Hypocrisy & Fear Walk Together

Scripture
Jesus said: ‘Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.  There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs. ‘I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more.  But I will show you whom you should fear: fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. (Luke 12:1-5 NIV)

Hypocrisy & Fear Walk Together

Being a political/news junkie for most of my life, I have tried over the last year or two to reduce my consumption. I want to be informed about the important things that are hurting and helping our world but there is so much that it becomes overwhelming.

The public hearings in our nations’ capital into the circumstances around the winter blockade wonderland and its eventual dénouement have been too delicious to avoid completely. Decisions made by many levels of government behind closed doors and in confidential communication are now being explored in public – which is a scary thing for any of us, however well-intentioned we may be.

We say and do many things on any given day that were a giant replay screen available to friends and family we might be scared witless. So much of life is played for show and the fear of the opinions and judgement of others can make us very inauthentic. Fear creates hypocrisy is Jesus’ equation.

Pray for those who are currently under public scrutiny. The more freedom we grant for truth telling the more likely we will know what happened and how to effect change in response. And pray for one another that we live lives considering only the Audience of One before whom we live and breathe – in love and freedom.

A Prayer for Today

O God who loves and guides us while seeing our inconsistencies and failures. Grant us wisdom to see our blind spots, free us from the fear of other’s opinions that turns us into hypocrites. Let us live with authenticity and mercy.  …. For Jesus’ sake