Bible Questions Answered:
“...a girlfriend says shes christian
when shes with me and my friends, but I hear that when shes with some
other people shes not christian at all. So what to do...”
Sheela/ Bangalore, India Karnataka
Bible Answer:
Hypocrisy, Self-Righteousness, False
Righteousness.
Bible Texts:
Isaiah 65:5 KJV
Which say,
Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou.
These are a smoke in My nose, a fire that burneth all the day.
Matthew 6:1-18 KJV
1 Take heed
that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye
have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.
2 Therefore
when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as
the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that
they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their
reward.
3 But when thou
doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
4 That thine
alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret Himself
shall reward thee openly.
5 And when thou
prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they
love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the
streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They
have their reward.
6 But thou,
when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy
door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which
seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
7 But when ye
pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they
think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
8 Be not ye
therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have
need of, before ye ask Him.
9 After this
manner therefore pray ye:
Our Father
which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom
come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this
day our daily bread.
12 And forgive
us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
13 And lead us
not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the
kingdom, and the power,
and the
glory, for ever. Amen.
14 For if ye
forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive
you:
15 But if ye
forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive
your trespasses.
16 Moreover
when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance:
for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to
fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
17 But thou,
when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face;
18 That thou
appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret:
and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.
Matthew 15:1-9 NLT
1 Some
Pharisees and teachers of religious law now arrived from Jerusalem to
see Jesus. They asked Him,
2 “Why do
your disciples disobey our age-old tradition? For they ignore our
tradition of ceremonial hand washing before they eat.”
3 Jesus
replied, “And why do you, by your traditions, violate the direct
commandments of God?
4 For instance,
God says, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and ‘Anyone who
speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’
5 But you say
it is all right for people to say to their parents, ‘Sorry, I can’t
help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have
given to you.’
6 In this way,
you say they don’t need to honor their parents. And so you cancel
the word of God for the sake of your own tradition.
7 You
hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he
wrote,
8 ‘These
people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me.
9 Their worship
is a farce, for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’”
Matthew 23:1-39 KJV
(Christ issues 7 woes to the Scribes and Pharisees.)
1 Then spake Jesus to the multitude,
and to His disciples,
2 Saying The scribes and the
Pharisees sit in Moses' seat:
3 All therefore whatsoever they bid
you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works:
for they say, and do not.
4 For they bind heavy burdens and
grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they
themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.
5 But all their works they do for to
be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the
borders of their garments,
6 And love the uppermost rooms at
feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,
7 And greetings in the markets, and
to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.
8
But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and
all ye are brethren.
9 And call
no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is
in heaven.
10 Neither
be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.
11 But he that is greatest among you
shall be your servant.
12 And whosoever shall exalt himself
shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.
13 But woe unto you,
Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the
kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves,
neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
14 Woe unto you, Scribes and
Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a
pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater
damnation.
15 Woe unto you,
Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea
and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him
twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.
16 Woe unto you, ye
blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is
nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a
debtor!
17 Ye fools and blind: for whether
is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?
18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the
altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon
it, he is guilty.
19 Ye fools and blind: for whether
is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?
20 Whoso therefore shall swear by
the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.
21 And whoso shall swear by the
temple, sweareth by it, and by Him that dwelleth therein.
22 And he that shall swear by
heaven, sweareth by The Throne Of God, and by Him that sitteth
thereon.
23 Woe unto you,
Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe
of mint and anise and cummin, and
have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and
faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave
the other undone.
24 Ye blind guides, which strain at
a gnat, and swallow a camel.
25 Woe unto you,
Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the
outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of
extortion and excess.
26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse
first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of
them may be clean also.
27 Woe unto you,
Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto
whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are
within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.
28 Even so ye also outwardly
appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and
iniquity.
29 Woe unto you, Scribes and
Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the
prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,
30 And say, If we had been in the
days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in
the blood of the prophets.
31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto
yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the
prophets.
32 Fill ye up then the measure of
your fathers.
33 Ye serpents, ye generation of
vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
34 Wherefore, behold, I send unto
you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall
kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your
synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:
35 That upon you may come all the
righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel
unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between
the temple and the altar.
36 Verily I say unto you, All these
things shall come upon this generation.
37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that
killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how
often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen
gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
38 Behold, your house is left unto
you desolate.
39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not
see Me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is He that cometh in
the name of The Lord.
Hypocrisy:A
pretending to be what one is not, or to feel what one does not feel/
esp., a pretense of virtue, piety, etc.
Hypocrite: A
person who pretends to be what he or she is not; one who pretends to
be better than is really so, or to be pious, virtuous, etc. without
really being so.
(New World
Dictionary)
Jesus warned:
Luke 6:41,42 NLT
41 “And why worry about a speck in
your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own?
42 How can you think of saying,
‘Friend, let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when
you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First
get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to
deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.
Luke 12:1 NLT
Meanwhile, the crowds grew until
thousands were milling about and stepping on each other. Jesus turned
first to His disciples and warned them, “Beware of the yeast of the
Pharisees—their hypocrisy.
Luke 18:9-14 KJV
9 And He spake this parable unto
certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and
despised others:
10 Two men went up into the temple
to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
11 The Pharisee stood and prayed
thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are,
extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
12 I fast twice in the week, I give
tithes of all that I possess.
13 And the publican, standing afar
off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote
upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
14 I tell you, this man went down to
his house justified rather than the other: for every one that
exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall
be exalted.
True Wisdom:
James 3:17 KJV
But the wisdom that is from above is
first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of
mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.
I Peter 2:1,2
NLT
1 So get rid of
all evil behavior. Be done with all deceit, hypocrisy,
jealousy, and all unkind speech.
2 Like newborn
babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into
a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment,
Titus 1:16 KJV
They profess
that they know God; but in works they deny Him, being
abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.
Our enemy, is not stupid!
The church, and God's people, are not his “last,” place of
retreat, but first place of attack!
Divide and conquer, certainly his method.
People, today abound in claiming to be followers of Christ. And yet
Christ tells us....
Matthew 7:21 KJV
Not every one
that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of
heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven.
Hypocrites, false followers of Christ, certainly in the pew, as well
as in the pulpit.
Hypocrisy, the church of Jesus Christ, today is rife with the sin of
hypocrisy.
Oh, many may know the way of salvation, but have one foot firmly
planted in the world.
I John 2:15-17 KJV
15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of The Father is not in him.
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of The Father, but is of the world.
17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
Saying they (the shepherds) are trusting God, they have accounts with
millions and millions of dollars.
Many are billionaires.
If not wealth, than power and authority, an intoxicating mix, that
they would do anything to maintain.
Etc. etc. , and God's church, suffers dishonest, and powerless
leadership as a result!
The glory of God is “not,” seen.
The power of God, not realized.
“Pastor, is it a sin to be wealthy?”
For a called leader of the church of Jesus Christ, or any Christian, that answer may surprise you!
The answer is Yes!
Matthew 6:19 KJV
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth..."
It is a sin, because it means we are "not," we are "not," living a life of SELF-DENIAL!
Matthew 6:19-21 KJV
19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
For wealthy leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ, to stand and assume a
position of pauper and trusting God, is nothing less than deception.
And whether great wealth is hidden or confessed, our God told us...
Exodus 20:3 KJV
Thou shalt have
no other gods before Me.
And it is another sin as well, a sin you do “not,” hear being
preached in our world today!
The Sin of resisting “SELF-DENIAL.”
A life of Total Self Denial, is “not,” afraid of Total and
Open Honesty!
Our spiritual leaders have fallen prey to Satan's wiles.
In these terrible evil days, we need spiritual leaders that are Real
Women and Men of God!
Open and honest as to their Godly Callings/ their
finances/ relationships with others/
etc. etc.
Men and Women who will day by day week by week, month by month, year
by year be open and honest in all their dealings. Lives of
total and open honesty that can and will be blessed of the Lord!
Then the church of Jesus Christ will know, whether it has leaders of
Self-Denial or not!
It is time for all the silly church methods and games of the past to
end!
And they will end, if you and I meet at the altar of where we
worship, and cry out to the Living God, to help us!
II Chronicles
7:14 KJV
If My people,
which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and
seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from
heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
Matthew 16:24
KJV
Then said Jesus
unto His disciples, If any man will come after Me, let him deny
himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
Matthew 8:20 KJV
And Jesus saith
unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests;
but The Son Of Man hath not where to lay His head.
II Corinthians
8:9 KJV
For ye know the
grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich (while
in heaven), yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye
through His poverty might be rich (spiritually).
Mark 8:34 KJV
And when He had
called the people unto Him with His disciples also, He said unto
them, Whosoever will come after Me, let him deny
himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
Philippians
2:3-8,14,15 KJV
3 Let nothing
be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let
each esteem other better than themselves.
4 Look not
every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of
others.
5 Let this mind
be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in
the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
7 But made
himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of A Servant,
and was made in the likeness of men:
8 And being
found in fashion as A Man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient
unto death, even the death of the cross.
14 Do all
things without murmurings and disputings:
15 That ye may
be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the
midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights
in the world;
I Peter 4:17 KJV
For the time is
come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first
begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel
of God?
