Have you ever heard someone say “I would become a Christian and go to church but it’s full of hypocrites”? This statement in itself is hypocritical and lacks a sense of seriousness and sincerity towards serving God. Keep reading…
First a definition is in order for clarity. The word “Hypocrite” as defined by Webster is:
\Hyp”o*crite\, n. [F., fr. L. hypocrita, Gr. ? one who plays a part on the stage, a dissembler, feigner. See Hypocrisy.] One who plays a part; especially, one who, for the purpose of winning approbation of favor, puts on a fair outside seeming; one who feigns to be other and better than he is; a false pretender to virtue or piety; one who simulates virtue or piety.
The hypocrite’s hope shall perish. –Job viii. 13.
Sometimes people refuse to associate with the church because Christians may seem to be less than perfect. There are smiles and greetings that feel all to genuine until the back is turned. A frequent excuse among people for not seeking salvation through Jesus Christ is, they say, “the church is full of hypocrites.” Sadly, this charge is partly true.
There is no doubt that ‘some’ Christians are hypocrites. This should not be too surprising, because there are bad apples in every basket. The standard to which God calls us should not be judged by a few bad apples. Besides, would you rather spend a few years, putting up with a few hypocrites in church, or spend eternity with all of them in hell? (Matthew 13:24-43)
The fact of the matter is that there are hypocrites in the church, after all, Christians are still only people, and people often fail to be at their best. But l don’t feel it fair to say that the church is “filled” with hypocrites. We should give Christians some benefit of the doubt and assume that, although they are human, they are earnestly trying to live in accord with their convictions. We must recognize the vast difference between those who are genuinely trying to live as Christians but who make mistakes and those who say they are Christians but make no effort to live according to Christ’s principles. It is also important to realize that a person making an honest mistake does not necessarily make them a hypocrite. The difference is in how they respond to the mistake; for example, a person makes a promise to you to help you with something and fail as a result of unforseen circumstances and lets you know about it before hand (if possible), doesn’t make them a hypocrite. However, if the promise is made and they simply forget about you and make no effort to reinstate credibility, then something is wrong. The intentions of the person matters as much as the result of those intentions and the sincerity for which confidence of another is fulfilled. This marks the person who is true to their Christian walk.
The church is not the only place where we find hypocrites. They exist , across the street, next door, at the job and even in your own house. They are everywhere. Although you may not attend church because of them, the reality is you would have to disassociate yourself with society entirely to avoid them. So it wouldn’t be practical. We often overlook the hypocrisy of our family when we’re lied to or deceived in some way. We do not refuse our paycheck although a fellow worker steals and does not give a day’s work for a day’s pay or our employers credibility is marked by intentionally deceptive practices.
Why, only when the church is involved, do we feel hypocrisy seriously enough to withdraw from that association? If we quit church because of a hypocritical Christian, why don’t we quit work because of a hypocritical fellow worker or employer? It would be just as logical, yet I have never heard this excuse used for quitting a job. It has been said (but not by the Bible) that the church is a hospital for sinners. Jesus said nearly the same thing in Matthew 9:12;
“…the ones who are whole do not need a physician, but the ones who are sick.”
More exactly, the church is where God places those who come to him through Christ, See Acts 2:47. However, it is clear that, of those who come, many do not remain faithful to the teachings of Christ. Jesus spoke of this situation in Matthew 13:24-30 when he told the parable of the wheat and the tares. Tares are a useless weed which were, in the parable, sown in a field by an enemy of the farmer. Rather than pull out the sprouting tares, thereby destroying much of the wheat, the farmer decided to let the wheat and the tares grow together and then to separate them at harvest. Jesus explained His parable in Matthew 13:37-43 saying,
“He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of the world.”
The Son of man shall send forth His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity: and shall cast them into a furnace of fire where there shall be weeping, and gnashing of teeth. Admittedly, there are non-Christians who are better than some who claim to be Christians. There may also be non-Christians who are morally stronger than some who are, indeed, Christians. If you are one of these and you are a very good person, does that eliminate Your need for a savior? The apostle, Paul, said in Romans 3:23;
“For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
Jesus Christ, and there are none who can come to God without the savior; Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father but by me.” Thus, if even a good man is to be saved, it must be through the way of Jesus Christ. Church membership is unavoidable when one obeys the will of Christ; this obedience results in a reaction by God of adding the obedient believer to the church. It is God who places the believer in the church, you don’t join it like a club, the believer has no choice in this matter.
Following Jesus For Wrong Reasons
We will now focus our attention on people who thought they were saved, but Jesus stated they were lost. Everywhere the Lord went, thousands followed Him. In John 6 we read the story of Jesus feeding the 5000 who were following Him for the wrong reason. Jesus charged them:
“Truly, Truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate loaves, and were filled”
Here we have people who were following Jesus for all the wrong reasons. They were only interested in a free meal. Jesus offered correction to this problem beginning in verse 27. Jesus tried to teach them that the only reason they should follow him was not for bread, but because they believed He was the divine son of God. The end of this story begins about verse 66, “As a result of His words, many of Jesus’ disciples withdrew, and were not walking with him any more.” Today, if a minister caused a similar drop in church attendance, he would be ostracized on the spot. Yet Jesus deliberately repelled the 5000 because they were following Him for the wrong reasons. Unlike many religious leaders today, Jesus was interested in quality not numbers!
Attending For The Wrong Reasons
It is truly sad that modern churches use cheap gimmicks to get people to attend. The church service has been changed from heart-felt worship to Hollywood style entertainment complete with special effects. Churches that once focused on good Bible study classes, now compete against one-another like businesses for new members. In an attempt to increase numbers, they advertise pot-lucks, free dinners, bake sales, soup kitchens, bingo, camping trips, exercise classes and various support groups … things which have nothing to do with religion or the Bible. If it brings in the numbers, they will do it. Yes, these churches are full every Sunday, but most members would quit if the “cake and ice cream” that initially attracted them were no longer offered. There are many people today who attend church because they are “bread seekers” rather than genuine Christ seekers. Is the reason why you attend with your church listed below?
24 Wrong Reasons to Attend Church
- Pre-martial sex, shacking up or homosexuality is OK
- Ethnic, language or race similarities
- You really like the preacher: dynamic or handsome
- Church building is large & beautiful
- Your best friends go there
- Its where your parents attended
- Its the church you got married in
- Midweek daycare for your children
- They have a popular TV or radio program
- Building is geographically convenient
- Free trade skills development programs
- Family social evenings & youth groups
- Monetary & food gifts for members
- They run a ‘Christian’ public school
- You agree with their political views
- Summer camping retreats offered
- You are dating one of their members
- Opportunity for business contacts
- Musical programs and dinner theaters
- Bingo, raffles and bazaars
- The people are friendly and loving
- The church needs me
- Important or influential people attend
- The services are exciting
Forsaking the Assembly – The Ultimate Excuse
Imagine that you asked the boss for the day off to attend your father’s funeral, and he refused. You might consider him so unreasonable that you might quit on the spot. Of any excuse in all of society, the death of a parent is always accepted. It is the ultimate excuse! It works every time … except on Jesus. One man actually used the death of his father as an excuse to put off following Christ. Luke 9:59 says, “Jesus said to another, ‘Follow Me,’ but the man replied, Permit me first to go and bury my father.' Then Jesus answered back,Allow the dead to bury the dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God. “‘ Do you consider the Lord unreasonable for refusing to allow this man to bury his father? Jesus replied in other words, “If you are going to use the death of your father as an excuse to put off making me Lord of your life, then no, I will not allow you to bury your father.” Jesus Himself attended funerals so He was not against funerals as such. This man was using the occasion as an excuse to delay following Christ. Now, if Jesus didn’t accept the “ultimate excuse” what do you think Jesus will say about your excuses when you forsake the assembly? The truth is that people who habitually forsake the assembly do not have Jesus as the Lord of their life. For Jesus to be our Lord we must obey Him in all things, not just those we choose.
12 Excuses why people forsake the assembly (Heb 10:25)
- Too bus or tired with work or school
- Weekly attendance is not important
- Rather do some work around the house
- Jesus doesn’t expect me to attend
- Rather o shopping or go to the cottage
- Guests visiting for the weekend
- Christ is important …Not the church
- Hard to form the habit of assembling
- Would rather sleep in
- Organized religion is corrupt
- I must work every Sunday
- Attendance causes family tension
A Lifetime Commitment
When we talk about lifetime commitment, we usually think about marriage. Yet the U.S. divorce rate is ~50% in spite of the fact that both parties have vowed to stay together, “for better or worse, till death do us part.” What Jesus requires of His followers greatly exceeds the commitment of marriage. Many today have broken their spiritual vows! To break this most critical commitment, especially for reasons that won’t stand against scripture is to literally invite condemnation on the day of reckoning.
Salvation and eternal life are obtained only through Christ. Christians, themselves, must unfortunately live in the church with hypocrites who claim to be Christians and whose lives are an embarrassment for them and for Christ. Likewise, we should be careful who we call a hypocrite when our lives may not be as spotless as we think. We must work out our own salvation as individuals not letting others to steal our prize. Those who are serious about their salvation must not let the hypocrites (self or others) deter them, for disobedience to the will of Christ will most certainly result in death and flaming fire regardless of how morally good you might be; the existence of hypocrites in the church will not be a valid excuse on the day of judgement.
