"Judge not, that you be not judged.
For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.
And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?
Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your own eye?
Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye. Matt 7:1-5 NKJV
This week's message is entitled "Out of the Mouth of Christians", and is a study on those things that we do that sure do not meet up with the will of and the Word of God. First up, the topic of hypocrisy.
The Greek word for hypocrisy (hi-poc'-ri-sy) is the word hupokrisis (hoop-ok'-ree-sis). It is a term from the theater, one who puts on a mask.
Of all of the reasons that I hear from people why they don't belong to a local church is "they're all hypocrites". Well, two things come to mind: the first is what a fellow from a church out our way used to tell them: "Come out and join us then, you will fit right in!". The second is that we should not adopt hypocrisy in our lives--in other words, be genuine. The sin of deceit, fuels this sin. If you are being a hypocrite, you are being deceitful. You are being someone you are not, you are "wearing a mask".
To someone that is not saved, our hypocrisy can well be a stumbling block to them as mentioned above. There is a common misconception among the unsaved that Christians preach a perfect life and should live one, and when we don't we are hypocrites. Aren't you thankful for God's grace through Jesus Christ in this regard!
Let's face facts. We all play the part of the hypocrite from time to time. It is almost criminal how we look for faults in others but do not see them in ourselves, but also take it to the level of putting on an act as if we are oh so pious. Be genuine...be honest...not just with others, but with yourself.
Two Types of Hypocrites
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.
Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also. Matt 23:25-26, KJV
Nelson's Bible Dictionary defines hypocrisy as "Pretending to be what one is not. The New Testament meaning of hypocrisy and hypocrite reflects its use in Greek drama. In the Greek theater, a hypocrite was one who wore a mask and played a part on the stage, imitating the speech, mannerisms, and conduct of the character portrayed."
There are two types of hypocrites in the world from what I can see. The first type are those people that are saved but continually put on an act, acting all prim and proper and never acknowledging any sin on their behalf. We studied that type of hypocrite yesterday.
The second type are those that have no relationship at all with Jesus Christ, but put on a pretty good act. They really do wear the mask. They may attend church every Sunday, every Bible study, every church function. They too look pretty respectable, but it is all just for show.
The Pharisees as a whole would have been people that most of us would have wanted to attend our church. From respectable families, good tithers, fundamental in their doctrine. But they had reduced the Word of God from a living Word to a system of do's and don'ts. A system that rendered God's Word inert by their traditions. And if you were a Jew that did not fit exactly into their mold of legalism, you were looked down upon and often persecuted.
Jesus speaks here about the Pharisees and how they looked good on the outside. They looked all clean and proper outside, but inside were not clean. Their "faith" was a sham. And because of their blindness toward the Word, they did not see Jesus in the light of the Scriptures that they claimed to be so proficient in. They viewed Him as a threat, not as the Messiah that had been prophesied in the Old Testament scriptures.
Sometimes, in our haste to act all prim and proper, we forget that we need to address the root of the problem--unresolved sin in our hearts. Ask God today to reveal those things that you are trying to mask in your heart that are not pleasing to Him.
Envy
1 Peter 2:1 Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,
An incident is related in Greek history of a wrestler who was so envious of Theagenes, the prince of wrestlers, that he could not be consoled in any way. After Theagenes died, a statue of him was erected in a public place. His envious antagonist went out every night and wrestled with the statue, until one night he threw it over. The statue fell on him and crushed him to death. --Illustrations of Bible Truths
Envy has been referred to as "the green sickness". It is often thought to be being jealous of the accomplishments or possessions of others, but the language in the Koine Greek is more vivid.. The New Unger's Bible Dictionary's definition of envy is "(1) That discontented feeling that arises in the selfish heart in view of the superiority of another, nearly tantamount to jealousy (2) That malignant passion that sees in another qualities that it covets, often resulting in hate for their possessor. It always desires and often strives to degrade others, not so much because it aspires after elevation as because it delights in obscuring those who are more deserving. It is one of the most odious and detestable of vices."
Envy (similar to coveting, prohibited in the tenth commandment), not only is upset at another's blessing, but seeks evil on that person as an act of revenge. Why? Because if the envious person cannot enjoy that blessing (spiritual or material) then they sure do not want the other person to enjoy their blessing.
Some people do not like happy people, and seek to "rain on their parade". They will undermine them in all sorts of ways to bring them "back to my level".
I'm sure that you have seen this at your work. Someone gets a promotion, and the consensus is that they did not deserve it even though they may have. Maybe someone gets some overtime shifts, and they do not. They may not want to work the overtime, but at the same time they are envious of someone that gets the benefit of being a hard worker and being available.
Envy in a church is exceptionally ugly. One preacher preaches better than another; one vocalist sings better than another; another is more gifted in working with children than another. And about the ugliest you will see is when there is an envy of power in the church. Be grateful for the blessings of people with God given talent in your church, they are a blessing to all.
Gossip and Slander
Likewise, their wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things.
For I fear, lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I would, and that I shall be found unto you such as ye would not: lest there be debates, envyings, wraths, strifes, backbitings, whisperings, swellings, tumults...
Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,
1 Tim 3:11; 2 Cor 12:20 ;1 Peter 2:1 NKJV
In Ketcham's "Dennis the Menace" comic strip, Dennis is whispering in the ear of the man next door. "Now listen good. I can tell this only once 'cause my Dad told me not to repeat it." Do we sometimes treat confidences in the same way? We don't repeat them. We only tell them once, and so does the next person, and the next and the next. One minister said that after a lifetime as a pastor, every imaginable sin had been confessed to him but one. People had confessed theft, adultery, even murder, but no one had ever confessed the sin of gossip! It's a sin others commit. We never do.--Robert C. Shannon
Evil speaking basically means slander and gossip. Of all of the sins that we have addressed in the past few days, this is the most damaging to a church.
Gossip and slander are basically the same thing. It is evil speaking. Slander is defined as: "Passing on gossip about others; Evil, malicious talk intended to injure or destroy another person's reputation; spreading innuendoes about someone that damages their reputation; a defaming, evil report; to speak evil of or to malign; to "run about" tattling; to tell anything of a negative nature about someone else without their permission."
The word for slander in the Koine Greek is diabolos, which is also translated as devil. Satan is known as the liar, the slanderer, the deceiver. Satan's stock and trade is slander and gossip.
One of the words used to describe gossip and slander in some translations (KJV here) is backbiting, or backbiter. The picture is of two dogs fighting, and the other taking a big bite out of the other's back. Have you ever noticed that gossip stops when the person being attacked enters the room? Guess what happens then? People then put on their pious masks of hypocrisy and act like that person's best friend.
I have done this, to my shame, and try hard not to. Think before you speak--
He that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander, is a fool. Prov 10:18
Let's face it, we have all said things about other people that cast a shadow on their reputation. We should not do this. It is forbidden by the scripture, and cannot be painted any way other than being a sin. I am no different; I have in the past said things that did not build up a person. But I have a renewed passion to be positive about people, even though those positive qualities may be hard to find.
What is bad about gossip and slander is that it ends up making us look pretty bad when we do it. We are supposed to be different, and not like the world.
The word in Hebrew for fool does not just mean fool, it means "stupid fool". In short, we show our stupidity when we gossip. Instead, we should look to edify, to build people up. And if you have a problem with someone, we should go and talk to them about it. Otherwise, we are being stupid cowards.
Pastor John Harding preached what has to be the best sermon that I have ever heard on gossip and slander back in 1997. I have put some of his key points below, and will continue these with tomorrow's devotional.
Gossip and Slander Separates Friends
A perverse man sows strife, and a whisperer separates the best of friends. Prov 16:28
If you want to lose a friend, just say some things behind their back or divulge something confidential. I would suggest you keep your trap shut.
Gossip and Slander Are Addictive
The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly. Prov 18:8
Once you get on the gossip bandwagon, it is really difficult to get off. It become addictive, almost like some sweet candy that people gorge themselves on. Keep it up and you will end up with a spiritually clogged heart from the cholesterol of "talebearing.".
James tells us "the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity". Let's change that.
Prov 6:16-19 NKJV
These six things the LORD hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:
A proud look, A lying tongue,
Hands that shed innocent blood,
A heart that devises wicked plans,
Feet that are swift in running to evil,
A false witness who speaks lies,
And one who sows discord among brethren.
Gossip and Slander are an Abomination
An abomination, according to Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary is "anything that offends the spiritual, religious, or moral sense of a person and causes extreme disgust, hatred, or loathing. Among the objects described as an "abomination" were the carved images of pagan gods, the sacrifice to God of inferior blemished animals, the practice of idolatry, and the fashioning of a "carved or molded image" of a false god. Other abominations were sexual transgressions, (including homosexuality) the adoption of the dress of the opposite sex, and the practice of magic, witchcraft, and "spiritism". Most of the Hebrew words translated "abomination" have the meaning of "impure," "filthy," and "unclean"-- that which is foul-smelling and objectionable to a holy God."
The last part, "foul smelling and objectionable to a holy God" is the part that really strikes me. The sin of "sowing discord among brethren" is an abomination sin, and is in a class of the worst type of sins that a person can do. Kind of makes you think, doesn't it? When you are gossiping or slandering someone, you are doing something that smells rotten to God.
Think about it this way: when you are driving in the summertime, enjoying the fresh, warm summer air, the smell of honeysuckle in the air and all of a sudden you catch a whiff of a dead road kill deer on the side of the road. That is the picture of an abomination sin. Foul smelling. Repulsive.
We should be building people up instead of tearing people down. The church assembly should be a place that honors God, and is not a place of abomination of speech.
Here is a closing thought. If someone says something negative about another person to you, tell them that you will go with them and address the problem. If not, then ask him/her to keep the opinion to him/herself!
