocrite is righteous on the outside but lawless and full of self-indulgence on the inside (Matt. 23:3,25-28).
The action of a hypocrite involves emphasizing do’s and don’ts along with human traditions instead of a personal relationship with God. The outcome is a self-serving, oppressive atmosphere (Matt. 23:4).
The attitude of a hypocrite is pride resulting in doing deeds to be noticed by men while loving honor and position (Matt. 23:5-10). The outcome robs God of His proper glory.
In contrast, He honors servanthood and exalts humility (Matt. 23:11-12).
According to Matthew 23:23-24, servanthood and humility looks like as “justice, mercy and faithfulness.” Living without these three qualities causes church splits, establishment of many denominations, fragmentation and disunity in the body of Christ so people without Christ walk past us because we don’t reflect His character.
Justice refers to righteous deeds. Mercy denotes a loving attitude toward one’s neighbor. Faithfulness is a sincere and intimate relationship to God. We are called to meet the diverse needs of those outside the church, especially the poor, since we can’t separate knowing God from social responsibility. What’s at stake? The eternal destiny of lost people! (Matt. 23:37-39)
How will you show justice, mercy or faithfulness this week?
