Our LordThe big news earlier this week centered on the celebration of MLK Day in America. The federal holiday has celebrated Mr. King’s birthday since 1983, when conservative President Ronald Reagan signed it into law, despite pushback from many within the Republican Party.
Unfortunately, much like those conservative holdouts 40 years ago, President Trump recently changed laws in America, ending free access to national parks on the holiday and on Juneteenth.
The president’s actions continue to show he is pursuing his own self-interests and glorifying himself instead of bearing the fruit of being a child of God:
- Humble
- Sacrificial
- Forgiving
- Deceptive
The irony of this year’s MLK celebration was that many conservatives tried to quote Dr. King on darkness not being able to overcome darkness. Yet support a president and policies that contradict this biblical principle of evil not being able to overcome evil (Proverbs 25:21-22, Romans 12:21).
Martin Luther King famously said, “We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.”
Dr. King was a man of faith who did more than just lead the civil rights revolution; he was determined to practice what he preached by leading peaceful protests against what the Bible calls evil.
He taught his congregation and supporters to be more like God and less like this power-hungry, unforgiving world. He reminded us of our call to be the light of the world (Proverbs 4:18, John 8:12).
understood the hypocrisy of God’s people who claimed to be the light but walked in darkness instead (Isaiah 32:6, Matthew 23:25).
What Is Hypocrisy
We have all experienced hypocrisy at some point in time, and we know how deceptive and hurtful it is. Hypocrisy is a deeply spiritual problem that comes from the pride of our own hearts.
Hypocrisy is defined as, “A feigning to be what one is not or to believe what one does not: behavior that contradicts what one claims to believe or feel; an assumption of appearance or religion.”
Any one of us can become a hypocrite if we aren’t careful to live by God’s Word or what we say ourselves. Hypocrisy results when the pride of our hearts blinds us. Regardless of what we say, God knows the truth, and our actions reveal the truth in the end (Proverbs 15:3).
That’s why the Bible has a lot to say about hypocrisy and doing what is right (James 1: 26; 2:14-26, 1 John 2:4). I have already discussed how our actions prove what we really believe; we all know that talk is cheap.
As God’s people, we are called to speak out against all evil and to do what is right by God’s standards (Micah 6:8, James 4:17). God’s people are called to be known by their actions, not their words (Matthew 7:16-20, Titus 1:16, James 1:22).
When our actions don’t align with our words or our beliefs, we have deceived ourselves into thinking we can live both ways, just like a hypocrite (Romans 2:13, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Galatians 6:3, James 2:14-17, 1 John 1:6).
The apostles remembered their Jewish education about doing what we and God say to keep from becoming a hypocrite like the lost people in the world.
Ḥānēp̄
The Torah teaches us how the first Adam listened to and walked with God, until he wanted more and chose to listen to Satan’s promise of earthly greatness (Genesis 1:26-30; 2 15-17; 3:22-24).
Sin entered the world because Adam and Eve stopped listening to Him. After the fall, mankind chose to listen to their hearts and Satan.
God called Abraham and His people out of this dark world to be His holy people to walk and talk with Him instead of being hypocrites (Genesis 12:1-4; 17:1-8). We cannot be God’s people and live like the world; that is the epitome of hypocrisy.
The Hebrew word in the Old Testament for hypocrisy is ḥānēp̄, and it can also mean, “Profane, godless, hypocrite, or irreligious,” depending on the context it is used in.
That is why Judaism emphasizes the need for God’s people to practice the values of God and not the ways of this fallen kingdom (Deuteronomy 10:12-13; 11:1, Psalm 119:1-3, Jeremiah 7:23):
- Pursue justice
- Forgive
- Charity
- Humility
Jesus reminded His followers of these basic Jewish values in His sermon on the mount (Matthew 5:1-48). Our Lord emphasized the need to prioritize the least of these, foreigners and our neighbors, before our selfish wants and needs (Matthew 5:14; 25:35-40).
He reminded His followers not to mistreat others and how to love them (Matthew 7:12, John 4:7-8). When we fail to love others like God does, we become hypocrites. Our goal is to be more like God and less like this unloving world (Matthew 5:14-16).
Our Rabbi rebuked the religious Pharisees for their hypocrisy (Matthew 23:13, 27-29). One of His harshest rebukes against His own people was when He entered a temple they had defamed by selling sacrifices and exchanging money in, we all know how He protested against their worldly actions in the temple (Matthew 21:12-13).
St. Cloud
In other big news this week, conservatives have been in an uproar over a group of protesters who entered a church in St. Cloud, Minnesota, to protest against one of the pastors whom they mistakenly thought also worked as an I.C.E. agent.
By no means am I saying that disrupting a church service, or even protesting on the church grounds, is okay. I do understand their desire to stand up for immigrants and the least of these, who are mainly here to work for a better life.
I simply want to point out the hypocrisy of many conservatives who claim to stand up for justice and to do the will of God. We are commanded, not asked, to stand up for the least of these, foreigners, and to love our neighbors, regardless of their legal status, color, or ethnicity.
Both Jesus and Dr. King would be ashamed of how God’s people have ignored the teachings of both Christianity and Judaism If we are God’s people, we should be heartbroken over what is happening in both America and the American church.
Too many of us claim to be the people of God, but look more like this evil world than we do God (Romans 12:2):
- Greedy
- Violent
- Unforgiving
It is both unethical and unchristian to justify any evil acts of wrongdoing, just because we agree with it politically. I bring this up because it was the Trump administration that changed I.C.E. policies last year to allow agents to invade churches and schools in pursuit of immigrants. And on one occasion last year, agents did pursue immigrants onto church property. Brothers and sisters, if it is wrong for one, it is wrong for all. We need the planks out of our eyes and stand up for truth (Isaiah 1:1-31, Matthew 7: 3-5, Galatians 6:1).
I don’t care if you’re a pastor, Christian author, or speaker; we cannot have it both ways, because that is ḥānēp̄!
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