Sunday, November 12, 2006

Are Christians Judgers and Hypocrites?


If you've ever said (or heard someone say), "Christians are nothing but judgers and hypocrites", let me point out something interesting about that statement. In order to identify Christians (or any group of people) as "judgers", you would yourself be making a judgment. Also, if you think judging others is wrong and you go ahead and make such a statement, you would also be proving yourself to be a hypocrite. It's like whispering in someone's ear, "I know someone who's a terrible gossip. Guess who it is."

But are Christians judgers and hypocrites? I don't know. Possibly some of us are. I think every single person has, at some point, been guilty of judging someone else unjustly and also guilty of acting in a hypocritical way. Christians certainly haven't cornered the market on judgmentalism and hypocricy. In fact, I bet that if I asked you, my reader, if you've ever acted hypocritically (either intentionally or accidentally), there's really only one way to answer: "Yes." If you said, "No, I've never been a hypocrite," you'd most likely be lying and, thereby, proving yourself a hypocrite. Am I right?

I think, however, the main issue behind these accusations is the dissatisfaction and dissapointment so many have faced when they, in good faith, have trusted Christians with something and have been let down or mistreated in some way. The truth is this: Christians are humans and are, therefore, capable of great wrongs. If you are looking for a reason to shoot down the idea of Christian perfection, then watching the Christians would, unfortunately, give you a lot of ammunition. Why? Because Christians aren't perfect. If they claim to be, then they're lying. (For the record, I haven't, as of yet, heard any Christian claim to be perfect.) However, if you're looking to shoot down Christ and His message, don't look at Christians. Look at Christ.