Posts Tagged ‘not help the poor’
AM I A HYPOCRITE? Part 1 – On the Outside
Sunday, February 5th, 2012
A hypocrite is a person who pretends to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, etc., that he or she does not
actually possess.
(He or she) is especially a person whose actions belie stated beliefs. He or she can also be someone who feigns some desirable or publicly approved attitude.
(He or she) is especially one whose private life, opinions, orstatements belie his or her public statements.*
A charge commonly made against us Christians is that we are a bunch of hypocrites! In fact, this is the excuse given by secularists and humanists as to why they – the atheist – do not go to church or are not a child of God. Of course, they do not see the light poles sticking out of their own eyes.
Billy Graham has a good question for those who blame a lack of any relationship with the one true God of heaven on those of us whom the world accuses of hypocrisy. He said “if you got a bad glass of milk one time, would you quit drinking milk?” Or to paraphrase, if you get a cheap gallon of gas at a QuickMart gas station and it evaporates quickly, would you stop going to any filling station forever? No you won’t, or you would not be able to drive anywhere.
The world looks at the sensational headlines or some perverted, greasy, money-grubbing individual behind a pulpit with a bible and willfully associates us with that prosperity gospel from hell. I can’t tell you the amount of times I have to defend the Bible or my own beliefs in Christ against unbelieving co-workers. These people use the any example of religious double-speak; womanizing or some rich preacher with an arrogant attitude to paint EVERY Christian as one of those.
Sometimes, it does not have to be a national religious figure who falls in disgrace like Ted Haggard or Bishop Eddie Long, but some who accuse us of hypocrisy, are more up to speed on some local pastor in town who owns two spanking new Cadillacs and goes on cruises every winter with his family, while he or his church are never seen downtown, showing any compassion for the homeless and/or hurting. They look at him on local TV with the fancy glittering stage and rock band, hawking books while talking about “the Love of Jesus” and wonder “what planet is this guy even on?”