“I could never become a Christian; Christians are a bunch of hypocrites!”
This is a common objection to Christianity. How could I believe in something where so many of its supposed followers do not practice what they preach? Yet the sentiment behind this—an opposition to religious hypocrisy—is actually rooted in biblical conviction. Jesus himself calls out hypocrisy and hypocrites (Matt 7:5) and the Bible instructs Christians to “not only be hearers of the word, but doers of the word,” lest we deceive ourselves (James 1:22). The problem is not Christianity, but a failure to live out Christianity’s teachings and practices.
The truth is, none of us are 100% consistent with what we profess we believe to be true. We don’t fully practice what we preach, or do what we hear God’s Word calling us to do.
What can we do with our hypocrisy? James 1:19-27 is instructive.
First, Christians are to “receive the implanted Word, which is able to save…our souls” (James 1:21). This is referring to hearing, believing, and receiving God’s Word in our hearts and minds. We let the truth of the Bible shape our thinking, our feeling, our fears and hopes and values. God’s Word freshly convicts us and influences us to behold again the beauty and glory of God. It leads us to say no temptation and sinful impulses. It saves us from believing the lies of the devil and the flesh.
As Christians who have received God’s Word, we then hear God’s command to ‘not only be hearers of the Word, but doers’ (James 1:22). This direct instruction exposes the hypocrisy in our hearts and challenges us to live lives of integrity and righteousness. It calls us to a wholesome wholeness that flows out of our new identity rooted in the gospel. We find ourselves freshly wooed into obedience, as we are promised that the hearer who obeys “will be blessed in his doing” (James 1:25).
Finally, God teaches that authentic Christianity demonstrates itself through good works. In particular, we called to honor God with our speech, to visit orphans and widows, and to keep ourselves unstained from the corruptions and evils of this world (James 1:26-27). Such authentic Christianity lived out is beautiful, blesses others, and brings glory to God.
Do we still fall into religious hypocrisy at times? Sadly, yes, and that is why we still need to hear James 1:19-27. But as we recognize our failures, we look to the God who ‘gives grace to the humble,’ (James 4:6). We trust again in the finished work of Christ, whose ‘once and for all sacrifice’ fully paid the price for all of our sins (Hebrews 10:11, 12, 14). These leads us to repent again of our hypocrisy and cling again to Christ, our only hope in life and death.
