When we compromise we agree to meet the world, the flesh, or the devil half way. You see, the devil loves half-hearted faith because his kingdom is not effected in the least by it. Compromise is extremely dangerous because it sends the wrong message to both the body of Christ and the world. What compromise begets is hypocrisy.
The evidence of hypocrisy is the external religious activity that serves as a “cover up” for inner wickedness. Hypocrisy is primarily concerned with what man thinks. A hypocrite is a religious actor that demonstrates, or acts out, a religious show. One cannot truly come before Jesus in that condition. The “thrill” of fooling others by our “holy” charade is only temporary. Hypocrisy is a spiritual cancer that manifests itself by verbal assassination.
Is my hypocrisy reversible? Yes, by admitting that sin to Jesus. This is how we take the “beam” out of our own eye. This confession is step one in crushing the practice (the cover-up) of hypocrisy. We must realize that hypocrisy in the heart and in the pew is a leaven that grieves God, defiles worship, and spreads to others. Hypocrisy left unchecked can become “normal Christianity”.
In contrast, heavenly wisdom is without hypocrisy. This wisdom is manifested in a true fear of the Lord. We cannot be contrite and cover up at the same time. We are called to sincerity, which translates in the Greek as “judged by sunlight”, i.e. tested as genuine. The only “act” that we are to follow is Jesus, and Christ pleasers are not men pleasers.
Honesty – inwardly, vertically, and horizontally – keeps hypocrisy at bay. May we walk in truth and be true worshippers of God.
