What is the biggest obstacle to leading people to Christ, especially those past their teenage years? Hypocrites, wouldn’t you think? When witnessing, I find that most of the truly hard-cases that I encounter, (after really probing into their resistance), have encounteres sometime, somewhere, someone in their past who has acted like a hypocrite to them and has soured them on “religion”.
I know that the exposure to religion that I received in my youth was ruined by the behavior of certain preachers and other church leaders whose personal behavior was far removed from their Sunday sermons. It turned me against religion with a vengeance.
What is hypocrisy? Do as I say do, not as I do. Wait a minute; I have done that on occasion myself. Have you?
Yikes! I’m a hypocrite too. Most of us have on occasion exhibited some form of hypocrisy. We should be aware of how that affects our non-Christian friends. For example I believe it is a sin and flat wrong to curse and use profanity; yet get me mad enough and I sometimes will spew profanity like a sailor. What are my non-Christian friends who over-hear and look to me as an example of a typical Christian think? Not much, I assure you.
It is unfortunate that Jesus Christ and His sinless existence receive the “bad press” for the actions of weak humans, but such is the case. One of the churches that I used to attend had a huge controversy when it was discovered that the choir leader/associate pastor was having an affair with a lady in the choir. He was removed from office and sent packing as was the gal he seduced. Now what effect would you think that this religious leader had on the husband and children of the choir member seduced by this guy? Did the choir leader and the adulteress get the blame or did religion”. Too often it is religion and not the culprit who did the deed.
Jimmy Swaggart was a tele-evangelist with millions of viewers. I sometimes listened to his program and I truly enjoyed his beautiful voice and tremendous music program. I did not care for his preaching as he had a fake crying-sobbing-blubbering style of message, but I am convinced that he led many people to the Lord and did a lot of good around the world prior to his fall. He was caught trying to pick up a prostitute. His personal world did indeed take a dive and go tumbling down to a complete disaster level, but it was religion and religious leaders everywhere that suffered the most because of his actions. What did it say to those who looked up to him as their spiritual leader? The real harm was not to him but to them. The same is true with the Catholic church and the myriad of priest pedophiles.
Yes hypocrites can do much harm. We all are hypocrites on occasion. We are weak and often fail the Lord, as temptation is…. well… tempting, but we must fight it off. It makes me very sad to think that I might be responsible for having turned someone against Christianity and Jesus Christ because I could not exhibit the behavior that I know that I need to exhibit.
How about you? Is any hypocritical behavior ever on your plate? (Dirty jokes, drinking too much, profanity, gossip, jealousy, coveting)
I used to say to my wife about our children that, “little pictures have big ears”, meaning be careful what you say the kids are watching and listening to everything we say and do. The same applies to all Christians. Our non-Christian friends are watching and listening. Allow them to see the wonderful light from Jesus Christ that we enjoy and the good works that we are capable of and not the mistakes (as best we know how). The last thing in the world for which I would want to be responsible is being an obstacle to someone’s salvation and that is exactly what a hypocrite does.
Matt. 5:16
Let your light so shine before
men that they may see your good
works and glorify your Father in
heaven.