Hypocrites and Unrighteous Judgement

In a world where so much evil is being called good, and so much good is being called evil, there has to be at least one who will stand up and tell the truth. The truth is not relative, it is absolutely absolute. There can only be one truth - not many, otherwise, it's not the truth. What it is, is  just an opinion.

However, in our telling the truth, we must be careful. Telling the truth comes with huge responsibilities. For in telling the truth, we must rightly be able to understand and judge a situation. The word calls it "righteous judgement". Yes, all of the Father's children are called to judge and do it righteously.

If we are going to judge righteously, then we must also not be hypocritical. This blog is meant to help us understand the difference between judging unrighteously and being a hypocrite. Just like in another blog on the proper context of an apology, we got the understanding that being "offended" is not the same as having "hurt feelings". Here, let us understand that unrighteous judgement is not the same as being hypocriitcal, but they both must be avoided.

The definition for hypocracy can be found to state:

hy·poc·ri·sy

həˈpäkrəsē/

noun, plural hypocrisies.

1.a pretense of having a virtuous character, moral or religious beliefs or principles, etc., that one does not really possess.

2.a pretense of having some desirable or publicly approved attitude.

3.an act or instance of hypocrisy.

In scripture hypocrisy is defined as Strong's Concordance:

H2610; moral filth, i.e. wickedness:—hypocrisy.

G5271; acting under a feigned part, i.e. (figuratively) deceit ("hypocrisy"):—condemnation, dissimulation, hypocrisy.

It is no coincidence that underlying meaning of hypocrisy is defined both in the secular and in the bible as something that is fake. Let's take a closer look at the examples of what Christ gives as hypocrisy:

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. - Matt 7:15 

You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said: “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’” - Matt 15:7-9 

Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. - Matt 6:1 

Early the next morning, Jesus was going back to the city. He was very hungry. He saw a fig tree beside the road and went to get a fig from it. But there were no figs on the tree. There were only leaves. So Jesus said to the tree, “You will never again produce fruit!” The tree immediately dried up and died. - Matthew 21:18-19

These few examples gives us a deeper meaning into what hypocrisy is. It is an outward appearance that doesn't match the inner. It is the "clean on the outside, but dirty on the inside" cup that Christ spoke of once before. To be a hypocrite is to put on a show. To have a religious spirit. One that looks squeaky clean and operable in the kingdom, but in reality is bearing no fruit, is dirty, and isn't redeemed.

Hypocrites will be quick to point out faults and sins while still in those same faults and sins. Hypocrites will want to be seen doing righteous things, but not want to be actually cleansed from their unrighteousness. Hypocrites will try to shed light while living in darkness. Hypocrites will believe they have the keys to the kingdom, but ultimately be told in the end "Away from Me worker of iniquity, I never knew you!"

Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? - Romans 2:3

Because hypocrites are more concerned with their appearance than true salvation, repentance is foreign to them. Repentance will require them to leave the life they want hidden, behind. Repentance will require them to face the reality that the comfort of life they live in is riddled with sin and unrighteousness. They subconsciously push repentance out of mind by allowing themselves to think they have "checked all the boxes" and are "good" with the Lord.

Now, let us take a look at what unrighteous judgement entails. To do so, we need to first look at two definitions:

Unrighteous

1. not righteous :  sinful, wicked

2. unjust, unmerited

Judgment

1. an act or instance of judging.

2. the ability to judge, make a decision, or form an opinion objectively, authoritatively, and wisely, especially in matters affecting action; good sense; discretion:

From these definitions, we see that unrighteous judgement is to make a decision or form an opinion wickedly and in an unjust manner. So, the question becomes, how does one do it the right way? A glimpse into Deuteronomy chapter 1 will give us some historical hints. The criteria set long ago for someone to be able to judge righteously was that they be:

"...wise, understanding, and experienced men..." - v. 13

And then they must:

16"Hear the cases between your brothers, and judge righteously between a man and his brother or the alien who is with him. 17 You shall not be partial in judgment. You shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be intimidated by anyone, for the judgment is God's. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.

Now, let's look to some New Testament words of wisdom:

The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. - 1 Cor 2:15

Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment. - John 7:24

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 1John 4:1

For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? - 1 Cor 5:12 

So, let's put it all together. If one is to judge righteously, they must first have the Spirit dwelling in them. The Spirit of Yah is what gives us wisdom, discernment, understanding and knowledge (Proverbs 2:6). This Spirit knows the mind of Yahweh, and He is able to give us the mind of Christ. A mind clothed in righteousness, therefore, we will be able to understand matters and think clearly when judging them.

We also have to be willing to hear matters. When we are trying to decide on a matter in front of us we can not have our ears closed. In other words, we have to take the time for the matters to be heard and not rush to judgement right away. Many already go in with a preconceived notion of what an outcome should be for a situation. Or they already have a preconceived idea because of who is involved whether or not something is true. So, when the situation comes along, they don't even want to hear what needs to be said or done. The decision is already made and there is no need to seek the truth of the matter. That is not good judgement.

From there, we are not to be impressed with outter appearances or make a "partial" judgement (based on favoritism) and let them influence our decision. This one trips up a lot of people. Many times, we let our past experiences, both good and bad, with a person/people, situation effect our decision making. The outter appearance is taken into consideration instead of seeking the truth of the matter. We see it happen often. A person would rather believe someone they consider "knowledgeable", "upstanding", "well mannered", "well dressed", "well spoken", "sympathetic", and give them the benefit of the doubt. This is one trick often used in the courtroom with a defendant - they make them "look" presentable and humble. Their defenders know that if that same person looked like a "thug" and was "loud" those who are in charge of judging would quickly dismiss what they had to say.

I am going to talk about this one a little more in-depth because it is a huge failure point for many - especially in Christ. It is this that keeps many from being able to use discernment and seek truth about false teachers/pastors. It is this that keeps many from hearing the pleas of other brothers and sisters in Christ warning them that something isn't right and to pay attention. Many wolves have entered into the assemblies of those who profess Christ because they LOOK like a sheep. Yet no one has decided to check what exactly is under the wool (Matthew 7:15).

That is just one example. Let's give a "worldly" example that fueled this particular blog. Just about everyone is aware of the Planned Parenthood debacle that went down this week. They were discovered to have sold aborted baby parts to those who would pay for them. All of a sudden, everyone is in an uproar. However, there were several warnings from those who were able to see past the "good" this organization was supposedly doing. Many only chose to look at the fact that they were touted for "helping women" pushing aside that they also performed abortions. Now, that they found out that these same aborted babies are being sold for profit, now this organization is evil and needs to be boycotted and defunded. Perfect example of judging based on appearances. This organization put on the face of one that "helps" and people chose to turn their heads to the warnings... until now.

Listen, we can not continue to judge this way. Many will be judged falsely (good or bad) as deception grows. Many will be able to put on the good "public" face while having a wicked heart. Just as many will be deemed wicked that have a good and godly heart. We must learn to go deeper than what we think we see, which leads me to...

Testing the spirit of a person. This is also called in the bible "checking the fruit" or, knowing people by their fruit. Yahshua (Jesus) tells us this is how we will be able to know false teachers and also how we will know those who belong to Him. The Spirit in us should be able to bear witness of those who follow Him. Many people will profess Him with their mouth, but their hearts will be far from them. All we have to do is watch, pray, listen and let people speak. It will become evident which spirit they follow. By understanding which spirit is operating, you will definitely be able to judge in a right manner.

We must be willing to judge without being intimidated. The world has done a great job at stifling those who stand for truth of what is "good and bad". Many yell "don't judge!!" But who is better to judge situations and call out evil than one who is connected to the One who tells us what good and evil is? We can not be intimidated by those who can push their weight around and keep us silent, or worse yet try to "make" us rule/judge in their favor.

Last, we must understand our limitations. There will be times where we can not, and should not judge. We may not have all the information, we may not have the experience, we may not be able to hear both sides or may even be partial to one side verses another, and to be honest, there may be situations that just may be over our heads and too hard for us to judge. Moses told the men in that case take the problem to him and he will judge the matter. Moses is dead now. But there is One who is alive, and I encourage us to take all things to Him. Let Him judge the matter and we stay quiet in these cases.

As believers, we have the duty to judge matters. But we also must be careful to judge within the body of Christ and not be hypocritical while doing so.  For us, it is our duty to seek the truth of a matter and if possible, shield and warn our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ from danger. We also are to try and correct them and get them back on the right path. As far as judging the world, scripture tells us that we let Yah do that. We warn and point out the sin, but we are not to judge their fruit for we already know that without Christ, they can not bear "good fruit", even though they can have the appearance of a fruit bearing tree.

So, there we have it. The difference between hypocrisy and unrighteous judgement. It is a lot of it going on now days. Let us be careful, that as believers, if we are going to judge, we must do it in a righteous manner making sure that we don't also share the same sins we are judging. Let us make sure to seek truth in matters - no matter where that truth leads. And let us make sure, that we seek the Spirit so that He will lead our spirit to make correct decisions.

Take care!