Easter Sunday is here which is traditionally used to commemorate the already risen Lord Jesus. However, like Christmas, the Lenten season can be a license to hypocrisy. Once again, I’d like to emphasize that there are some Catholics who are, humanly speaking, good citizens. However, from how I grew up, I noticed that it’s very common to be on one’s best behavior during Christmas and the Lenten season. People can appear very pious during Christmas season masses and the Lenten season masses. Ash Wednesday becomes that time to reflect. Abstinence from meat on Ash Wednesday and every Friday of Lent is required unless one has a medical reason to do so. However, some rabid Catholics have become so Pharisaical as to say, “Must fast! Must fast!” for the whole 40 days!
I was thinking about how some former Catholics can testify of leaving a life of sin or hypocrisy. Not all former Catholics who have received Jesus as Lord and Savior came out of such a sinful lifestyle. Some of them tried to achieve their salvation with their own goodness or even shake their heads at their sinful fellow parishioners. I could remember the common sight of living in sin, going to confession on Saturdays, and going to church services on Sundays. It becomes a rinse-and-repeat cycle one way or another. Maybe, I could point out the behavior of fake Catholic defenders who even go as far as to think drinking hard liquor is permitted. In fact, some of the worst offenders of the law are also very religious Catholics. Somebody can be very religious, active in the parish, yet lives a very sinful lifestyle such as being habitually adulterous, some can be heavy drinkers, some can be abusive spouses, etc. Yet, the parish priest still passes communion bread to them every Sunday even if there are no signs of repentance. To receive communion under the state of a sinful lifestyle is to disrespect the Lord’s table. Yet, the priest does it anyway, right?
That’s why I really feel like all the rituals are meaningless. The Pharisees were so focused on the externals they failed to check their hearts. Jesus condemned the Pharisees in Matthew 23 with how they were hypocrites. I think about how I go to Mass, most of the service is spent chanting “Lord have mercy… Christ have mercy…” and other “stand up, sit down, stand up” rituals. Why can’t the congregation just sit down for most of the service? The homily is given but there’s hardly any exposition. Same prayer? Same service? Just a different interpretation? Sorry to say but I can’t agree with that especially since I’ve attended Catholic masses all my life before going to a Baptist church. It was just very different to stand up for the reading for singing and the Word of God. The rest of the service is spent seated down while the pastor gives the homily. It’s really a huge difference especially since born-again churches don’t focus on the communion every service. Instead, it’s focused on the Word of God being expounded and fed. Though, some Baptist and Protestant churches have fallen away to the point one must wonder if they are truly catering to truly born again Christians instead of Christians in name only.
Ironically, some of these worldly Catholics tend to complain that born-again Christians are legalists in one moment while accusing them of Antinomianism in another. I remembered I was told how sad it must be for a Christian to have many things forbidden. Stuff like disco (which I dare say is a front door to adultery), drinking hard liquor, party lifestyle, and the like are forbidden because they are sinful. What can be seen is that some Catholics are even living like they have a license to sin. I guess they’ve turned the confessionals and money for the masses into a license to sin one way or another. Actions will really speak louder than words. As a former Catholic, I practically can’t deny some parishioners are still living in sin and are still permitted to attend services. I don’t deny that some Baptist circles are infiltrated with Antinomianism. Meanwhile, Rome is now full of people living like Antinomians. Besides, the experience of Martin Luther in Rome seeing the hypocrisy was just one thing. There are many more well-documented scandals of the Vatican that are still denied. What’s the use of criticizing pastors who fall into sin when priests who fall into sin are hushed and covered up?
On the other hand, Christians do still sin and the problem is, they do still sin daily. 1 John 1:8 says that if we say we have no sin then there is no truth. Christians will always struggle with sin and they can fall into sin. Even if they are not living like the rest of the world, they will still sin and sin is usually willful disobedience. Some Christians may love the Lord, show fruits of the Holy Spirit, reject worldliness as much as possible, they are concerned for the work of God but they still have their pet sins to take care of. When you think about it some Christians may fall into a state of half-heartedness like Lot, Samson, or Solomon. Now for a Lordship theologian, such people are saved and yes, some Christians can fall into carnality but not carnal indefinite. When a Christian sins, they don’t even parade it like a Christian might be struggling with old vices and bad values prior to salvation like having a hot temper, chronic lying, lust but a Christian does not live like the rest of the world. A Christian may have abandoned a sexually immoral lifestyle but it does not mean they cannot fall into sexual immorality either. Still, they don’t end up living a life of sin because they’re no longer unsaved sinners. They are repentant sinners saved by grace and are also righteous saints because salvation brings a sanctified life.
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