Isn't this the grand hypocrisy of Christianity?

Question

Hypothetically, lets say there are two people.

The first is a theist who believes in Jesus and God, yet spends his days sinning. He knows it's wrong, but can't resist temptation. As he approaches the end of his life, he is overcome with remorse for all he's done. He confesses all his sins, and vows to live the remainder of his life a devout and penitant man in the service of Christ. Unfortunately, he dies a week later.

The other man is an atheist, who aside from not believing in God, lives a pure and upstanding life. He devotes his days to helping the needy, giving to charity. He respects all the people he meets & all life he encounters. In other words, he follows exactly the kind of morally correct lifestyle that Christ instructed Christians to. He just refuses to believe in God, right up to, and through his final breath.

We all know there are many people like this. How can the first man be saved, while the second man is damned?

Isn't this the grand hypocrisy of Christianity?

Wow, after reading these answers, I've actually learned something! I'm truly amazed. I never thought in a million years that I'd ever have my beliefs changed by reading answers to this question, but that's exactly what has happened.

I've always assumed that religion provided the missing "something" in the lives of the people who followed it, but now I see the truth.

I now see that Christianity is the supreme expression of human arrogance, and all it's followers are completely detatched from reality. This finally explains everything.

It's not a matter of reason, thought, right, wrong, action, circumstance, chance or anything else. It's just pure, abiding, blind, dogmatic faith to a single, solitary rule, no matter how absurd the context. No wonder all the rest of the worlds religions hate Christians. You people are TRULY INSANE!

Answer 1

Yep, I asked this question. And I was burried under a heap of quoted scripture. basically they will tell you that you are not believing hard enough and that all things can be solved through christ . .. blah blah blah. I think its absolutely hubris for a religion to say that they are the only ones who know where they are going when they die and no one else gets to go with them. Its like a child gathering up their toys when their angry and marching home. . . Good luck with the question! May you have lots of time to scroll through cut & paste answers!

Answer 2

There is no hypocrisy.

One problem with your depictions here is that the person living an alleged upstanding life and giving to charity may be in his or her heart a self-seeker who is interested in personal glory more than the alleviation of others' sufferings.

What God does is searches human hearts. And there God finds the truth. So that many who may appear virtuous and who are indeed bitter, small-minded, and self-serving are found out by God.

Another error of your portrayals is that if the Christian knows Christ and has a personal relationship with him, he has power readily available to resist tempation. He need only call on God's help, grace, strength, and mercy. If he does not call on this divine aid, then he is not working out his salvation, and God will deal with him accordingly. I don't know the specifics about how, but I know that God is good, God is just, and God cannot be persuaded, so he will deal with this person in a just and merciful fashion.

One is saved when one accepts God's free gift of salvation through his Son. And when one accepts this salvation, one begins, with God's power, working to overcome those things that would otherwise separate man and God.

The whole point here is that appearances are deceiving, and you know neither the heart of a sinning Christian nor the heart of a charity-donating atheist...and so you cannot judge properly. You can only judge through your limited experience, and based on appearances.

God judges based on one's heart--and there is only one heart you know, and that is your own.

Accept God's gift, and you will learn what "judge not lest ye be judged" truly means.

Answer 3

You mis-understand much. The 2nd man you presented does many things wrong even though he does some things right. The 1st one you presented, you interpret he will squeak in & that is all that is required. Neither one is what Christianity is about. Think about driving. All it takes is to miss a stop sign once with a semi hitting you & it will not matter if you run a stop sign on purpose or unintentionally. The results will be the same. And so it is with your relationship with Christ. Heaven is't an earned reward. It is because of trust, love, a gift, respect, desire to please God, etc. No one is good enough. Do you really want validation for choosing not to trust Christ as God's Son? I think you do that on your own, regardless of resonses to your question. My guess is that you have some near you who can tell or have told you about the signs. It is up to you to be a responsible driver as well as it is up to you to have a relationship with Him or not.

Answer 4

Because faith in Christ is the defining factor.
You can be a wonderful person - but salvation comes only through Jesus. I did not say it he did. And he is God. The problem is people are not comfortable with it (God is not interested in your comfort) and will come up with many reasons why it just can't be so - but it is.
God wants those who love him and will serve him with their lives - imperfect, in need of forgiveness.

It is not hypocrisy - it is God's truth. Jesus said that he is the truth, the life and the way, and no one comes to the Father except throgh him.
First step I had to make - realize God is God and I am not.
Stop fighting it, he loves us with a love greater than we can imagine - it is about trust and faith.

What does the atheist believe in? HImself? Relative and situational ethics? Flawed creation theories? No promise after death?
You see, that is what matters, and reality. Belief in the Creator and Savior we are in need of.

Answer 5

Nope, this is the grace of Christianity. We are saved through grace, not good works. No one deserves to go to heaven. Even the "saint" of an atheist in the example. Although he may be good, he did not live a sinless life. Those who have sinned cannot enter heaven. That's where we need Christ's sacrifice to take the place of our sins. So, there's not one thing we can do to get into God's good graces, save believe in His Son, accept the gift on the cross, and claim Jesus as your Savior. Thank goodness it's not based on our actions! It's like thinking - what if you spent your whole life baking apple pies for God...only to discover when you got to heaven that He didn't like pies?

Answer 6

Ditto Rez. properly reported. this is a few thing all of us have the inclination to do, at some point or yet another, for one reason or yet another. Christians are actually not exempt from being human. the way lots of them excuse their very own flaws is disgusting, although. As you be attentive to, Steph, i'm dealing with a complicated concern at living house. I even have some very supportive human beings, Christian and atheist, in my life. I even have others who in one breath ask for prayers for a loss of life newborn, then in the subsequent grow to be my decide and jury. this is a few thing to behold.

Answer 7

Well, first of all, both men are sinners. Nobody, Christian or atheist, is without sin. It's just that the Christian admits that not only is he/she a sinner, but that he/she cannot save him/herself. The only hope for the sinner (and the Bible makes it clear that all have sinned,Rom 3:23) is the atoning blood of Jesus Christ, the only Son of God. Friend, may I quote the parable of the pharisee and publican to you from the KJV of the Holy Scriptures? (Luke 18:9-14) "And He spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted."

We are not saved by good works, but by the precious and atoning blood of Jesus. Oh yes my friend, what power there is in the blood, His blood: The Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world.

It was not the nails that kept our Lord on the cross for more than six hours of agony and excruciating torture beyond anything you and I could even begin to imagine, but rather, His love for us sinners, even the hypothetical works/righteous guy described in your question; providing of course that he might humble himself enough to admit he's a sinner. Are you a sinner? Christ died for us sinners. God bless you brother/sister.

Answer 8

Grand Hypocrisy? NO. Truth? YES.

God gave us Free will. We use it for many things, both good and bad. BUT, the only thing God wants us to use it for is to accept or reject him.

These are the two choices we have. Accept or reject.
Of course there are those that want to ride the fence so to speak. They are described as neither hot nor cold in the bible, and it is written that they will be vomited out of heaven. This describes the people who say with their voice that they are believers, but live their lives as non believers. They neither accepted nor rejected God in their hearts.

Answer 9

Not one single person on this planet can know where these two men will end up after their earthly deaths. Only God knows. So don't ask us, ask Him.

Just because someone asks for forgiveness doesn't mean that God will forgive him. There are many factors in God's final decision. Your story of these 2 men is your personal preconceived notion that you know exactly what the church teached. You should read about the Church early fathers and the Catholic Catechsim. This might help you better understand the true church.

Answer 10

Hypocrisy; I suppose. But then the Christian faith is nonsense anyhow. The comedian W.C. Fields used to say that he read the Bible looking for loopholes, and I believe that many people do. "Sin", "damnation" and "salvation" are not in my theological lexicon. Those words only resonate to people who believe that they have meaning. I don't. No one is saved and no one is damned. Churchgoers need to get over feeling superior to all of us "godless secular humanists" LOL, because they're not. We're all in the same boat, and none of us has an actual clue where we are headed when we die. Except that we'll be dead.