God's Warning Against Hypocrites

Psalm 50:7-15

Over the years one complaint that many people have against the church, and the reason they give for not wanting to attend, has been that too many of the people who go to church are hypocrites.  The people who attend will gather and sing all the songs, put their money in the offering, sit there piously and say the prayers and responses, but none of it really means anything to them.  When they leave the church, they are no different in their behavior than anyone else.  God’s Word, the Bible, has something to say about hypocrites, as well.  In our psalm for this week, a portion of Psalm 50, we can get an idea of what the Lord thinks.

Our passage opens with God speaking, testifying against His people (vs. 7).  He wants them to listen up to what He has to say against them.  First, He does not fault them for being negligent in offering their appropriate sacrifices on the days and at the times they are supposed to (vs. 8).  They are very good at being sure to follow that religious ordinance.  The people were very good at adhering to the letter of the law.  They brought their offerings and sacrifices, they kept their holy days, they tithed everything they had.  The people ate the correct foods, even using the correct plates, and wore the correct clothes made out of the correct materials.  The people were careful to avoid being around the “wrong people”.  Outwardly they seemed fine, but where was their heart in relation to God?

Jesus spoke directly about this when He pointed out that the Pharisees were meticulous in keeping every tiny item of the law, yet their hearts were far from God, and true worship of Him (Mark 7:1-13; Matthew 23:23-26).  How about us today?  Do we participate in religious activities, give our tithes and offerings, and attend church services out of habit or conformity, rather than out of heartfelt love and obedience?  God wants righteousness from His people, not just empty rituals.

As a matter of fact, God doesn’t even want our mere rituals, if that’s all it is to us, something we go through without any real thought or devotion (vs. 9-13).  Unlike the pagan deities, God does not need anything from us.  He created everything, and all of creation belongs to Him.  God doesn’t get hungry and need to eat, or else He will get faint or light-headed.  He doesn’t need us to feed Him or to clothe Him.  God doesn’t get tired and need to rest.  He also doesn’t need to listen to us recite a bunch of empty words to Him.  How often do we recite the same prayers every day or every week at church, sing the same songs, yet our mind is a million miles away, thinking about a dozen other thoughts?

God judges people who treat Him lightly.  He finds no pleasure in superficially religious people who bring their sacrifices, but are only going through the motions.  They do not honor Him with true praise or thanksgiving.  That is what God really wants - genuine thanksgiving and trust.

This portion of Psalm 50 is a warning to avoid hypocrisy and legalism before God.  True worship does not consist in mere sacrifices of animals.  Nor does it consist in merely keeping church attendance and following the rituals of your particular denomination.  True worship is the sacrifice of thanksgiving and faithfulness (vs. 14-15).  That is the sacrifice that always pleases God.  When we bring that to the Lord, He promises to help and to strengthen us.