Good morning and welcome to everybody. Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture, but before we do that, I wanted to tell you a little story.
When I was a very young child, I used to wake up on Saturday morning, run out to the living room and turn on the television. The TV station would come on at 6am sharp to play cartoons. Back then, you could only sit so close to the television set, so I would sit behind the line that had been drawn for us on the floor, waiting patiently for the national anthem to finish. When that was done, the roadrunner show would come on. For some reason, things on that show have always been etched in my mind, especially when the coyote would pretend that he was a different creature. He would put on sheep’s clothing, and walk among the herd, trying to appear outwardly as something that he really wasn’t. By the looks on the sheep’s faces, you could tell they weren’t deceived either, because when you looked very closely, you could easily identify him by his brown legs, as they stuck out from underneath his costume.
This reminds me of the Christian Life.
The coyote was pretending to be something that he wasn’t. When we examine the word hypocrisy, it is defined as possessing certain beliefs, but you really don’t conform to what you profess to believe. It is simply an act of pretending to be religious on the exterior; like those who appear as sheep, but are actually wolves underneath.
Genuine believers are going to want to do the will of God from their heart. If they don’t possess that desire, then it really is only a religious act. If they have no sincere desire to walk in obedience towards God, then it is only a false form of Christianity, one that is filled with the fruits of insincerity, hypocrisy, and pretense. Hypocrisy has to do with being two-faced, like a very popular person who acts one way in public, but is completely different in private. They claim to believe in Jesus, but all it is is lip service, because inwardly, they really don’t want to do anything that Jesus teaches. They proclaim their faith in a public manner but when it comes down to it, it’s all for show. It’s the same way that many of the religious leaders 2,000 years ago, were living their lives.
Matthew 23:25-28 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.
Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. 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. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
Some things never change, because many of these same types of people are sitting in high places of religious authority in Christian groups today.
Matthew 15:7-8 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,
This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
Many people who profess to be Christian, only practice their faith once a week. They attend a church service somewhere, display an open show of religion publicly, but when they leave, they become a completely different person. Like Lot’s wife, they return to the world, live as the world, and behave like the world. These types of people are filled with hypocrisy, because they openly profess to believe in Jesus, but in works they completely deny Him. They turn away from daily obedience to what they have learned from scripture.
Titus 1:16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.
People claim to believe in Jesus, but refuse to repent and follow His will. That’s hypocrisy. It’s lip service Christianity, without actions of obedience towards God.
Luke 6:46 And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
Eternal life is a reward provided for those who are obedient and faithful. Those who profess to be religious publicly, but are complete frauds underneath, will lose any hope of salvation.
Job 8:13 So are the paths of all that forget God; and the hypocrite’s hope shall perish:
I think that most people really believe that they are going to be in heaven, but if they don’t repent and obey the will of God, they are not going to make it. They will be cast away from God’s presence, whether they claim to be Christian or not. Disobedience to the truth does not please God, and sanctification to His purpose is required to inherit eternal life. Millions of people claim to believe in Jesus, but for many of them it is only words. They will quickly express their faith in a public manner, but it is not backed up by actions of obedience to the will of God.
James 1:22-25 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
There are many very religious people in society today, but if you peeled back a few layers of their heart you would find something completely different going on inside. Even though they do many things in the name of Jesus, they will miss out on eternal life simply because they never truly turned away from their own secret sins, and became obedient to the will of God.
Matthew 7:19-23 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. 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. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
These same people are alive and well in many Christian bodies today. Religious hypocrites who are trying to destroy the true church from within.
Matthew 23:5 But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments…
The Apostle Paul had fruit, which people could see in the life of Timothy and others that he had brought forth in the faith. The apple doesn’t fall very far from the tree does it. But hypocrisy breeds hypocrisy. Jesus warned His own disciples about this.
Luke 12:1-2 In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known.
The truth is going to come out and all those hidden things of darkness will be quickly exposed.
2 Timothy 3:8-9 Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.
1 Timothy 4:1-2 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;
The devil is all over the world today, even within many churches, trying to deceive the sheep of God. But the true sheep recognizes him for what he truly is……
…..The Coyote
Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody. ❤️
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