Hypocrisy and Humility

I want to develop something I mentioned yesterday.  Why is it Christians need to repent?  It is a question asked from the earliest days of the Christian faith.  Surely those who are saved do not need to repent? 

Indeed the temptation is for those who are saved to cover up their sins.  So often the cover-up is worse than the original sin.  We can all think of times when a politician has lied to cover up some mistake.  The gradual uncovering of the truth by the media is often far worse than the original action.

We are all familiar with the caricature of the sanctimonious Methodist.  The Methodist who believes he has attained perfection.  Some of the holiness movements early in the last century explicitly believed they attained holiness at the time of conversion.  Believers in the rapture today, believe they are the elite who will be saved, leaving nominal Christians behind.  The cartoon says as much: The bishop says "I'm afraid you've got a bad egg, Mr Jones". Apparently trying to avoid offence or curry favor, the curate replies, "Oh, no, my Lord, I assure you that parts of it are excellent!"

The word for this behaviour is hypocrisy.  And let's face it, we're all guilty of it.  Leave aside whatever things we are aware we're covering up, we all know we are guilty of supporting an unsustainable world.  I stumbled upon a post, Straining on a gnat which describes what I am saying very effectively.  Coincidentally I used a similar image to make a similar point a few days ago.

In time we learn that the cover up is not the best way forward.  Our continuous falling, leads not to despair but humility, as we learn that forgiveness is at the very core of God's being.  When we describe someone who knows God through humility as elite, we are being ironic in a positive way!  Humble people do not see themselves as perfect.  The deeper their understanding of their complicity in the powers and principalities, the closer to God they become, God uses their humility as an opening through which God's love for others can be experienced.

Wesley had it right when he taught the importance of sanctification.  His love is for the whole of the world not just the so-called elite.