After reviewing essays written by other students, one student was noticeably agitated with a fellow classmate who had apparently made a snarky remark towards her. The prompt for the essay addressed the achievement of perfection, and the student sample stated, “The only perfect person to walk the earth is JESUS!” The boldness of the statement took some students by surprise, but the one agitated student responded, “That’s why I’m an atheist!” No one seemed shocked, but I looked at her and wondered how she had come to this conclusion at the age of 16.
After class, I asked her whether she had been visibly bothered by the statement in the essay or was she annoyed with her classmate. She was annoyed with the classmate who said, “How would you know if Jesus was perfect? You don’t believe in Him nor do you go to church.” She asked if she could sit down and explain her thinking. I listened. This student went on to say that she had been brought up in church, and she read her bible. She attended regularly with her parents, but then her parents stopped going and she noticed the disingenuine spirit of those who continued to go. She said, “I am not going to call myself a believer when I don’t act accordingly. That’s the way I feel, and I am not ashamed. I am not going to say I’m a believer just for the sake of saying that I am a believer especially when I am not acting like one.” I told her that I appreciated her talk and her honesty.
Listening to this student made me think about people who speak the words but don’t act them out on a daily basis. How many people do you know who act as though they are better Christians because they read the bible? Have a scripture for every situation? Posture in front of friends and family for the sake of looking “Holy”? Present a legalistic view in certain situations, and behind the scenes shed their sin when no one is watching? Matthew 23:27-29 addresses this person. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
What about the person who performs tasks for affirmation or to be seen? We all know someone like this: a close friend, a relative, a spouse, or yourself. How are you, acquaintances, friends, family members, or friends perceived by the public? One may be deemed as hyper-spiritual, legalistic, or hypocrites. What those closest see is an individual who has a facade for the public eye and a different persona for home, a false sense of self, and a pretension for being highly spiritual. But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men. (Matthew 23:5-7).
So how did we get to the point that a sixteen-year-old is an atheist and sees the hypocritical side of religion? How did the hyper-spiritual legalist get to the point of living behind the mask of criticism and judgment? Has our society contributed to shaping these individuals? Have world events impacted the Christian identity?
When we look at the present state of the world, it is not what it once was, and the direction that our country has taken has been startling. We are a divided nation. The revelation of division has brought changes in socialization, personalities, opinions, politics, and many other areas. The one area that has been brought to the forefront is the face of religion. We have heard the prosperity preaching sermons, the feel-good sermons, the recycled sermons, and the fire and brimstone sermons. So what we are likely missing are the biblically truth-filled sermons.
Would biblically truth-filled sermons change the perspective of my student or others who feel the exact same way? Isaiah 29:13 (MSG) describes what my student sees. “
“These people make a big show of saying the right thing,
but their hearts aren’t in it.
Because they act like they’re worshiping me
but don’t mean it,
I’m going to step in and shock them awake,
astonish them, stand them on their ears.
The wise ones who had it all figured out
will be exposed as fools.
The smart people who thought they knew everything
will turn out to know nothing.”
Hiding behind the mask of religion doesn’t give authenticity to our actions. Those around us need to see the fruit of the spirit actively in place: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. They need to see that in a believer’s flaws, there is mercy and grace.
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