Holy Hypocrisy (2 of 5)
Series: Belief Barriers
James Merritt
Matthew 6:1-4; 23:3,5
Introduction
1. Every church that I have ever pastored has had one thing in common with the other churches I have pastored. In fact, every church that has ever existed since Jesus Christ was raised from the dead has had this same common denominator. It is by consensus the number one reason people don't come to church, criticize the church, and have no use for the church. Every church has hypocrites. Frankly, that shouldn't really be surprising. The movement that Jesus started produced many hypocrites. As a matter of fact, being the largest religion in the world, Christianity has probably produced more hypocrites than any other movement in history.
2. There are far too many people who link Christianity with hypocrisy. One skeptic wrote, ''A Christian is a man who feels repentance on Sunday for what he did on Saturday and is going to do again on Monday.'' It is always the church's job to reach the next generation, but whether you like it or not, the term ''hypocritical'' has become joined at the hip with what the next generation thinks about Christianity. Eighty-five percent of young outsiders that have been exposed to Christians in churches conclude that present day Christianity is hypocritical. Of the young people who do go to church, fifty percent agreed that Christianity is hypocritical.
3. We are actually in a series dealing with the biggest barriers people have to beliefs. [Gene - we have a tentative title - Belief Barriers.] There are five major barriers to people coming to church, coming to faith, and Christianity. Last week we looked at the question which is, ''If God is good why do we have evil in the world? Today, we are going to deal with one that comes right behind it and that is, ''This church is full of hypocrites so why should I go to one or be part of one?''
4. One of the things about Jesus that absolutely affirms that he was a human being just ...
Series: Belief Barriers
James Merritt
Matthew 6:1-4; 23:3,5
Introduction
1. Every church that I have ever pastored has had one thing in common with the other churches I have pastored. In fact, every church that has ever existed since Jesus Christ was raised from the dead has had this same common denominator. It is by consensus the number one reason people don't come to church, criticize the church, and have no use for the church. Every church has hypocrites. Frankly, that shouldn't really be surprising. The movement that Jesus started produced many hypocrites. As a matter of fact, being the largest religion in the world, Christianity has probably produced more hypocrites than any other movement in history.
2. There are far too many people who link Christianity with hypocrisy. One skeptic wrote, ''A Christian is a man who feels repentance on Sunday for what he did on Saturday and is going to do again on Monday.'' It is always the church's job to reach the next generation, but whether you like it or not, the term ''hypocritical'' has become joined at the hip with what the next generation thinks about Christianity. Eighty-five percent of young outsiders that have been exposed to Christians in churches conclude that present day Christianity is hypocritical. Of the young people who do go to church, fifty percent agreed that Christianity is hypocritical.
3. We are actually in a series dealing with the biggest barriers people have to beliefs. [Gene - we have a tentative title - Belief Barriers.] There are five major barriers to people coming to church, coming to faith, and Christianity. Last week we looked at the question which is, ''If God is good why do we have evil in the world? Today, we are going to deal with one that comes right behind it and that is, ''This church is full of hypocrites so why should I go to one or be part of one?''
4. One of the things about Jesus that absolutely affirms that he was a human being just ...
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