Hypocrisy in practiced Christianity
First of all, I should say that I am a Christian. I don't know everything and can never have all of the answers. If you disagree with my opinions, email me at amargon@hotmail.com. Please don't be offended, I'm only trying to give a little insight on what I see as true Christianity, as Jesus (God) intended it to be. I can't possibly write down everything I know and believe, so I'm just picking some different topics. This page is not about Christianity as a whole, but only an issue within it.
When Christians judge others
As a Christian, I am very lucky. God loves me, and I know this. I am valuable because God loves me, not loved by God because I am valuable. I have peace with myself, and a purpose in life. When I mess up, I start fresh. And God keeps no record of wrongs.
However, Christianity is often mispracticed. Some "Christians" judge their neighbors, thinking themselves superior "because they have God." I am not better than anyone else. Perhaps I am happier, more loved, have had more opportunity or education, but we are all intrinsically equal. We are equal, but we are also the product of our environment. If we are raised in a loving household, we are capable of love. If we accept God's love, we are more able to give real love. If our parents support us and help us with our schoolwork, we will probably do well; if we are neglected for some reason, we are less likely to develop to our potential. But we are all equal.
Many "Christians" ignore Jesus' teachings in the area of judging others, although they don't usually mean to. It is not something usually stressed in church. Often, this ignorance is the result of lack of background education. People who have less education or developed intelligence are not inclined to seriously study God's word. And that's okay, to a point. However, some of the things that people do in Jesus' name are positively blasphemous.
First let me give a dictionary definition of "to judge":
*to hear and pass judgement on (persons or cases) in a court of law
*to determine the winner of (a contest)
*to decree
*to form an idea or opinion about (any matter)
*to criticize or censure
*to think or suppose --"If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord (Acts 16:15)
Here's a collection of verses on judging others:
- Matthew 7:1-5 (Jesus is the speaker)
"Do not judge others, or you too will be judged. For the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank inyour own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocirite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye."
- Matthew 23:8-12 (Jesus is the speaker)
"But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth 'father,' for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor are you to be called 'teacher,' for you have one Teacher, the Christ. The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted."
~No one is superior to anyone, no one knows everything. Be content to help people as you can, and receive help and advice yourself.~
- Matthew 23:23-24 (Jesus is the speaker)
"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! YOu give a tenth of your spices--mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel."
The teachings of Jesus are about how we should act, not about ceremony and traditions. Ceremony is useless without the "important matters of the law."~
- Matthew 23:25-26 (Jesus is the speaker)
"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. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean."
~Hypocrites may look good on the outside, but they are filled with sin. Christians must first be cleansed of sin by God and then they can improve their livestyles. You can't be a Christian only by pretending not to sin; you must accept God and strive to live in his ways, to love, and he will give you "righteousness by faith,": as you experience God's love, you can identify and resist sin more.~
- Mark 12:32b-33
[The man replied to Jesus,] "...God is one and there is no other but him. To love Him with all your heart, and with all your understanding and all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offereings and sacrifices."
[Jesus said to the man,] "You are not far from the kingdom of heaven."
~Amen to that one!~
- Mark 7:6-8
[Jesus] replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain, their teachings are but rules taught by men.' You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men."
~Many "Christians" can recite verses, and shout appropriate praises at services. They may pray, and feel that they are "right with God." But they have missed the point of Jesus' instruction, following their own rules and schedules, the traditions of the church that come so readily to them. But they have nothing to do with God's teaching & commands.~
- Galatians 5:22
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law."
~These are the qualities God instructs & wants us to have. That is what is important for Christians.~
- Romans 14 (Paul is the speaker)
"Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgement on disputable matters. One man's faith allows him to eat everything, but the another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The man who eats everything must not look kown on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everyting must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. so, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.
For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God's judgement seat. It is written: 'As surely as I live,' says the Lord, 'every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.' So then, each of us iwll give an account of himself to God.
Therefore let us stop passing judgement on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way. As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean. If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died. Do not allow what you consider good to be spoken of as evil. for the kingfdom of God is not a matter of drinking and eating, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men."
~God has accepted us; in the same way, accept your brothers as they are. Don't judge, that's God's job. Don't quibble over triviality, but live your life as God wants, in the spirit of true Christianity.~
Well, that's about all I have to say on this particular topic. We can't judge another person, or compare their faith or sin to ours. It's impossible, and God tells us not to. The most important thing in Christianity is how we treat others, and that we live as Jesus did, as God would want us to. Accept the faults of others and yourself, and try to improve yourself. Accept God and be at peace. Amen.
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