\u201cThe thing that keeps me from considering Christianity is the hypocrisy of the church. From the Crusades, to the Inquisition, to Tele-Evangelists always asking for money, I\u2019m just plain turned off!\u201d<\/p>\n
If hypocrisy is your concern, it may surprise you to learn that you actually have something in common with Jesus, for Jesus hated religious hypocrisy and preached against it quite often.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot everyone who says to be \u2018Lord, Lord,\u2019 will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in Heaven.\u00a0 Many will say to me on that day, \u201cLord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?\u2019 Then I will tell them plainly, \u2018I never knew you.\u00a0 Away from me you evildoers\u2019\u201d (Matt.\u00a0 7:21-23).<\/p>\n
This interesting discourse, given early in Jesus\u2019 ministry, proved to be very prophetic.\u00a0 Therefore, hypocrisy in the church, while sad, is not a phenomenon, which contradicts the words of Christ, for He not only spoke of hypocrisy but hypocrisy in his own name!\u00a0 Try to imagine some mere man, ambitious, anxious to start a following, gathering people together before things even get rolling and saying:\u00a0 \u201cCan I have your attention?\u00a0 I just want you to know that many of you who call yourselves my followers will be cast into Hell by me personally.\u00a0 Just thought you should know.\u201d\u00a0 Not very likely.\u00a0\u00a0 Such chilling honesty suggests from the onset that there is more to Jesus than meets the eye.\u00a0 He is making it clear that regardless of terminology or sworn allegiance, true Christians have two minimum qualities: 1) A personal relationship with God.\u00a0 The term know<\/em> in Greek (Prognosko) referred to an intimate knowledge.\u00a0 B) An obedience to God that follows this relationship.\u00a0 Although elsewhere in scripture it is made clear that sinless perfection cannot be obtained in this life (I John 1:8), Jesus is nevertheless emphasizing that true followers are at least on God\u2019s path and His words here in Matthew let us in on a little secret:\u00a0 Those who aren\u2019t truly on the road with God can perform mighty religious deeds, even supernatural ones.\u00a0\u00a0 This is a scary and sobering thought.\u00a0 Still, we conclude that religious hypocrisy is not a genuine reason with which to reject the real Jesus and His true teachings.<\/p>\n