“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!” (Matthew 23:13 (ESV)
“My heart I offer to you, O Lord, promptly and sincerely.” — John Calvin
Oh yes, I’m the great pretender, Pretending I’m doing well. My need is such I pretend too much, I’m lonely but no one can tell. – Samuel “Buck” Ram
At the heart of any and all hypocrisy is the posture of pretending or pretentiousness. We hide who we really are from other people. We pretend to be something, or someone, we are not. We act a part and hope no one discovers who we really are.
“Of all the spiritual dangers to which Christ alerted His disciples, few of them outweigh His warnings concerning hypocrisy. And our Lord left little room for confusion about what He meant. One need only read the Sermon on the Mount, where Christ calls out the dangers of hypocrisy when it invades prayer, fasting, giving to the poor, or practices of righteousness (Matt. 6:1–6, 16). He is even more explicit in the Seven Woes, where He hammers the hypocrisy of the Pharisees who “preach, but do not practice”; do their religious deeds “to be seen”; love seats and titles of honor; are blind to worldlines, justice, and mercy; strain out gnats while swallowing camels; and appear clean without but are unclean within (Matt. 23:1–36). This is the spiritual hazard that Christ described as “leaven,” which spreads invisibly and thoroughly (Luke 12:1),” states Dr. Craig Troxel, Professor of Practical Theology at Westminster Seminary, CA.
“By talking about hypocrisy, Christ was invoking a familiar and graphic image to illustrate when you and I pretend to be something that we are not. The root of the word hypocrite refers to an actor. In ancient Greece, actors wore masks to indicate what parts they were playing. Those in the audience would see the facial shell, which hid the real person underneath. This illustrates the concept of hypocrisy—what others see makes a pleasant impression, but it is false. Our religious mask betrays what is truly underneath. The thin veneer of our religious hypocrisy hides the cheap material within. It is a lie.”
However, God knows who we are. He knows everything about us. He knows us better than we know ourselves. Consider the words of King David in Psalm 139:1-4.
1“O Lord, you have searched me and known me! 2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. 3 You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. 4 Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.”
2 Corinthians 1:12 (ESV) says, “For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you.
The Apostle Paul stated the opposite of hypocrisy is godly sincerity. Sincerity (εἰλικρινείᾳ; eilikrineia) refers to having pure motives in everything we do. Sincerity is to be done with simplicity (holiness) and godliness.
“Paul’s point in 2 Corinthians is strikingly similar to what our Lord teaches in the phrase “Blessed are the pure in heart” (Matt. 5:8). It is important to note that our Lord does not mean a heart that is washed clean. Here He uses “pure” to signify what is undivided or without mixture—a similar idea is what is printed on bottled water: “100% pure spring water.” It is water without contaminants. So also, a pure heart lacks the contaminants of idolatry. It is not divided in its interests and it does not have mixed motives. It is unified by a singular devotion,” explains Dr. Troxel.
Where is hypocrisy in your life? Is it in your private behavior? Is it in your public demeanor? Are your thoughts, emotions and will in conformity to the Word and will of God? Ask the Lord to reveal to the areas of your life in which your pretending is great. Offer your heart to the Lord promptly and sincerely.
Soli deo Gloria!
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