Wednesday, February 13, 2008

A Heart of Pretense

"Pretense" - a claim, not supported by fact; mere display or show. A false show. So is the meaning of the word. It would not be a pleasant or comfortable thing to be charged with. However, as we look into the book of Jeremiah we see that the nation of Judah, the Southern part of the divided kingdom since Rehoboam, is charged with this exact thing. "Judah has not turned to Me with her whole heart, but in pretense," says the LORD." (Jeremiah 3:10).

The Northern kingdom has been charged with adultery against God. God has called for their repentance (3:7), to return to the LORD. They had prostituted themselves against their faithful Husband and God, and become a immoral nation.

"...Then I saw that for all the causes for which backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a certificate of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but went and played the harlot also. So it came to pass, through her casual harlotry, that she defiled the land and committed adultery with stones and trees. And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah has not turned to Me with her whole heart, but in pretense,' says the LORD." Jeremiah 3:8-10 (NKJV).

This was a prophecy given during the reign of Josiah (3:6), who was considered a godly king. Josiah became king at the age of eight years (Read 1 Chronicles 34 - 35). You will read of Josiah that he purged the land of Judah of the "high places", of "carved images", and of "molded images", and that "He did what was right in the sight of the LORD..." However, it appears that much of what was done during Josiah's reign was done with pretense. It does not seem to have been pretense on the kings part, but on the peoples hearts. Legislation, whether done by a monarch or a president cannot change the hearts of people. The hearts of the people of Judah were moved by Josiah, but not by God. Therefore, there was much pretense in the land of Judah.

Pretense or hypocrisy cannot be hid from the omniscient eye of the LORD. It is said quite often in Scriptures that "God looks on the heart", and that seems to be something that all people tend to forget. Pretense and hypocrisy never fools, or deceives the Lord Almighty. It didn't work in Judah or Israel, and it will not work in today's world either.

If you will notice God even calls this act by Judah "treacherous". Three times in verses seven through ten God calls Judah the "treacherous sister" of Israel. The word "Treacherous" is defined as 'Characterized by treachery; untrustworthy, unreliable' and "Treachery" is defined as 'a violation of allegiance or trust'. According to Strong's Concordance it is to deal deceitfully; and certainly the heart's of the people of Judah were endeavoring to deal deceitfully with God.

At a time when our own nation is at war, and the hearts of people are growing more and more spiritual, but not according to the knowledge of God; there is much pretense and hypocrisy. There are religions on every corner that use the name of God, but know Him not. When religion denies Jesus Christ, they deny God. Jesus Himself said, "If you have seen Me you have seen the Father" (John 14:9). There is truly only one true worship of God, and that is through the Lord Jesus Christ, by His death, burial and resurrection. Any other presumed worship is a treacherous and pretentious worship.

-by Tim A. Blankenship

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dear Bro. Tim, this is the hardest thing to deal with as a Christian. When faced with professing Believers who attack, accuse, slander and ridicule other professing Believers, I feel a grief inside my heart. I believe it is the Spirit grieving. I have been trying to totally and completely ignore people who would challenge my thoughts with an air of superiority toward me. Their pretentious attitudes throw a candle snuffer on my heart's joy.

I can only imagine what any grain of pretense in my heart does to my Lord. selahV

Tim A said...

SelahV,
I know the Lord knows how you feel. I know that I have to watch my own heart.
I know what you are saying too, about the things that are and have been said against other believers. I am not talking about judging false teaching and doctrine, but name calling, and judging anothers Christianity, because something they believe is a little left of what we believe.
Thanks SelahV for reading and your comment.
T.A.

Anonymous said...

Tim, that was awesome in it's ability to be so direct and to the point. The clarity of your message is great bro, love it. I just came accross your blog searchin the keywords of the verse + strong's concordance + prestense, I am glad I read this word study. Thanks! Any chance you went to BBC in Springfield?

Tim A said...

Anon. First of all thanks for reading the article, and second to answer your question of BBC; NO! I appreciate the teachings of many BBCers and the school's ministry.
Thanks again.
T.A.