I preach grace and mercy. I talk about being patient. We should be long-suffering with those around us. However, I’ve not always practiced what I preach. That’s called spiritual hypocrisy. And Jesus admonishes us to live in a consistent way so that his Name is glorified in all we do.
Brennan Manning said, “The single greatest cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, then walk out the door and deny him with their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”
See, hypocrisy is not the disparity between what we do and what we wish we did. Hypocrisy is the gap between what we show and who we are. It’s the difference between public persona and private character. Jesus didn’t want the show, he wants real discipleship.
In Greek culture, a hypocrite was a stage actor…someone who wore a mask. So both Jesus and Paul remind us we are not to be “actors” when it comes to following Jesus but real, live disciples who are fully committed to pursuing the life Christ has called us to live.
Social media is the perfect breeding ground to create this kind of life. We post on our social media accounts everything we want the world to see and nothing we wish to hide. So we post amazing quotes about marriage but sleep in different bedrooms. We talk about how awesome our life is when in reality, we are suffering from isolation, loneliness, hurt, and depression.
Did you know we actually hold the key to our freedom? Jesus gave it to us. The writer in Proverbs 28:13 says, “People who conceal their sins will not prosper but if they confess and turn from them, they will receive mercy.” Confession is the key. If we are real and authentic, we unlock ourselves from the prison.
So if hypocrisy is the gap between what we show and who we are, how do we close the gap? Well, we don’t close it with perfectionism. We’ll never be good enough to be perfect. So, we close the gap with Jesus. He is our perfection. He is our savior and our healing.
So let Jesus do the healing. Let him be our redemption. Let his heart forgive us. Allow him to be the source of power in our lives. Blessings on the journey.