We're All Hypocrites Here

People love to point out hypocrisy in others. In fact, I think it's become one of America's favorite online pastimes. Of course, no one would ever say what they say online to someone's face, but as soon as they log on, every thought and every opinion is unleashed in full force upon the InterWeb. People especially love to call Christians hypocrites. For some, getting to dig up dirt on any Christian or Christian organization and expose the hypocrisy that they find is more thrilling and exciting than winning the Superbowl. And yet, we Christians are such easy targets for hypocrisy. Not just because we are all, as it turns out, sinners, but mostly because we are all part of this rare population that still adheres to the notion of absolute truth, and in turn have some pretty radical convictions about God, life, death, sin, morality, and the afterlife. And the thing about convictions is that having them automatically makes you a hypocrite every time you fail. And the thing about failing is that it's a pretty normal occurrence in any Christian's walk with God. So if you're a Christian, then you are also statistically a hypocrite. It's nothing to be proud of, but it's certainly something to be honest with yourself about, to freely admit to others, and to confess to God.

It would be nice to not have convictions. Or to at least be able to sway back and forth on your convictions as so many others do on the grounds of subjectivism or relativism. No one can ever call you a hypocrite if you believe in nothing, stand for nothing, and sacrifice for nothing. Even relativists are immune to hypocrisy, because hey, to each their own. I may not believe you have the right to kill unborn babies, but you do, and you deserve the right to practice it. See how nonjudgemental I am? See how I have convictions, but don't at the same time? It's a nice way to approach gay marriage and abortion, which are now culturally accepted because of this subjectivism, but apply that same thinking to pedophilia or rape and I doubt the public would be so blasé. It's a funny thing, that Postmodernism. It makes us all aware of hypocrisy but gives us no standard of truth to truly expose and correct it.

It just baffles me how forgiving and nonchalant people can be of evil and at the same time how much hatred they can pour out toward good. Chris Brown bashes Rihanna's head against a window and two weeks later it's like it never even happened. People still buy his albums and still go to his concerts and still worship the ground he walks on. Sure, they think domestic violence is wrong, but they also really wanna go to that concert. They have convictions on this, but not convictions so strong that they would actually protest supporting an abusive artist. I mean, he's an abuser and what he did is technically an opposing force to women everywhere, but at least he's not a hypocrite. And yet on the other hand, Hobby Lobby---a company with Christian owners---is "exposed" for being "invested" in companies that make abortifacients and all of a sudden people have convictions so strong that they vow to never shop at Hobby Lobby again. "Hypocrites!" they scream. "How dare you claim to uphold the dignity of human life!" It doesn't matter that the "investment" is the 401k plan. It doesn't matter that it is the employees, not the company, that pick which mutual funds to invest in. And if this isn't enough, they are "exposed" yet again as "hypocrites" for doing business with China, a country where the government forces abortions on its own people! Never mind that they are doing business with Chinese manufacturers and not the Chinese government. Never mind that doing business in a place where evil exists (which, by the way, abortion exists in America, too) is not the same as supporting the evil. And while we're at it, let's all condemn China and ignore that in this specific Hobby Lobby case we're actually pushing to be like China by demanding freedom of worship (the right to believe whatever you want as long as you keep it to yourself) in the place of freedom of religion (the right to believe whatever you want and bring your convictions to the public square, including commerce.)

(Sorry, I had to get a Hobby Lobby rant in here somewhere.)

People are always wondering why so many Christians are hypocrites, as if there were actually a way for Christians to please the world and escape the label. And yet, this is an impossibility. The world will hate us for doing what is right, declaring what is right to instead be wrong, and the world will hate us when we do not carry out our own convictions of what is right and instead ourselves do wrong. There is no winning the battle against hypocrisy when you're a Christian, there is only bearing it. There is only confessing our sin, resting in God's grace, and trying again to do what is right, no matter how many times we fail.

It is tempting as a Christian to try to avoid the hypocrite label by lessening your convictions or pretending not to have them, but this does no service to God. It is far better to have tried to do what is good and failed than to have never cared or done anything at all. It is better to have watched porn and be deemed a hypocrite because you constantly fight against it than to try to justify your watching porn by declaring it to not be wrong after all. Just because we sin doesn't mean that we should stop fighting sin, and the shame that results from that sin is never a good excuse to keep us from doing what is right. If we truly believe that Jesus paid the price for our sins, that there is now no condemnation for even our hypocrisy, then we would never let shame compromise our convictions, silence us, or keep us from living out the truth of what we believe.

Of course, the best way to avoid being a hypocrite is by living out your convictions and honoring God with your life. If you believe God calls us to be a steward of the earth and all its living creatures, then perhaps you should at least recycle and make an effort towards conservation. If you believe that sex is sacred and designed only for marriage, then perhaps you should not have sex before you're married, or cheat on your spouse when you are. If you believe homosexuality is wrong, then don't have sex with someone of the same gender, and don't watch it online either. If you believe theft is wrong, then perhaps you should stop illegally downloading movies and music. If you believe abortion is wrong, then by all means, definitely don't get one. If you especially want to carry out Jesus' commands in the Bible, then please, please, please care for the poor, widowed, and orphaned. And the list goes on and on. Yes, this is the BEST way to avoid being a hypocrite, but alas, it is not the EASIEST way. Actually doing what you believe means constant sacrifice and even pain. It means being a misfit, being made fun of, being criticized, and maybe even being harassed. Doing what is right is always the more difficult road and it always comes at a cost, but it is also infinitely more worthy of that cost than its counterpart.

Now, there are probably areas in everyone's life where they are in fact not hypocrites, and these are the areas where we all like to point our fingers in judgement the most. We should not take pride in being a hypocrite (as in, "I may be a hypocrite, but at least I have convictions!"), but we shouldn't take pride in not being one either. If you are only doing what is right to hold it above everyone else and demand the same from them, then you have completely missed the point of what it means to love, honor, and follow God. You may have also forgotten what grace is. Being a Christian, an ex-legalist, and a goody two-shoes, I would really like the world to act in accordance to not just God's standards, but more importantly, my standards. The only problem is, not only does the world not live up to these standards, but I don't even live up to these standards. I just like to think that I do. The difference between me and God, though, is that when people fail those standards, I tend to get angry and self-righteous, but God tends to give forgiveness and grace. I, and pretty much every other human, say "Shame on you. We don't want you here," while God says "I'm still here. I still love and accept you.  I'll be holding your hand the entire way." And this is the beauty of grace. It is profound enough that God loves sinners and offers them an eternal life that they don't even remotely deserve, but it is even more profound that He loves and forgives hypocrites, too, the very people that everyone is quick to judge and slow to forgive. The very people that Jesus railed against in the Bible. They are the liars in deeds, but not in words, the scum of the universe that everyone loves to judge and loves to hate. And yet, if everyone were truly honest with themselves, they would admit that they too, are in one way or another, a hypocrite. I know I am. And as it turns out, hypocrites need just as much grace as everyone else, if not more.

So to all you hypocrites out there, repent. Then carry on in God's grace. And to all of you out there who are quick to judge a hypocrite, take a long look in the mirror before you point your finger at anyone. There is nothing wrong with exposing the sin of hypocrisy, but the least you could do is make sure what you're saying is true, and the most you could do is to do it in love.