Hypocrites: Part 2 of 2

Yesterday, I wrote about how we Christians should be in agreement with those who don't believe in Jesus that many times Christians (correction, all the time) are hypocritical.

That being said, let's be realistic about one thing. The people criticizing Christianity for its hypocrites have also likely never read the Bible. If they had, they would realize the truth that we all have fallen short of God's standard (Jesus for those who didn't read yesterday's post).

Instead of getting defensive, I suggested yesterday that we need to be in agreement. Christians are hypocrites. Even our best actions can't close the gap between us and Jehovah (God for those of you new to the blog). Jesus is what is required to do that.

Now, keeping in mind that people who don't believe in Jesus have likely never read the Bible, or at least the great majority of it, we need to counter their belief that Christians are hypocrites by living a lifestyle that defuses those claims.

Romans 12 is a great study on how this works. The Apostile Paul, who wrote Romans, starts out by telling us to let God transform our way of thinking, and acting. Then, Paul gives us some easy examples of what this "alternative lifestyle" looks like.

He tells us to not pretend that we love people, which is what a lot of Christians in America are accused of doing. Instead, he says we should REALLY love them.

Hate the stuff in this world that is wrong and cling to what is right. Human trafficking, poverty, disease, abuse, murder, illiteracy, homelessness, etc. This is another area where the Church in America has taken a big hit. For too long, we have turned a blind eye while the world has suffered. We've ignored the poor, the widowed and the orphaned. And, I think it's because we forgot how to care for them. Over time, the Church stopped teaching believers to not just hate the wrongs, but then to do something about them.

Verse 11 is especially pointed at the American Church today, because we have grown lazy in our relationship with God. We've been conditioned over the past 50 years that the spiritual care of our neighbors is the hired pastor, and not our own duty. And, our church services have gradually become dull, boring and indifferent. All of which violate the commands of this verse.

The rest of the chapter fills in a lot more of this discussion, and you seriously need to read it rather than wait for some blogger to write about it. Romans 12 is truely an application chapter.

But, before we leave our discussion on the Christian hypocrite, Romans 12 gives us a couple of words of advice to help diffuse the hypocrite claim. Doing these two things will truely set you apart from the crowd, and your non-believing friends will take notice, and want to know what's inside of you.

• Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable.
• And, Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.

Hypocrites: Part 1 of 2

If you have ever tried to talk to someone about becoming a follower of Jesus, you've no doubt heard the line about Christians being hypocrites.

One of the biggest arguments against Christianity is that people who call themselves Christ-followers are very hypocritical. In other words, the argument is that Christians say they believe the Bible and Jesus, but don't live a lifestyle that follows those teachings.

For the next couple of days, I'm going to tackle this topic. Today, I want to speak to the Christian that encounters this line in their discussions. The natural tendency is to defend and protect. In other words, we like to point out that not every person who says they believe in Jesus is a devil in sheeps clothing.

But, I think that is the wrong approach. You see, the truth is that we actually ARE wicked by our very nature. The truth is that each one of us who calls ourselves Christian is hypocritical. The Bible says that ALL have sinned and fallen short of God's standard. God's standard is Jesus. When you look at perfection, it is Jesus. Not a single person on this globe (or off it) can match God's glorious standard.

Isaiah 64:6 says that we miss God's standard so badly that even our good works, the things that we conclude are righteous are filthy rags when compared to God's standard. Translation: Our best behavior, which by far surpasses our bad behavior, is still not good enough to close the gap that sin creates between God and ourselves.

Fortunately, God sent Jesus, and as Romans 3:21-22 point out, Jesus closes that gap. God made the way for man to be reconciled to Him, and that way is Jesus.

Reasons To Celebrate

Anytime there is life change in God's kingdom -- anytime someone gives their life to Jesus -- that is a reason to celebrate.

Read about two of them today.

Elevation Church saw 581 people commit their lives to Jesus this past weekend.

Newspring Church saw 516 saved from an eternity separated from Jesus.

Monday Ten

1. This past week was a true whirlwind of activity. It was also a lot of fun.

2. The Southern Gospel Picnic at Silver Dollar City started last Thursday. As part of our involvement, the KWFC staff went to hand out fans on Friday. The KWFC fan is a very popular item with the peeps.

3. My family and I spent the weekend at the Grand Country Inn to make it a big weekend for us. The hotel is okay -- a typical one room, two bed type of room that served our needs for a sleeping place, but not much more. It was a far cry from the Chase Hotel we stayed at in Overland Park, Kansas, a few weeks ago, mainly due to the square feet available.

4. Part of the Grand Country stay included unlimited access to the Splash Country waterpark. Again, it was okay, but didn't live up to the hype they put into advertising. Even still, my kids had a blast, and I enjoyed the Lazy River (could've spent the whole day on an inner tube in that thing).

5. Sunday was our big day. My oldest son turned twelve, so we celebrated by going to Silver Dollar City. Beautiful weather, great time riding, and we discovered that my middle son is now tall enough to ride any ride except Wildfire on his own. He was super excited about that.

6. Came back home Sunday night for dinner at Cheddars and ice cream cake from Dairy Queen. Good times.

7. By the way, I am hoping for some great deals from all the places I'm name dropping. It's probably wishful thinking, though.

8. In all, it was great to relax for a few days, and now it's time to return to another busy work week.

9. As an aside, our weekend getaway caused us to miss the new service schedule at North Point Church. Saturday night's are still the same, but a fourth service (video message) launched Sunday morning.

10. I'm also excited about the new Zone 45 for 4th and 5th grade kids. New room, bigger room, and tons of cool stuff for the kids. I missed the debut, but can't wait to experience it this weekend.

Where's Our Heart

A few weeks ago, I was in a public setting with a little over a thousand people at a Christian event. During that event, someone gave a report about a ministry effort outside the country that had seen thousands of people come into a salvation relationship with Jesus.

This was a huge report. Yet, it was greeted with only a smattering of applause. What should have been received with celebration was relatively ignored.

That begs the question: When did we Christians in America become so numb to the work of Jesus that we stop celebrating Him and those He has drawn to Himself?

Elsewhere, I see efforts in churches to get out into their communities completely ignored by the congregation. A pastor friend told me a story of how he tried to get his church to volunteer at a local organization. The first time out had a good response. But, future volunteer efforts were met with a "been there, done that" mentality.

Here's what I see from personal experience. We, as followers of Jesus, would much rather throw money at an issue (or hire someone) rather than get our hands dirty fulfilling the Great Commission.

So, I ask you, where's your heart?

Monday Ten

This week, I've offering ten observations about God, Jesus and the Church. Let's get started.

1. In Matthew 28, we read: Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." This is the Great Commission. Sadly, the church in America tends to treat it as the Great Suggestion.

2. In Matthew 16, Jesus says, "And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." Translation: Jesus gave His church access to His incredible power. In America, many times we ignore what Jesus can do and settle for the stuff that we can manage.

3. Same chapter, a few verses later, Jesus says, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?" Yet, in our churches today, we'd rather let someone else do the hard stuff while we sit idly in our comfort zone.

4. Matthew 16:2-3, Jesus proves the old adage is true, "Red sky in the morning, sailor's take warning. Red sky at night, sailor's delight."

5. John 2 recounts the first miracle of Jesus' public ministry. He was invited to a party. Okay, that isn't as much a miracle as his turning water into wine, but the point is that Jesus was a likable guy, and people liked having him around. Unlikable people don't get invited to weddings.

6. Many people like the picture of Jesus that is humble and peaceful. Jesus is showing us how to live. But, I like the Revelation 19 picture of Jesus where it says, "With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron scepter." He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS." That's ULTIMATE FIGHTER JESUS. And, He is totally awesome.

7. In Luke 15, Jesus tells the story of the prodigal son. In the story, the younger son is representative of the sinner, and the older brother represents the religious establishment. The older brother would have run the younger off is he had his way. Fortunately, there is a Father who runs to the younger to bring him back to the family. When encountering those who don't know Jesus, how do you interact? Are you father-like or older brother-ish?

8. John 12:7, Jesus shows incredible respect to women when Judas gets upset that Mary (sister of Martha and Lazarus) pour expensive perfume on Christ. His words, "Leave her alone." What do you do when people attack well meaning folks? Do you let the attack continue, or step in and tell the attackers to "leave them alone?"

9. Mark 3:13-19 lists Jesus' disciples. Even by today's standards, this is a bunch of misfits wouldn't be selected for anything spiritual. That's a testimony to the power of Jesus to transform ordinary people into extraordinary people.

10. Mark 6 recounts that Jesus sent out his disciples to preach and conduct ministry. Verses 12-13 say, "They went out and preached that people should repent. They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them." This means that even Judas cast out demons and healed sick people in the name of Jesus. Sadly, that wasn't enough to keep him from committing the cruelist act recorded in human history.