The church is full of hypocrites because we keep trying to be what we are not.
I mean that in a different way than you might take it. The world would not recognize hypocrisy in the church if it was wearing a neon sign. To often the church ignores it too. Christians belong to a faith that claims the only way to eternal salvation is through faith in Jesus Christ. There are disagreements on what that looks like and how it is done but believers agree it must be through Jesus. If they don’t agree with that, they are not Christians any more than the latest boy band is an enduring cultural icon.
The hypocrisy I am referring to comes from people who focus on making the church pleasant and seeker friendly at the expense of truth. The world loves these people. They are of the opinion that the masses stay away because the church is not friendly enough. If we just smiled more, served fresh ground gourmet coffee, had more comfortable seats and dressed different, then attendance would skyrocket. These are nice thoughts, but wrong.
So why do people really stay away from the church?
To be continued...
homo unius libri
I agree with you, but I visited one church where once I got past the row of smiling phonies at the front door, not a single person spoke to me.
ReplyDeleteWe have a friend to went to one of the local mega churches for a year and tithed the entire time. She was never contacted by anyone in the church.
DeleteGrace and peace.