The Misconception of Christianity
I am a white man who once had a roommate who was black. He was a friend from work and we both needed a place to live so we got an apartment together. One week I was in a hurry after work and I left my paycheck on my dresser and headed out for the night. When I returned home, my roommate confronted me feeling guilty because he had stolen my check and forged my name to cash it at the party store and spent it. I needed that check for my half of the rent that was due soon. Being a Christian, I forgave him and told him that though I forgive his act against me, he would have to pay my half of the rent that month. The next day I was gone most of the day and came home to find the apartment empty. My roommate had left me short a check, no money and a rent due. Now if I was to look at this experience and say that all black men were thieves and untrustworthy, the world would look down on me and say I was prejudice.
The fact is, it is wrong to judge the many by the actions of a few. It would be wrong to say that all Middle Eastern People are evil because of what Al-Qaeda did in the 9/11 attacks. It is wrong to say that all women are gold diggers because there have been a few who were like that. It is wrong to pass judgment on the whole party over the actions of a part of the party, and the world understands this. Yet the world seems to readily accept criticism against the Christians for the actions of those who proclaim to be Christians without understanding what a true Christian is.
For a while the world saw the downfall of television preachers like Jimmy Swaggert and placed that mentality on the Christian community as a whole. Many times I have heard people say that Christians are hypocrites and such. Because they see a few people who claim to be Christians act worldly, they believe it is how all Christians are. The simple fact is, this mentality would not be accepted in any other form in our world, but it is accepted against Christianity.
The Problem
Two real factors lay at the feet of the misunderstanding the world has of Christianity. One are the self-claimed Christians who do not understand what a true Christian is. The pseudo-Christians will gladly tell those around them that they are Christian, then go out partying with their friends, getting drunk and cussing a lot. They are the folks who go to church on Sunday then leave it all behind them for the next six days. There are a lot of these people and this is the majority of what the world sees as Christians.
The other factor is that because of how Christians preach against sin and the bible preaches against sin, the world has this perception that Christians are suppose to be perfect. So when a Christian does falter, those of the world will step back and point, yelling “Ahah! See? You call yourself a Christian and you sin too!” Then they go on believing that the Christian is a hypocrite.
The Truth
The fact is, nowhere in the bible does it ever proclaim that Christians are without sin. In fact it does say that it is in the nature of man to sin. What the world does not seem to understand is that becoming a Christian does not make one perfect, it only means they are striving to be more like Jesus. All Christians will sin in one way or another. Some Christians have some sin that in the eyes of man is horrible and others will deal with sins as simple as little white lies. Yet, we all sin! The difference between Christians and the world is that when we sin, we are sorry that we have sinned against our Lord and will ask him to forgive us. The difference is that God will forgive us for our sins if we are truly sorry. Our faith in God and his ability to forgive us for our sins when we falter is why we can make it into heaven. Not because we are perfect.
Going to Church does not make one a Christian. Contrary to what many self-claimed Christians may believe, believing in God and Jesus does not make one a Christian. That only makes one aware that God is real. Satan himself believes in God, yet would anyone consider the devil a Christian? Believing in God is just one part of being a Christian. If you disassemble a bike, you will no longer have a bike, but you will have a bunch of bike parts. It is only a bike when you have all of the pieces intact. It is the same for Christianity. To be a true Christian, one must believe in God and Jesus. One must believe that Jesus was born from the virgin Mary. One must continuously strive to be closer to Jesus. One must want to make God proud of him rather than sad for him. One must be sorry when he or she sins against God. One must be striving to have that unconditional love in their hearts for others as well as God. Will we ever get it all right completely? Likely not! But we must be striving for it. There is a personal relationship between Jesus and a Christian that is not there with non-Christians.
The Hypocrite
One other point that should be understood is that contrary to the image we have in our heads, it is not entirely wrong to be a hypocrite. If a pastor preaches against sin, then makes a mistake and falls to the temptation of lust or something, does this make him a hypocrite? Sure, but does it make him a bad person? Or even a bad Christian? It only means he faltered. The only way he would be a bad Christian would be if he is not sorry for it. If he continuously does it without caring that it is wrong. No matter how high someone raises in our society, they are still human. Jesus said that if a man ever says he does not lie, he is a liar. Everyone lies sometimes and that in itself is a sin. Whether a Christian is a member of a small church or the high profiled preacher on TV or the pope himself, they are still human and have sin in their lives. Yet the world will see this as being a hypocrite.
If a parent is addicted to a drug, should they tell their kids it is okay to drugs? Or should they still teach their kids to stay away from drugs? The fact is, just because someone has a problem with something, doesn't mean they should condone others to do it. They should still at least try to keep others from making the same mistake. Yet Christians are not allowed to be the same way?
As a Christian, I have sin in my life. I hate it and wish I could stop the sins I do. Yet I am human and continuously make the same mistakes. Yet I will always preach against the same sins I do as well as any others sins in the world. Though I am not perfect, I will teach what is right. If this makes me a hypocrite then I will wear that title like a badge of honor. Remember, even the disciple John said he had a thorn in his side that he deals with daily. John had a sin he dealt with continuously, and still Jesus saw him worthy of being his disciple. We are all sinners and it is not wrong to be a hypocrite. It would be wrong to preach that sin is okay.
