What comes to mind when you hear the word, "hypocrite?" It is an offensive word. We tend to think of a hypocrite as someone who says one thing and does another. When we see Jesus interacting with religious leaders we see him often pointing out their duplicity, and at times calling them hypocrites. Back then, the term hypocrite was used to describe an actor who wears a mask on a stage. Someone who puts on a front by wearing a mask and playing a particular role. Jesus used the term to describe someone whose inner life is not consistent with their outer life. He brought that word of challenge to them and us because He is inviting us to take our masks off so that we can live with greater integrity and freedom.

Jesus is not interested in behavior modification or in us simply believing the right things about God and the Bible. He wants us to experience genuine transformation in every aspect of our lives – especially our inner lives. In short, Jesus wants to renovate our hearts. And how does He do that? The apostle John tells us that Jesus came from the Father full of grace and truth (John 1:14). John is contrasting Jesus with the religious leaders of his day. The Law as interpreted by the Pharisees offered truth without grace and so brought shame and condemnation. At the other end of the spectrum, the Sadducees focused on maintaining the sacrificial rituals of the Temple so they could offer absolution regardless of the state of people's hearts and lives, offering grace without truth. Jesus came bringing both truth and grace, the diagnosis and the cure.