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  What would you think about someone who stood up, made a proclamation, and then lived a life that was in violation of what they said? The word “hypocrite” comes to mind. Is it really possible to say one thing and live another? In the purest sense of the idea I’m afraid I may be guilty of preaching one thing and acting another. What I mean is that if you followed me around long enough (especially my impatient driving) you might find me violating some of the very things I preach against or at least not always doing something that I preach about that we should do. It isn’t that I live in rebellious, unrepentant sin; it’s just that I am not perfect. I think I would be safe to assume that all Christians are in the same boat, daily battling sin and not always overcoming. It isn’t that we don’t desire better, it’s just that sometimes we fail. The problem comes though, when the gap between how we live becomes so wide that our life no longer resembles what we say. That is when the word “hypocrite” seems fitting, but the matter of theory VS practice is something to think about.      

I have been reading through Exodus and in chapter 19 God prepares the people for receiving the law. He tells Moses to relay to the people that if they obey and keep His covenant then they will be His special treasure, a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Moses then called the people and told them all that the Lord had commanded him. The people listen to what Moses says and they respond, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” What a proclamation! It is quite a statement to fulfill. We know that they were not able to keep that promise but it was a great thing in theory to say. I see Israel as a pretty clear picture of how we are. I think it probably is pretty easy to say what we believe, what we should do, or what the Bible says, but much harder to live it. Sometimes we may find ourselves repeating truths and realizing they have just become theories and we don’t really practice it in our daily lives.

Not long ago Bev, Renel, Kayley and I were returning home from a mission trip in Peru. Flying home we went through customs and then gave our luggage back to the airlines to fly on to our last stop. As I approached the lady working for the airlines, she was obviously having a bad day as she very impatiently told me to put our suitcases in a certain place. She then proceeded to grab our bags and throw them onto the conveyor belt. I was sure everything that was breakable in the luggage did just that. We exchanged some words, not nasty or bad ones, and went on our way, up the escalator and on to our terminal. I then proceeded to the customer service desk and lodged a complaint. I’m ninety nine percent positive that it didn’t make any difference but somehow I felt better. Afterwards I mulled over what I did wondering if it was the godly thing to do or not. Was she wrong? Totally. Was she disrespectful and unkind? No doubt. Did she deserve a reprimand? For sure. The question that kept haunting me though, was I the one to reprimand her or could I have done something different. I came to the conclusion that I should not have complained and I should have tried to say something to the lady that would have helped her deal with her day. The truth of being able to bless others when they abuse your suitcase was all theory and no practice. The deeper question remains: am I able to be wronged and still be a blessing to those who have wronged me? In theory, yes. In practice, it is so hard! If it is too hard then my tendency is to take the easy road and do the easy thing.

Jesus’ asks us as His followers to do impossible things. That’s a good thing. We can’t follow Him without the empowering and changing work that God does in us. It is ongoing and it is daily. It’s no lie when we sing the song, “I Need Thee Every Hour.”

Looking back, I missed a good opportunity to show grace to a lady that at the moment seemed to hate life, her job, and not liking customers too well either. I could have helped her; I took the easy, fleshly way out. The good news is that I’ve repented, and I realize anew that daily, moment by incident, I’m called to live in such a way that resembles Jesus. The Bible says that living that way brings glory to God… even if it’s the hard thing to do.

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Matthew 5:16

 Your  pastor, Tim.

For questions or comments you may email the pastor at timbev2@yahoo.com or the webmaster at hffinc@i-c.net