The Church is Full of Hypocrites

Pastor Randy Corbin, Transitional Lead Pastor

“The Church is Full of Hypocrites”.  I am chagrined to tell you that the comment put me over the edge.  I value the ability to keep my cool, but in this case, I melted.
It resulted from a comment my conversation partner made as we discussed Christianity.  You have heard it as many times as I have.  The comment?  “The church is full of hypocrites.  So, I have no interest in such a faith.”
You know the drill.  Everyone in church is a hypocrite and that denies the veracity of Christianity.  So, it is a farce.
My unrestrained response was simply this:  “Well, tell God that when you stand at the judgment seat and see how that works for you.”
I know it was a dumb remark and I regret it and I am sure I didn’t move my friend any closer to following Jesus. 
As I moved away from the interaction, I once again complained to myself how so many outsiders pick a few inconsistent believers and conclude that the church is full of hypocrites.  Come on, a few bad apples, yes, but not the whole bushel.
But frankly, the more I reflected on the conversation, the more I began to agree with my friend.  He is right.  The church is full of hypocrites.
Honestly, how many of us are out of sync with what we believe at least on occasion?  How many of us think thoughts, display attitudes, and demonstrate behaviors that are inconsistent with the call of Jesus and the Scriptures?  Most every day when we practice the discipline of examen, we discover we have acted outside the lines. Oh the offenses may be small and rare, but anytime we live/act/think differently than what we say our values are, we are guilty of hypocrisy.
So to be transparent, there is hypocrisy in my life – unintentional, but there is hypocrisy.
Of course, hypocrisy is not just a problem among believers.  Hypocrisy is everywhere.  Even in my friend’s life. He has lied (I have caught him) and he has tried to declare himself to be someone he wasn’t.
Hypocrites are everywhere. 
But for those of us who are following Jesus, with the help of the Spirit, we are diligently (I hope) working on ridding our lives of declaring one lifestyle/behavior/attitude and living something differently.  We yearn to be on the inside what we are on the outside and be on the outside what we are in Christ on the inside.
We earnestly seek to live like Jesus, as we are indwelt by Christ. So, with vigilance and the assistance of the “Paraclete,” our Helper, we work to live the same on the outside as our heart on the inside.
Less and less of the weeds of hypocrisy and more and more like Jesus!  Join me in making this the cry of our hearts and the practice of our lives!