We have all heard this excuse before. Heck, we might have said it ourselves at one point, «Church is full of hypocrites.» This is a common justification many have said to get out of listening and accepting the gospel.
You don’t have to be an atheist or non-Christian to use this phrase; many believers use it as a way of not attending service.
I myself used to use it as a way of claiming I was Christian without having to act upon it. It was easier to point the finger to a few «bad eggs» in the congregation. There is the mom that gossips in line picking up her kids from the children’s service. Then there is the grandparent that judges anyone who walks in with tattoos or more than one piercing.
And let us not forget the teen who you know parties and drinks on the weekend, only to see them singing in choir come Sunday morning. Their flaws become overbearing, after all, how could they claim to be Christians when they don’t act very Christian-like?
Yes you read that correctly, flaws. After all, we are human and therefore sinful by nature, as it is said in Ecclesiastes 7:20 NIV «Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous, no one who does what is right and never sins.» So if a man, who is righteous, sins, how can I expect no one else to sin?
By using the excuse that people in church are hypocrites, we ourselves are become hypocrites. It is said in John 8:7 ASV, «He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.» As the people gathered a woman who had been found to be an adulteress, they hounded Jesus to make her pay for her sin. His response asking for anyone who has not sinned to be the first to punish her left the crowd speechless, since no one is without sin.
So is church full of hypocrites? Indeed it is, because it is full of sinners, like you and me, looking to follow in Jesus’ footprints to become righteous. Therefore it’s important for us to ask ourselves, why do we attend service? If you are attending to better your understanding of how you can improve as a person, then the flaws of others shouldn’t push you away from attending service.
