The Lord then answered him, and said,
Thou hypocrite, doeth not each one of you
on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from
the stall, and lead him away to watering?
And ought not this woman, being a daughter
of Abraham whom Satan hath bound, lo,
these eighteen years, be loosed from
this bond on the sabbath day? And when He
had said these things, all His adversaries
were ashamed: and all the people rejoiced
for all the glorious things that were done by Him.
Luke 13:15-17
This narrative is not just another story even though one might admit that it has good moral and pragmatic use of life. That it does! The Holy Spirit inspired the writers of the Bible to record and to write that which He revealed as to how we are to live this life and how we are to please Him. To say that one is an Authentic Christian, or if one is a cultural Christian, liberal Christian, nominal Christian, or any other form of some professed Christianity does not mean that any of these people could not be a hypocrite. A hypocrite is one who practices hypocrisy and it is those persons whose actions belie stated beliefs. Hypocrisy is a false profession of desirable or publicly approved qualities, beliefs, or feelings especially if one is a pretender in regards to having virtues, or moral principle or religious beliefs that one does not really possess. to say that one is a Protestant, or that one is of the Reformed Faith does not mean a hypocrite. Each and every one of us can be or have been a hypocrite and our lives and when we recognize that we need to do something about it, that is, we need to change from the inside/out. Example: a Christian speaks much about the horrors such as child trafficking, or immorality becoming accepted and displayed openly even though the Bible speaks against it, or to speak against another person's religious beliefs especially those who say that they are Christian and knowing that they are not following the Bible and are doing a lot of talk but little action; they are saying one thing to show some sort of godliness and yet do nothing or little to actually be godly.
Some people have mastered an outer appearance that enables them to pursue goals that are not scriptural and yet give and maintain a veneer of goodness. What is missing is agape love, that is, God's principal love. It begins with the fact that this love is not in their heart for what's in their hearts is the desire to be seen as one thing when in actuality they are another. It is interesting to note that when a person comes against some trials are circumstances that are tough their true colors often shining bright even in the night. You see they may have mastered the art of disguising their hostility, even their hypocrisy, but internally there is a knowledge of the truth in this knowledge is stewing on their inside. This happens most often with those who have aligned themselves who have aligned themselves who to the
society and its culture and actually have a desire for social success or
notoriety, to be one who has expensive or many possessions. You see
they have learned to put on an appearance of goodness and respectability
and yet they are not pursuing that which is necessary to be pursued:
i.e., child trafficking, abortion, same-sex marriage, homosexuality, the
display of immorality on television so that even children can view this immorality and if the parents do nothing they think that it's all right. James under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit wrote: "Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God" (James 3: 4).
Authentic Faith has no interest to be a hypocrite, to put on some sort of virtuous mask. Authentic Christian Faith demands truth in the inner person: that is why we are to change from the inside/out. Do you say you have faith? "Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith without buying works, and I will show thee my faith by my works. Thou believist that there is one God; not do as well: the Devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead" (James 2 18 -- 20)?
An Authentic Christian does all he/she can do to avoid any action or thought that would distort or diffuse their purity before God. This is why we place ourselves in a position, to deny ourselves and pick up our cross and follow Jesus, and not become a competitor for some sort of ascendancy over another person or denomination that can be so damaging. Yes, if that person or denomination is speaking that which is heretical, that is, that which is well understood to be not of Scripture to be in contradiction to Scripture we are to speak up. But if you or I think more of ourselves that we ought to then we will exert our will and energy in the wrong way we will attempt to show ourselves to be above that other person or other denomination. there are differences and their art in differences and we must know and understand the difference: for example: one denomination will not drink wine at the communion service and use grape juice, other denominations may say no it needs to be wine because that's what Jesus drank at the Last Supper and he did, why because that's what they drink water was scarce. That's a matter of indifference. If a person or denomination says that there is no Trinity and that Jesus was a create man then that's a matter of difference. If other things are said to be some sort of litmus test as to whether or not a person is a Christian well the only litmus test is whether or not that person has put their faith and trust and belief in Jesus Christ. How will I know that's true? Well we just read it: Faith without works is dead and those works can be measured against the Scripture as to whether or not they are actually Scriptural. That we been instructed to do so by the Bible and is not some sort of man-made doctrine.
Authentic Christian Faith is a faith that adheres to the commands and precepts of the Bible and it is a faith that enables a person to stand against that which is unscriptural. Authentic Christian Faith is also a personal faith whereby a person as developed and is growing a relationship with Jesus Christ, a relationship that is built upon Scripture. Do not put on the mask of hypocrisy! Do not be a hypocrite, one that says one thing and actually believes another or is doing the opposite or not doing anything. We are to love our brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ who ever they are and what every church they go to and we are not to judge them in regards to their faith unless that faith is being manifested in such a way that it is unscriptural. Otherwise, we love them and associate ourselves with them for we will live with them for eternity for they too are the bride of Christ, they are the children of God, and they are all adopted by God. Is it not great, and is it not wonderful, that God does not see people due to their wealth, their intelligence, or eccentricity, nor even to what church do you, no God sees us through His Only Begotten Son, and by this you are justified and sanctified and you are now held in the hand of Jesus for eternity. So let's live what we are now and not what we think we will be later poor we are now rolling and manifesting that eternal love and life God has prepared for all of his children.
As God liveth, who hath taken away my judgment;
and the Almighty, who have vexed my soul;
all the while my breath is in me, and a spirit of God
is in my nostrils; my lips shall not speak wickedness,
nor my tongue under deceit.
Job 27:2-4
This is Authentic Christianity
Richard L. Crumb
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