Should a person from the public feel that Christianity is impractical when they see a Christian has gone against their own teachings?
The idea behind Christianity is to try to do what’s right while realizing that mistakes will be made because of human weakness.
One question the public will have as Christianity becomes more noticed in the public again is what they should think of Christians and Christian pastors when they sin (do wrong that goes against Christian teaching). Some will wonder if this means that Christians only want to engage in many of the behaviors they warn against and that they are only unfairly constraining themselves while others will say it shows that religious talk is impractical. These questions and ideas also arose in past times when Christianity was more prominent.
One fact that is necessary to note here is that Christians do not claim that they always do what’s right in the first place. The idea behind Christianity is to try to do what’s right while realizing that mistakes will be made because of human weakness. This is because Christians, being human, can be drawn to many behaviors that they also believe are wrong. However, this doesn't mean that Christians should simply adopt those behaviors as acceptable practices. They don’t want to adopt those practices because they feel it is better not to live that way, even if those behaviors can seem as enticing to them at times as they are to people who don't feel they are wrong.
Also, since Christians do not claim that being Christian means that they will never do anything wrong, it is also not right to say that the Christian life is impractical. The main idea involves a dedicated effort to do what is right while recognizing that mistakes will be made, which is more than practical in terms of a life mission. The Christian life involves going against behaviors that can be selfish or problematic in other ways while practically recognizing that they will not always avoid them.