"... This people draw near with their mouth and honor me [the Lord] with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men!" thundered Isaiah (Isaiah 29:13) to a church full of wayward 21st century Christians. Er ... sorry there. I seemed to have gotten a bit confused. No, these words of the Lord that Isaiah prophesied weren't to a group of modern day church-goers, but a group of ancient day church-goers, the Israelites. And you see, that prophecy was fulfilled back then, it was fulfilled in Jesus' time, as we learned in today's sermon on Mark 7:1-13 ("Jesus: Better than Traditions"), and that prophecy is still being fulfilled today. Isaiah's bold, condemning words flashed like fire on these lukewarm Israelites. "You go to church on Sunday and sing of your commitment to God. But in your heart, you could care less of a commitment to God. On Sundays, you're all about worshiping God, God, God. But then comes Monday-Saturday, and your worship turns to you, you, you! You're hypocrites! You fill the pews in body, but your mind is anywhere but God's house!" Now you may be able to see why I confused the time of these words.
Those ancient words of Isaiah sound like they could be pretty applicable here in 21st century North America, where thousands of lukewarm Christians fill the pews, sing the songs, put in the offering check, take notes during the sermon, but in their hearts, they're not worshiping. Their hearts are tuned to their wants, not God's wants. People are confessing Christ with their lips, but denying Him with their actions.
So let's not be hypocrites. Let's not be like whitewashed tombs, as Jesus condemns the Pharisees in Matthew 23:27, "For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people's bones and all uncleanness." Let's forget about trying to wear the perfect "churchy" look, talking the right talk, walking the right walk, but meanwhile neglecting the insides. Let's work on the insides first, by professing Christ with our actions and with our lips. It's not one or the other; it's all or none. Let's never be like the wishy-washy believers Paul spoke of in Titus 1:16, "They profess to know God, but deny Him by their works."