Hypocrisy Titus 1:16 Introduction: NEW SERIES How many of you were with us last weekend? Did you notice last weekend felt like a really special kind of time? Anybody kind of notice that? We're going somewhere, I hope you'll know that. What I want to tell you is something that's coming up starting on May 1 st we're gonna do a message series. I'm already working on it, it's called Different to Make a Difference. In this world, you ll have struggles. You ll face opposition. You ll be challenged. And there s a reason for that: this world is not your home. So answer hate with love, find joy in the midst of trials, and rely on a strength beyond yourself. You re meant to be Different. This series is a study of the book of 1 st Peter, and covers topics like how to respond to persecution and culture in a world that's increasingly pulling away from God What I hope you'll understand is that we are going somewhere as a church. I cannot wait to share that message series with you.
Perhaps if you're new with us right now we're in another message series. Maybe you've seen the bracelets on people over the years that say WWJD. Who's ever seen a bracelet like that, WWJD? What does that stand for, it stands for what would Jesus do? What we're doing is we're trying to answer the question not what would Jesus do, but what would Jesus undo? What are the things that really grieve the heart of Jesus? What is it when Jesus sees this in our lives he says I would undo this so you could have something better? Week number one we talked about spiritual apathy. Jesus would undo a lukewarm spirit. Last week we talked about hollow worship. Jesus wants all of our hearts. Worship isn't just the songs that we sing, but worship is the life that we live. Illustration: I Love Jesus Bumper Sticker Guy To introduce today's theme I want to tell you a story about something Jesus would undo. This happened to me one day when I was actually driving to work. When I drive in I have a right turn onto a four-lane highway, two lanes going one way, two lanes going the other way. One day I misjudged the speed of a vehicle that was coming in the inside lane. In other words, I thought he was going slow enough for me to pull out comfortably without him having to break or go around me. I misjudged how quickly this person who was probably significantly breaking the speed limit was actually driving. I pulled out in front of him and I realized very quickly that I'd made a mistake because he was approaching my backside really, really fast. Unfortunately this person, instead of having grace for me, acknowledging my mistake, chose to express his disappointment in my lack of judgment with a really loud horn coming up on the back of me with tremendous velocity. Being the man of God that I am, I decided to acknowledge my mistake humbly and I gave him the international sign of apology that is translated, my bad. Head goes down, hand goes up, my bad. Sorry bro, I misjudged it. I'm not gonna bring up the fact that you were probably going 85 in a 55, but I misjudged it, my bad. Unfortunately he did not receive my signature of repentance. Instead, with the horn on, on my tail he chose to go around me and give me the international symbol for one way to God. You know what I'm talking about, peel the banana, read between the lines, whatever you want to call it. I was disappointed in his response but I chose to let it go being the man of grace that I am until, I saw on the back of his vehicle a bumper sticker. Not just any bumper sticker mind you, but an I Love Jesus bumper sticker. I feel like I shouldn't have to bring this up, but if you do have an I Love Jesus bumper sticker on your car, let the spirit of God lead you to refrain from pointing directly to heaven at people when they make driving mistakes.
What Would Jesus Undo? Something that Jesus would undo is a behavior or an attitude that he despised with all of his heart. Jesus would undo hypocrisy, those who claim one thing but then live in another way. Jesus would undo hypocrisy. Now I want to ease into this subject because hypocrisy's no fun to talk about. It's not easy to see in our own lives. It's very easy to see in other people's lives. In fact, how many of you would say I know a hypocrite? Raise your hand, I know a hypocrite. How many of you say I'm sitting by a hypocrite? Do not raise your hand because they could point right back at you. It's really, really easy to see hypocrisy in other people's lives, but it's not so easy to see hypocrisy in our own lives. In my opinion this is a subject that is sometimes mistakenly belittled by pastors like me. For example, there's an old pastoral joke. One of the most common things that we'll hear from people who have objections to Christianity in the church, they'll say I'm not going to church because they're all a bunch of what? They're all a bunch of hypocrites. They say this all the time. I'm not going to go to church because they're all a bunch of hypocrites. And what the pastors will often say is, well you might as well join, we always have room for one more. We think that it's kind of funny and it kinda is. There is a little bit of truth to it. REAL EXAMPLES: But in my opinion that really dismisses some very real pain that many people have when they are disappointed by the behavior or actions of those who claim to follow Christ. Some of you would know this firsthand. There was someone that you LOOKED UP TO SPIRITUALLY. They said one thing, they did something else. It was very, very painful for you. They represented one thing, a youth pastor. Could even be your mom or dad. Your mom or dad were ONE THING IN CHURCH, THEN THEY WOULD COME HOME and they would act totally different at home. It can be incredibly painful. In fact, just this past week, we Ranée and I were meeting with several church leaders in our area. As we shared prayer concerns one of the leaders asked for us to pray for his daughter who was an adult child. This man s (who is a pastor) daughter was MOLESTED BY A CHURCH BOARD MEMBER when she was 15. She is now in her forties and has never got over it. Not everybody does that. Some people see hypocrisy, well you claim this and you did this and it devastates them. They walk away from the church. Many people walk away from God because hypocrisy is a horrible sin.
What Would Jesus Undo? JESUS WOULD UNDO HYPOCRISY 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. Brennan Manning I like what the author and theologian Brennan Manning said about hypocrisy. He said this, he 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. This is what the unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable." Jesus would undo hypocrisy. Let's go ahead and build a foundation today in understanding what hypocrisy is. But to understand what it is we also have to acknowledge what it is not. I. WHAT THE HYPOCRITE IS NOT HYPOCRISY IS NOT DISPARITY BETWEEN What We Do And What We Wish We Did. Wish Didn t Have Bad Thoughts Do. Wish Didn t Lie Did. (Not Hypocrisy, that is Sin) Let's start with what hypocrisy is not. Hypocrisy is not the disparity between what we do and what we wish we did. It's not the difference between how we behave and how we wish we behave. Like I wish I didn't have bad thoughts, but I did. I wish I didn't say that but I did. What that is, is that's just sin, not hypocrisy. There's a difference between sinning and being hypocritical. HYPOCRISY IS THE GAP BETWEEN What We Show And Who We Are. Hypocrisy, if you're taking notes, is the gap between what we show and who we are. HYPOCRISY IS THE GAP BETWEEN What We Say How We Live. It's the difference between what we say and how we live. HYPOCRISY IS THE GAP BETWEEN Public Persona and Private Character It's the difference between our public persona and our private character.
II. HYPOCRISY ILLUSTRATED JESUS WOULD UNDO SHOW WHEN REAL LIFE ISN'T CONSISTENT WITH WHAT WE SHOW Greek Word: hupokrites (hoop-ok-ree-tace') An actor; stage-player, one who hides behind a mask. In fact, whenever Jesus would rail against hypocrisy there was a Greek word that he used. It's the word hupokrites. It even sounds like hypocrite, hupokrites. And what this word literally means is it means and actor or a stage player. It means one who hides behind a mask. In fact, if you've ever seen the Greek plays, the hupokrites was very literally the masks that they would wear. In fact, I had a couple arranged today. I have a couple mask. This is one. Now if I preached like this it would be very creepy for the rest of the day, right? But this is exactly what some so-called Christians will do. I'm actually one person but I'll show a mask. Angry Hypocrite This is what I call angry hypocrite. This is the ones who hey, don't drink, don't smoke, don't you. And don't you run with girls who do. But then when the mask is off this person has secret addictions going on in the background. They're gonna show one face, but their behaviors are very, very different. This is what I call angry hypocrite. Happy Hypocrite There's also kind of what I call happy hypocrite, happy hypocrite. This one's much, it's still creepy, they're all creepy. This is the one that's like praise the Lord, brother. Hallelujah, oh glory to God so great to see ya. Putting on a show acting oh, hallelujah, glad to see you at church when they fought all the way to church with their spouse. But oh, praise the Lord we're fine. Oh we need to build each other up. Did you see what she wore to church? Who does she think, oh praise the Lord, brother. And this is what Jesus hated. It was when from the outside they would show one thing, but from the inside there was something very, very, very different.
III. HYPOCRISY AND THE BIBLE In fact, Paul has one little verse to me that best represents what hypocrisy is. He says this in Titus 1:16. He says, "They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him." Jesus hated this. He talked very, very directly about what hypocrisy was. He said anytime you're giving to be seen. Hey, I'm gonna be generous, but I want everybody to know how generous I am, that's hypocrisy. Whenever you're praying to be heard. Pharisees Criticizing Taking Advantage of Poor Matthew 6:5 The Pharisees would literally stand on the street corners. Oh dear God we glorify you, we pray for so-and-so, and they were putting on this outward spiritual pride to impress other people. Jesus said that is completely hypocrisy. It's hypocrisy whenever you fast to be noticed. Oh, I'm so holy, I'm so spiritual. I'm denying myself physical food, I want to be noticed. It's hypocrisy whenever you criticize someone for doing something Jesus would say, and you do the same thing. It's hypocrisy. It's hypocrisy Jesus would say, whenever people were taking advantage of the poor. He hated that. Jesus never spoke more harshly than he did when people put on the mask. Jesus in the Temple House Of Worship Matthew 21:12-14 One time, whenever he entered the temple and people were selling animals as a sacrifice he didn't just come in and say now boys I told you not to do that. You guys need to be nice, you need not to be about your personal profit. No man, Jesus came in and he said I am not going to stand for this. He took the tables and he overturned the tables and he said this is my Father's house, and it will not become a den of thieves. This is a place where we seek my Father in prayer. He never spoke more harshly than he did when people were hupokrites, when they put the mask on. Jesus never spoke more harshly than to hypocrites. Jesus and the Seven Woes Matthew 23:27-33 Over the years I ve studied in detail what many theologians called the seven woes, the seven woes. In Matthew's gospel, Matthew 23, Jesus says again and again, woe to you who live like this. Let me show you some of the woes. He says this in verse 27. He says, "woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, "you hypocrites." You play actors. "You are like whitewashed tombs who look beautiful on the outside, but on the inside you're full of all sorts of ungodly stuff." "You're full of bones of the dead and everything unclean." "In the same way he says on the outside you appear righteous to everybody else. You put on a show. But on the inside you're full of hypocrisy and wickedness." Now watch what Jesus calls them. He says, "You snakes. You brood of vipers." Then he asks, "How will you escape being condemned to hell?"
IV. WHAT IS THE HYPOCRITE A. Hypocrites: Look Good On the Outside While Being Dirty On The Inside It's the one who wants to look good on the outside, but on the inside we've very far from God. We want the illusion of public virtue, but inwardly we're full of private vices. Wasn t Calling Out The Sin Calling Out The Show! (Mask) Didn t Say Woe To You Who Cuss Watch Bad Shows What's so interesting to me is this. Jesus didn't say woe to you who say bad words. He didn't say woe to you who watch bad shows on Netflix sometimes. He didn't say woe to you who do bad things. B. Hypocrites: Illusion of Pubic Virtue While Hiding Private Vices He said woe to you who do it but act like you don't. Woe to you who put on the show. Not woe to you who are imperfect. Woe to you who are imperfect, but act like you're something different. Social Media Is a Breeding Ground for Hypocrisy I would argue that today perhaps more than ever social media is the perfect breeding ground for hypocrisy. How many of you might agree with me? This is the place where you can, all day long, show what you want other people to see when in reality you're so much different from that. We see it all the time. Marriage: Here's my perfect marriage. I love my husband so much, he's such a great man of God. I'm so thankful for him. Here we are lovey-dovey-dovey and in reality you're not even sleeping in the same bed. Happens all the time. Checking in Church Devotion: Here I am doing my devotion, here's my coffee cup, 'cause it's not godly without a coffee cup in your devotion Instagram picture. Here's my coffee and here's my Bible. I'm not gonna tell you I actually spent more time getting the image just right than I did doing my Bible study. But I'm gonna show you what I want you to see. The Lego Life: MOVIE Everything Is AWESOME Everything is awesome That's the only line I remember. I don't remember the rest. What's the next line? Everything is awesome That's the only line that matters. Everything is awesome That's what we do on social media. Everything is awesome My life is awesome I'm depressed, I'm miserable, I'm hurting, I'm doubting. Everything is awesome
C. Hypocrites: Do It and Act Like You Don t WHAT WOULD JESUS UNDO? He would undo a spirit of hypocrisy when what we show is so different than who we are. Woe to you, Jesus says. How will you escape being condemned to hell? If you're a little bit uncomfortable right now that's probably a good thing. Because that means you have some self-awareness. Because let me tell you right now some of you are going oh, I'm so glad somebody's hearing this. I'm so sending them this link, they need to see it. The hypocrite. It's so easy to see in other people. But it's so difficult to see in yourself. V. HOPE FOR THE HYPOCRITE A. Be Honest: Let Spirit of God Do a Work Internally Where No One Else Sees Matthew 23:25-26 If you're feeling a little bit uncomfortable because you're recognizing some inconsistencies, that's actually a good thing. That means you're self-aware. That means you're open to what the spirit of God will show you. What I want you to see is there is hope for the hypocrite in all of us. There is hope. Let me show you the hope. 25 Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. Matthew 23:25-26 Jesus shows it in 25, in verse 26 of Matthew's gospel. He says this, he says, "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they're full of greed and self-indulgence." You're showing the show but you don't have the substance. What he says is this, "Blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and the dish. Then the outside will be clean." First let the spirit of God do a work internally where no one else sees. When internally you're being conformed to the image of Christ, when the spirit of God is working within you, when God's word is transforming you, then out of an overflow of who you're becoming you will display the goodness of God as a reflection of his work internally, not as an act to fool people on the outside. But borne within true spiritual work on the inside.
Illustration: Delbert and Pastoral Mystique Let me tell you my story of how this kind of came to be. When I was in college I had a wellmeaning seminary professor who taught us this. And quite honestly this was kind of the mindset of pastors for generations prior to mine. The professor taught us this, that you have to always guard what he called the Pastor's Mystique, the Pastor's Mystique. There's an image that you must keep up. You must be slightly above the people. You must always dress the part, look the look and have the pastoral language. You can never let them know if you doubt. If you have questions you have to keep that to yourself. If you have a bad day in your marriage, don't let anybody know. I was 23-years old in college and thought okay, this is who I have to be. I've got to keep up the Pastoral Mystique. Here I was as a young pastor, would go into church, put on the external suit that we had to wear and I learned to put on a very real show. Here's what I did. I would tell people all the time, brother, I'll be praying for ya, praying for ya. I almost never did. I'm gonna be seeking God on your behalf. I'm in there with ya, and I almost never, ever was. What's God showing you in the word, Delbert? Oh my goodness, too much to count. I don't even know where to start, because I wasn't really consistently and passionately in God's word. I would read it to preach, but it wasn't real in me. Here I was, was this young guy playing a role. I'm pastor, I'm gonna impress you. It became so exhausting and so dangerous. I was so vulnerable to doing something really significantly wrong because sin grows best in the dark. Everything that was wrong with me I kept hidden behind this pastoral mask. There was one Sunday, and there might even be two or three people in our church that were there that day. I took what I considered to be a really, really big risk. I stood up before the church and essentially, metaphorically I took the mask off and I just told the church I need to come clean with you and I just repent. Full-Time Pastor and a Part-Time Follower of Christ The language I used is this, that God had showed me I'd become a full-time pastor and a parttime follower of Christ. Some of you, this will resonate with you. You're a full-time mom, parttime follower of Christ. Full-time business person, eh, Christian maybe, maybe not. Full-time student, not really passionate about the things of Jesus.
I d Rather Be an Honest Sinner Than a Lying Hypocrite So I just explained on that day I'd been faking some stuff, haven't been real and I just want to confess that before you. The decision I made was this. I would rather be an honest sinner than a lying and deceptive hypocrite. I'd rather just drop the mask and be honest about it. What I did on that day was a little bit like last week at church. Last week for some people was a breakthrough. It was kind of like an ahh, aha-moment spiritually. That's what happened in our little church. Other people said I can drop the mask. I've been pretending, I've been faking it. I've been showing one thing and I'm really not. I've been portraying to you that I've got it all together spiritually, but I'm kind of a mess. What I learned as a principle that if you remember one thing I hope you'll remember this. Jesus has zero tolerance for hypocrisy. He can't stomach it, he can't stand it. It turns, he hates it with everything in. Jesus Zero Tolerance for Hypocrisy but Unlimited Grace for a Sinner Jesus has zero tolerance for hypocrisy. But he has unlimited grace for a sinner in need of forgiveness. Jesus cannot stomach the show, but when anyone who's hurting drops the mask and says forgive me, heal me, redeem me, save me, change me, Jesus' answer is always yes. Because he did not come for those who appear to be righteous, but he came for sinners. He didn't come for those who are healthy on the outside, he came for those who knew they were sick. He has no tolerance for the show, but he has unlimited grace for a sinner in need of grace and repentance. So I simply dropped the mask on that day. B. Drop the Mask: Whoever lives like this behind the mask never finds the blessings of God. 1. You Have Nothing to Fear When You Have Nothing to Hide Proverbs 28:13 There were those of you, you're gonna drop the mask as well. But you may say what if they find out? What if they know? What if they know that I'm not perfect? What if they know that I have faults? What if they know that I'm showing one thing and I'm not? Listen to me, you have nothing to fear when you have nothing to hide. You have absolutely nothing to fear when in the community of grace you ask for help. This is what Proverbs says. Whoever lives like this behind the mask never finds the blessings of God. Whoever conceals their sins shows the false life on the outside, hiding the truth on the inside. " 13 Whoever conceals their sins doesn't prosper. But the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy." Proverbs 28:13. The one who asks for help finds mercy.
YOU ARE ONLY AS STRONG AS YOU ARE HONEST. Here's what I hope you'll understand. Some of you, you're gonna recognize right now you're hiding behind a mask. When you drop the mask, when you are honest there is power. You are only as strong as you are honest. You are only as strong as you are honest. 2. Jesus Has Zero Tolerance for Hypocrisy BUT He Has Unlimited Grace for a Sinner Psalm 139:23-23 Moment Of Truth: Confess To God And To People Read Your Bible On Your Phone Look At Porn On It Later. Tell Your Spouse You Love Them Flirt At Work. Church Person Different At Work Showing Perfect Marriage Help. Act Xian Secret Addiction. Material Debt. This is the perfect week to step in by faith, into a community, a consistent group of other believers and join one another in open confession of our need for God. We're not perfect people living a perfect life, pleasing God in a perfect way. We're sinners, we're strugglers. We've messed up, we fall short. We have battles, we have struggles, we're afraid sometimes, we're inconsistent. We want to do one thing, then we do something else. We don't want to have those thoughts and then we do. We don't want to go back to that old life, but we do. But we come together with other people and we open up and we say I'm about to tell you something I've never told anybody before. Zero Tolerance for Hypocrisy Suddenly in that moment of truth the truth will set you free. We're always in bondage when we hide. Whoever hides their sins, conceals their sins doesn't prosper. Whoever drops the mask and renounces it, finds mercy in the presence of God because Jesus has zero tolerance for hypocrisy. Unlimited Grace for a Sinner In Need Of Forgiveness 23 Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-23 David prayed this prayer in Psalm 139. I would ask you, invite you to join me in praying this prayer. It's so easy to point out hypocrisy in other people, but it's so difficult to see in ourselves. David prayed, "Search me, God, and know my heart. Test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there's any offensive way in me and lead me in the way of everlasting."
SEARCH ME, GOD. SEARCH ME, GOD. In preparation for this message this is what I prayed this week, search me, God. Show me, God, show me where I'm wearing the mask and don't even know it. Because listen to me, if you wear this thing long enough, you hide behind the lie long enough you often start to believe your own lie. You don't even know you're wearing the mask. This week God showed me one very specific area of my life, a very specific area that's gonna become business before God every single day. God helped cleanse me in this, helped me drop the mask. Helped me be real. Search me, God, know my heart. Test me, see if there's any offensive way in me. Lead me in the way of everlasting. C. CLOSE THE GAP: Close the Gap Between What You Show And Who You Are What Is Hypocrisy? Gap Between What We Show And Who We Are. What is hypocrisy? It is the gap between what we show and who we are. What did we do with that gap? What Did We Do With The Gap? Close the gaps with Christ. Here's what I hope you understand is we don't close the gap with perfection. What do we do? We close the gaps with Christ. We Don t Close The Gaps With Perfection. We don't close the gap with our outward behavior. Now I'm pleasing to God. We Close The Gaps With Christ. Stop Trying To Be A Good Christian We Aren t Good. Spend Time With The One Who Is Good Jesus. We close the gap with Christ. He is our righteousness, he is our source. He is our healing, he is our redemption. He is the one who brings forgiveness. We don't close the gap with outward behavior. We let Jesus do an inward work. Then inwardly as we're transformed over time our outward behavior is a reflection of the inward healing work of the grace of Jesus.
Conclusion: WHAT WOULD JESUS UNDO? Listen to me church. He would absolutely undo hypocrisy and in our culture today we are ripe with it, this is who we are. We're not hurting. There are some of you, you will have a breakthrough moment when you drop the mask. I need help, I'm addicted and I need someone to pray in strength to help me out of this addiction. My marriage is not where it should be. We need some people to support us, to pray for us, to counsel us. We're not there, we're showing that it's all good. Look at the bling, look at the life, look at the car, look at the house. And were drowning in debt. We're showing you one thing, but we're hurting on the other side. I'm looking like I'm all great today. I'm smiling, but you have no idea. I am scared to death of this medical report and I don't have faith right now. Whoever conceals their sin does not prosper. But whoever drops the mask and renounces it finds mercy. Jesus Has Zero Tolerance for Hypocrisy He Has Unlimited Grace for A Sinner In Need Of Forgiveness. I would rather be an honest sinner than a lying hypocrite because Jesus has zero tolerance for hypocrisy. But he has unlimited grace for a sinner like me in need of forgiveness and a savior. Today there are those of you who walked in this way but today you drop the mask. Today you drop the mask and when you know the truth, the truth will set you free. What would Jesus undo? Jesus would undo the show. He's not asking for perfection, Jesus was perfect. The perfect one lives in us and over time conforms us, and then lives through us. Don't forget it, no tolerance for the show. But unlimited grace for the honest one who needs help.