Hypocrites! Jesus rebuked the religious leaders repeatedly with that accusation. But hypocrisy isn’t as obvious as it might seem. Those leaders certainly didn’t see themselves as hypocrites. Worse yet, they taught others to live and see God just as they did.
Even if our intentions are good, could we be guilty of hypocrisy, as well? And could we be in danger of unknowingly teaching our children to be little hypocrites? If our goal is to have well-behaved children, could that foster hypocrisy? How can we avoid hypocrisy ourselves and be better able to point our children to a genuine relationship with Christ?
Welcome, to “God’s Word Day by Day” where I blog through the Bible in a Year. I hope you’ll join me every day. If you’re not already signed up, you can do it here or subscribe on YouTube.
Today’s Readings:
Leviticus 5 & 6
Psalm 24.1-6
Proverbs 9.7-9
Matthew 28.1-20
Big Hypocrites & Little Hypocrites
Leviticus 5 & 6:
Open My Eyes, Lord
Sometimes we may find it challenging to read about all the sacrifices and the instructions in the book of Leviticus. But it is important to remember as 2 Timothy 3.16-17 says, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable …” Notice those words “all” and “profitable.” God inspired these passages and included them in His Holy Scriptures for a reason. We need to remain faithful and open our hearts to the truths contained in them.
Anytime we are reading a passage that is less exciting to us, we can ask God to show us what He has for us. There are always nuggets if we are willing to dig for them.
The psalmist prayed:
Open my eyes that I may behold wonderful things from Your law (Ps. 119.18).
He is well able to do the same for us.
With that in mind, let’s look at the first few verses of chapter 5.
Not Sacrifice Alone
After listing several sins that would require someone to bring a trespass offering, verses 5-6 say this :
5 ‘And it shall be, when he is guilty in any of these matters, that he shall confess that he has sinned in that thing; 6 and he shall bring his trespass offering to the Lord for his sin which he has committed, a female from the flock, a lamb or a kid of the goats as a sin offering. So the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin.
Notice that even under the sacrificial system, sacrifice alone was not enough. It had to be accompanied by confession and repentance.
Could we sometimes make sacrifices without genuine confession and repentance? Perhaps when we perform outward acts of obedience like going to church and lifting our hands in worship while we harbor anger and bitterness in our hearts? Or doing something to “make-up” with our spouse instead of asking God to grant us repentance for our part in the problem?
True Repentance
True repentance involves “confession.” But it’s much more than merely saying “I’m sorry” or regretting what happened (2 Cor. 7.10). It’s not about penance. Confession means to agree with God that what we did was sinful.
Repentance is about heart change, not just a change in our outward behavior.
Performing some outward action in an attempt to pacify someone or look good without genuine repentance is a form of hypocrisy (Matt. 23.25-28).
This is an easy habit to fall into but it will hurt our relationship with God and ruin our testimony with others. And the danger of forming this habit doesn’t stop with us.
Little Hypocrites
Jesus had this to say to the hypocrites of His day:
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves (Matt. 23.15).
What are we teaching our little “proselytes”?
How many times have you or I said, “Tell your sister you’re sorry!” or something similar? Think about it … what are we teaching them? To do what they need to do to pacify us or get out of trouble?
Instead, we should take the time to help them see what they did as sin by sharing appropriate Scriptures and asking God to convict their hearts (Heb. 4.12).
This isn’t the only way we teach our children to be hypocrites. We may inadvertently do so anytime we address behavior without addressing the heart issue behind it.
Shepherding Little Hypocrites
Let me share an explanation and example from Tedd Tripp’s book Shepherding a Child’s Heart. It’s a little long, but worth taking the time to read it:
The Scripture teaches that the heart is the control center for life. A person’s life is a reflection of his heart. Proverbs 4:23 states it like this: “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the well-spring of life.”
The word picture here is graphic. The heart is a well from which all the issues of life gush forth. This theme is restated elsewhere in the Bible. The behavior a person exhibits is an expression of the overflow of the heart.
You could picture it like this. The heart determines behavior. What you say and do expresses the orientation of your heart. Mark 7:21 states: “ … from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.” These evils in action and speech come from within—from the heart.
A Reflection of Their Hearts
What your children say and do is a reflection of what is in their hearts …
If you are to really help him, you must be concerned with the attitudes of heart that drive his behavior. A change in behavior that does not stem from a change in heart is not commendable; it is condemnable. Is it not the hypocrisy that Jesus condemned in the Pharisees?
Let’s take a familiar example from any home where there are two or more children. The children are playing and a fight breaks out over a particular toy. The classic response is “Who had it first?” This response misses heart issues. “Who had it first?” is an issue of justice. Justice operates in the favor of the child who was the quicker draw in getting the toy. If we look at this situation in terms of the heart, the issues change.
Two Offenders
Now you have two offenders. Both children are displaying a hardness of heart toward the other. Both are being selfish. Both children are saying, “I don’t care about you or your happiness. I am only concerned about myself. I want this toy. My happiness depends on possessing it. I will have it and be happy regardless of what that means to you.”
In terms of issues of the heart, you have two sinning children. Two children are preferring themselves before the other. Two children are breaking God’s law. Sure, the circumstances are different. One is taking the toy that the other has. The other is keeping the advantage. The circumstances are different, but the heart issue is the same—“I want my happiness, even at your expense.”
Your concern is to unmask your child’s sin, helping him to understand how it reflects a heart that has strayed. That leads to the cross of Christ. It underscores the need for a Savior. It provides opportunities to show the glories of God who sent his Son to change hearts and free people enslaved to sin.
House Rules
It doesn’t mean that you can’t have rules of behavior in your home like not taking the toy someone else has. But we should still use those opportunities to talk to the “possessor” about whether he or she is being selfish and encourage them to share and consider the other child, as well, if it’s appropriate.
More Resources
If this is a new concept, I would encourage you to read Shepherding a Child’s Heart and if you have young children, you might, also, want to read Don’t Make Me Count to Three by Ginger Hubbard. Ginger takes Tedd’s biblical principles and offers suggestions on how they can be taught and applied to parenting younger children.
Another practical and eye-opening book is Lou Priolo’s, The Heart of Anger: Practical Help for Prevention and Cure of Anger in Children. Don’t be fooled by the title into thinking this is only for parents of angry children. Notice the word “prevention.” It’s one of my go-to resources when I’m counseling parents. The list of ways we provoke our children to anger is worth the price of the book.
Today’s Other Readings:
Psalm 24.1-6:
Clean Hands & Pure Hearts
In this Psalm, we see again that we should have “clean hands,” speaking of our outward behavior, but more importantly, we are to have “a pure heart!” The outward behavior should be the fruit of a pure heart. No amount of good behavior can clean up our hearts, only the blood of Jesus can do that. Then we can let His grace work in and through us.
Proverbs 9.7-9:
A Teachable Spirit
What a contrast here between the fool and the wise man or woman. The fool is unteachable and proud, defensive when someone corrects her. The wise person, however, listens to instruction and has a teachable spirit.
Matthew 28.1-20:
Our Commission
This is the last chapter in the first of the four Gospels. It was written by Matthew, the former tax collector. It ends with what we call “The Great Commission.” Jesus was commissioning or sending all of us to:
‘Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age’ Amen (vv. 19-20).
This is a call to do more than just invite someone to church or see them accept the Lord as their Savior. It’s a call to walk alongside them and encourage them to grow and change. Find out if your church offers discipleship material that you can go through with a new believer or someone investigating the Christian faith. Then meet once a week to talk about the material. You’ll both grow as you do.
If your church doesn’t have discipleship material, here is a workbook that you may want to check out:
Coming Up:
In the coming days, we’ll talk about the need to get the logs out of our eyes, how Islam intends to conquer the West largely through cultural invasion, and the contagious nature of many sins. We’ll also talk about what it means to preach the gospel to yourself and why it’s so important.
I hope you’ll join us and if this post spoke to you, please share it on your favorite social media platform.
Blessings as you grow in Christ,
Donna ♥
What Is Your Plan to Grow Spiritually This Year?
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Following along with me can help you stay on track. And I believe you’ll benefit from the additional information I share and grow as you learn to apply God’s Word to your own life.
Here is today’s Bible in a Year video.
Note about this post:
I began blogging through the Bible in 2012 and have done so every year since then. These posts are the product of many edits and additions throughout those years. Some days I make major changes, other days fewer.
A while ago, I read Jen Wilkin’s book None Like Him about the attributes of God. One is His incomprehensibility. In it, she says, “God is incomprehensible. This does not mean that he is unknowable, but that he is unable to be fully known.”
I have found that to be true each year as I’ve gone back through the Bible. Sometimes I find myself feeling as if a passage just appeared there for the first time. I’m reminded that no matter how many times we read through the Bible, we have only scratched the surface. I hope you feel the same.
Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways,
And how small a whisper we hear of Him!
But the thunder of His power who can understand?” (Job 26.14)
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