God Calls Us To Love Without Hypocrisy
Love without hypocrisy is something that most of us say we do, but do we really?
I believe the answer for the state of our world today is love without hypocrisy and that kind of love begins with me and you as believers in Jesus. Why? Because we are called to reflect God and His love. 1 John 4:7-8 says,
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God;
and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.
The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
1 John 4:7-8
Hold on to that thought and let’s turn our attention to Romans 12:9. Romans 12:9 says, Love must be without hypocrisy. Detest evil; cling to what is good.
As we think about God calling us to reflect Him and His love and we see in Romans 12:9 the way to do that is love without hypocrisy.
Let’s define hypocrisy.
Hypocrisy – the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one’s own behavior does not conform; pretense.
God’s Recipe For Love Without Hypocrisy is in Romans 12:9-21.
While reading this passage, I felt like I was reading an ingredient list for a recipe. I have spent many hours throughout my years as a wife and mother reading recipes and seeking to prepare the healthiest, yummiest, most impressive, and yes easiest, recipes that I can prepare for the ones I love.
Romans 12:9-21 might be the best and most impressive recipe for love without hypocrisy, however for most of us, this recipe might not be the easiest. If we love like this, someone is going to be impressed. Personally, I think this recipe for loving without hypocrisy seems rather daunting.
In fact, as I think about the state of our world today, I see the devil and the kingdom of darkness working hard to annihilate love in our hearts altogether. But for many of us who identify as Christians, we cling to love because we know God and we know that our love for others reflects Him. That is why Jesus said:
By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.
John 13:35
Love without hypocrisy brings us to another level of love.
Take a moment to think through the definition of hypocrisy. Let me give you a few synonyms for hypocrisy as well: insincerity, double standards, pretense, two-facedness. I am sure you see that hypocrisy is simply pretending to be someone we are not. Unpretentious love is harder because it looks at the heart.
Take a moment to create in your mind a picture of hypocrisy. Can you put a face on hypocrisy?
The antonym or opposite of hypocrisy is sincerity.
Sincerity is the quality of being free from pretense, deceit, or hypocrisy. Synonyms for sincerity are: genuineness, honesty, naturalness, unaffectedness, authenticity.
Now create in your mind a picture of sincerity. Can you put a face on sincerity? I hope your image is vivid. Is there anything that is more endearing than someone who is sincere?
People everywhere are looking for love with sincerity.
When I think about love without hypocrisy, another term that comes to mind is pure love. The one who loves like this exudes confidence without arrogance. When she shows kindness or acts in love, she means it. Pure sincere love is rare and beautiful, and it attracts. No wonder God calls us to love without hypocrisy!
As women who truly love God and desire to please and honor Him in our life, we continually strive to be and become all that He calls us to be. At the same time, we also realize that we all fall short sometimes. But the way that we grow more in pure sincere love is by examining our own hearts.
Here is a guide to help you evaluate yourself, your love, and eliminate hypocrisy.
1. First and foremost, you have to be willing to get real with yourself and with God.
Ask yourself, Do I ever love in a way that is pretentious?
Ask God to search you and see if there is any hypocrisy in your love.
Write down your answers and God’s answers.
2. Identify situations in which you tend to love with hypocrisy.
Maybe you pretend or exaggerate. It could be that you live different at home than at church. Or another example might be something like, your work place draws the worst out of you rather than the best.
Write down anything that comes to mind.
3. Discover the real issue.
Normally the things we easily see and identify are surface issues that only point to something deeper that really needs to be addressed. As you look at the answers to the above questions, ask God to help you get to the root of the real issue. Ask if you have any wrong motive that would tarnish perfect love. What causes you to feel like you like you have to pretend or fake it. Do you feel unsafe? Are you afraid to trust? Did something happen that trapped you in the past?
Once again, write down anything you discover as you seek to get to the heart of why your love can sometimes be pretentious or hypocritical. Writing things down helps us to clarify and work toward overcoming issues that need to be changed in us.
4. Use God’s Word to help you eliminate hypocrisy and purify your love.
Take some time to focus on what God says. Click on this link for 1 Corinthians 13 (known as the Love Chapter) and Romans 12:9-21. Print out the page and highlight the times that the underlying tone is – no hypocrisy.
Use these passages as a prayer guide and ask God to transform your love to pure sincere love that reflects Him and His heart.
If you will follow this guide, you will see God transform your heart and your love for others, and you will realize people will love the real you! You see, God Created Woman To Be A Life-Giver and one of the ways we give life is by loving with sincerity.
