The acceptance of hypocrisy

[Gregory Thompson]

Hypocrisy is saying the right things while doing the wrong things.

If the church rightly rejects homosexuality and its queer variants because it rightly believes these sins/statuses are wrong, then there is no hypocrisy. That is regardless of whether it has hypocrisy on other issues.

I think the divorce issue is not one of hypocrisy but of loose standards. They don't expect people to live up to the biblical standard, so they adjust it. It would only be hypocrisy if they preach against divorce, then allow it/close their eyes to it.

I personally would accept divorced people in the congregation, but not in the leadership. I base this on Jesus' acknowledgment that people's hearts are hard. It would be better if they did not divorce, but since they have, we should have mercy on them.

Also, some people are divorced against their will. I've had two different roommates in two different states say they were completely surprised when their wives literally walked out the door with their bags packed and divorce papers on the way.

Since both are matters of sexual immorality, the different treatment illustrated in the above post is a form of hypocrisy.

Divorce itself isn't the issue, re-marrying is the issue when it comes to sexual immorality.

If you're hardlined against one form of sexual immorality, then don't softball another kind. In the same way, if you're merciful to one then be merciful to another. Pick one though, mixing and matching like that based on personal preference is the very definition of lukewarm, God spits that stuff out of his mouth.

To Jesus, all sexual immorality is the same.

 

[Peter J Barban]

Since both are matters of sexual immorality, the different treatment illustrated in the above post is a form of hypocrisy.

Divorce itself isn't the issue, re-marrying is the issue when it comes to sexual immorality.

If you're hardlined against one form of sexual immorality, then don't softball another kind. In the same way, if you're merciful to one then be merciful to another. Pick one though, mixing and matching like that based on personal preference is the very definition of lukewarm, God spits that stuff out of his mouth.

To Jesus, all sexual immorality is the same.

I have also ministered to a homosexual guy in college who got saved. I also lived with another guy who lived many years in a coerced homosexual relationship - a kind of sexual slavery.

These people need ministry too. Perhaps in agreement with your point, these relationships were not part of any church ministry.

In the old days, the church did treat divorce/remarried people as pariahs, but obviously not anymore. I for one do not think the church should further lower its standards to avoid hypocrisy.

 

[Rachel20]

Who ever suggested chastising? Do you pay people to do that to you, or is it just randomly applied by strangers? Did people pay Jesus to Chastise them?

What??? I'm referring to God's discipline of his own (Deut 11, Prov 3:12, Hosea 7, 10, Hebrews 12:5-8, Revelation 3:19)

 

[Alistair_Wonderland]

The church does not accept LGBT folks in church due to the sentiment "from the beginning it was not so"

The church does accept divorced people and even allows them to remarry, even though Jesus said remarrying equals adultery "because from the beginning it was not so"

Should the church be concerned about the acceptance of this, and similar hypocrisies? How does God tend to respond to hypocrisy when quoted directly in the bible?

Once you have one blind spot, many others crop up in that space, and become a thing all of a sudden. Might be worth a discussion.

Accepting divorced people is one thing; they made mistakes in the past, and may not be able to get back together with their spouse even if they wanted to. If they are repentant and have tried their best to make things right, we have no right to deny them a place.

Remarriage after divorce, however, is condemned very clearly in most cases. Now, there is some debate if remarriage is permissible in certain cases; the Bible seems to treat divorce very differently if a non-Christian spouse is leaving a Christian spouse, or if the one person was cheated on, but overall people treat marriage, divorce, and remarriage with far more flippancy than God intended.

As for hypocrisy being present in the church... had you known my life, I could only say to you, "my friend, you don't know the half of it". I have seen a LOT of hypocrisy; it's a miracle of Got that I haven't abandoned Christianity altogether, had I not known that this was the flaws of men and not the words of God. Jesus teaches us to love others and correct our fellow Christians in meekness and humility; anybody who does not correct someone in such a manner is struggling with the sin of arrogance.