Beware: Hypocrisy

Whenever a person's words and actions conflict, we have a tough time overcoming that discrepancy, thus deeming them irrelevant because they are not credible. Through the years we have needed contracts and agreements because of a lack of trust. Our "word" was not as strong as our signature on a legal document. Our handshake became merely a greeting and not the seal of an agreement.

Hypocrisy has become easy to find. How costly for some because the more they talk, the harder it is to listen.

In the current issue of Newsweek, George F. Will, in discussing the President's speech to Congress regarding health-care last Wednesday, said:

"He deplores 'scare tactics' but says that unless he gets his way, people will die. He praises temperate discourse but says many of his opponents are liars. He says Medicare is an exemplary program that validates government's prowess at running health systems. But he also says Medicare is unsustainable and going broke, and that he will pay for much of his reforms by eliminating the hundreds of billions of dollars of waste and fraud in this paragon of a program, and in Medicaid."

My point is NOT the health care debate. My point is that, as easy as it is for us to see the hypocrisy in another person's speech, is as easy as it is for others to see it in us. Read Matthew 23:13-26 and see how many times Jesus uses the word, hypocrite. He is not speaking to the politician or the pagan, but those that should know better - religious people.

Weigh your words. Weigh your actions. To say that we should not speak until there is perfect balance is unrealistic. But let's at least have enough credibility so people will listen when we talk.