So what exactly is a Hypocrite?

I know many individuals that do not or would not attend a particular church on the excuse 'I am not going there, they are a bunch of hypocrites'.

Now, first off, I would have to say I am also a hypocrite. I believe most everyone is a hypocrite in some form or another. However, by using someone elses actions for the purpose of your own, is a poor excuse. If you don't want to do something, simply state so and move on.

Webster defines hypocrite as such.

Main Entry: hyp·o·crite

Pronunciation: 'hi-p&-"krit

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English ypocrite, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin hypocrita, from Greek hypokritEs actor, hypocrite, from hypokrinesthai

1 : a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion

2 : a person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings
- hypocrite adjective

Basically we see in number two, anyone can fall under this definition. Primarily, I have heard the term used on individuals putting on a false impression of being a christian.
'They say they are christian and go to church acting all mighty, but they do not act like it outside the church'. Sound familiar? Nearly every church has someone that can fall in the definition of a hypocrite.

I did a childrens bible time once in a small church, I will share to you. It was simply a means to have a object lesson for the kids.

Items I used:

I had one United States ten dollar bill.

I also had one monopoly ten dollar bill.


I explained to the kids each of these are the same. One has 10 dollars on it, the other has 10 dollars on it. Both are pieces of paper. ect. ect.

However, I also pointed out one was really worth 10 dollars, and the other was not. One was a counterfeit, a copy, ect. The point was, anything that has value, someone will attempt to conterfeit it. Similiarly, being a saved person has much value and there will always be those that attempt to conterfeit it. Yes, there are hypocrites in church. Always have been and always will be hypocrites. However, don't let that keep you away from learning God's word.

It was a simple object lesson, but I thought an important one.