Word of the Day- Pharisee Behavior

Some of the harshest judgment doesn’t come from “the streets” it comes from people who know how to look holy while refusing to heal. I’m Dr. Jacqueline Cox, aka Listen Linda, and today’s word cuts straight through church performance: Pharisee. We talk about what happens when someone masters church language, scripture, and public praise, but still treats people with cruelty behind closed doors. If you’ve ever wrestled with church hurt, religious hypocrisy, or spiritual abuse, this conversation puts real words to what you’ve felt.

We break down the difference between being spiritual and being performative, and why real transformation changes your character, not just your vocabulary. I ask the questions that expose fruit: how you treat broken people, newcomers, and folks who can’t benefit you; what you do when nobody’s watching; and how you respond when it’s someone else’s turn to be blessed. These are the everyday markers of spiritual maturity that no title can replace.

We also go there on false prophecy and manipulation. Not everyone saying “God told me” is sent by God, and using fear, control, or ego in God’s name leaves real damage. Finally, we draw a bright line between correction and cruelty by contrasting conviction versus condemnation, because healthy accountability should pull people toward healing, not humiliate them for someone else’s ego. Subscribe, share, and leave a review if this helped you put language to what you’ve seen, and tell me in the comments: have you met someone who looked spiritually mature publicly but treated people horribly privately?

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:47

That's kingdom, that's classic. Amen.

Greeting And Word Of Day

SPEAKER_00 0:52

Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, wherever you are. It is your girl, Dr. Jacqueline Cox, aka Listen, Linda, and you know what I'm bringing you. You already know the word of the day.

Why Pharisee Behavior Repels People

SPEAKER_00 1:07

The word of the day is Pharisee. Yep. We're going there today because some of the meanest, most judgmental, cold-hearted people you will ever meet do not be in the streets. Amen. They be sitting in church every Sunday. Bible in hand, scriptures memorized, church attendance is chef's kiss, perfect. Titles on titles, and still got a spirit that is so nasty, it pushes people away from God instead of closer to Him. Now, before anybody get offended, let me say this: this message is not for the people who genuinely love God and try to live right. This message is for the people who mastered looking holy while refusing to actually heal. Because there's a difference between being spiritual and being performative. And I learned that yesterday in um Prophetess Michelle Brown's lie. She taught me a word. And when when somebody when when when when when a prophet or you know one of God's people, they teach you something and they hit you so hard in the chest, you like, I need to tell more people. You're supposed to go out and you supposed to you're supposed to teach the gospel, and that's what I'm doing today. Okay, there's a difference between being spiritual and being performative. And baby, some folks know church culture better than they know compassion. They know how to shout, amen, hallelujah. But they are running when it's time to apologize to you. They know how to quote scripture with their eyes closed, they can tell you everything the Bible says, but they don't know how to show kindness, they know how to correct everybody else in everybody else's household, what everybody else is doing, but never confront their own bitterness, their own jealousy, their own pride, their own manipulation, their own gossip gossip, and their own kids who out here doing God knows what and ain't living right themselves.

Religion As Camouflage And Fruit

SPEAKER_00 3:19

And let's really tell the truth. Some people use religion as camouflage. Oh yeah, oh yeah. They're gonna hide behind those scriptures, those titles, those robes, the the Lord told me while operating in envy, control, and emotional abuse. We talked about it yesterday, but we're gonna talk about a little more. Because my daddy used to say, some folks ain't filled with the Holy Ghost, they dipped in demons. And honestly, the older I get, I understand what he meant. Because if you've been in church 40 and 50 years and you still mistreating people, you still gossiping, you're still scamming people, you still manipulating, you still competing with everybody, young and old, still lying, still judge people that's struggling, still destroy people emotionally, then what spirit have you really been feeding? Because real transformation changes your character, not just your vocabulary. Anybody can learn church language, it ain't hard. Anybody can yell hallelujah, anybody can uh perform spiritually publicly, but your fruit tells the truth. How do you treat people who can't benefit from you? How do you treat broken people? How do you treat newcomers? Do you scam them because they don't know no better? How do you act when nobody is watching you? How do you respond when somebody else is blessed when it's they turn and yours? It ain't your turn no more. That's the real test.

False Prophecy And Church Hurt

SPEAKER_00 5:00

And let's talk about false prophecy for a minute, too, because we're gonna go there. Because everybody that's saying God told me was not sent by God. Some people will weaponize prophecy to manipulate vulnerable people emotionally. Some people use fear to control people, some people speak from ego, jealousy, competition, or personal opinion, and then they want to slap God's name on it. That's dangerous, that's very dangerous. And I think I think a lot of people have church hurt not because of God, because God ain't did nothing to him but be good to him, but because of the people who misrepresented him and the church. People come to church searching for healing and then they find judgment, searching for love and they found gossip, searching for safety and they found control, and then they wonder why people stop coming to church. You self-ordain yourself or one of these pastors or one of these bishops, they ordain you as a prophet or whatever, and then you think that can't know God can't talk to nobody else but you. And if somebody else says God talked to them, you calling them a liar, calling a calling them everything up under the sun. You don't know who God gave a gift to, you don't know who God woke up and said, you know what? I got something I'm gonna put on your mind, and I want you to get online and tell people about it. That's not your call. People are tired of fake holiness, they're sick of it.

Conviction Versus Condemnation

SPEAKER_00 6:34

And let me say this too: correction is biblical, accountability matters, standards matter, but there's a difference between conviction and then condemnation. Conviction pulls people towards hill. Condemnation humiliates people to feed your ego. And honestly, some of y'all, some of these folks, they so they more committed to appearances than actual transformation. That's Pharisee behavior. Looking righteous publicly while your heart stays unhealed privately. And if this message bothers somebody, maybe it's supposed to. Toxic is still toxic, manipulation is still manipulation, pride is still pride, and being religious does not automatically make somebody righteous. So today's word of the day is Pharisee. And I want to ask y'all something before we

The Closing Question And Next Steps

SPEAKER_00 7:44

end this video. Y'all know I always gotta end with a question Have you ever met somebody who looked spiritually mature publicly but treated people horrible privately? Talk to me in the comments. Let me know. And if this conversation hits home, please make sure you subscribe, you share this video, and you come back for the toxic trait of the day. Because y'all know how I do. We're gonna go deeper, we're gonna dive way, way deeper. Okay. This is your girl, Dr. Jacqueline Cox, aka Listen Linda, and I will see you all in a few minutes with the toxic trait of the day.

unknown 8:21

Peace.