The Hypocrite is one who wants to speak big and do big things in order to get applauded by men for their own greatness. He is the one who wears a mask to the outside world, but inside he/she does not allow God to change their inner soulish character of self, pride, coveteousness and deceit. A Hypocrite in gist is "One who acts to be what he is not; one who has the form of godliness without the power, or who assumes an appearance of godly character, when he doesn't even have an ounce of it."
The word actor and hypocrite come from the same root word in Greek which strongly shows that a hypocrite is an actor, pretender, pretending to have love for you but does not. Saying the butter coated words of love but inside are bitter. Making the motions of love but does not mean even a little bit of it. Putting on a good face of love but has a hidden agenda behind it. Being totally charming and loving but has a ulterior motive for doing it. Those kind of Hypocritical person does not really love you, but is selfish enough to use you as much as possible for the advancement of their own. Pretending to have strong feelings for you but it is all a first class stage act.
Abraham Lincoln one of the greatest reformer and ex-president of the United States of the nineteenth century, described a Hypocrite philosophically as "the man who murdered both his parents... pleaded for mercy on the grounds that he was an orphan." How true it is when Hypocrites act as those who know nothing of what they have been doing when confronted with their Hypocrisy face to face.
The High Five Signs of a Hypocrite
1) They always love to sit in the places of authority, honor and glory (Matt 23:1-2).
2) They love to say but do not do (V 3).
3) They make people do things tyranically those things they do not even slightly think of doing it, even for a single time out of love for God. But all their works are done to make people notice and appreciate that they are great men walking ever so humbly than any other person they can ever find in the entire world of religion (VV 4-5).
4) They love the best places and honourable seats before men in the public and love to be called "Great Noble Person!!!" (V 6-7).
5) To appear as a spiritual person before men, they make loud, long and poetical prayers before men (V 14).
The Hypocrites outward public lives and reputation before men are very appreciatable, but deep inside the recesses of their heart these men are full of coveteous extortion and seld-indulgence of every kind (V 25). God sees the motives and not just the outward actions (1 Samuel 16:7). This is why most men who are called great before men end up as first graded "HYPOCRITES" before God.
If I ask you, "Do you like to end up as an mask wearing or dramatically acting hypocrite?" I believe that you sure don't want to be one. Then be always open before God and always confess before God the moment you know that you have done something wrong (1 John 1:9). It might be humbling to yourself, but you will be enriched with MORE GRACE TO REIGN in this life sucessfully (James 4:6, 10; Rom 5:21).
The one who is transparent before God will also be one before men, cause one cannot work without the other.
The best way to succeed in life is to act on the advice we give to others. ~Author Unknown
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