Keep It Hid

If they ask you, darlin’, oh about what I did
Baby you gotta keep it hid

Dan Auerbach

No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.

Luke 8:16

Christians love to hide. We hide our sins. We hide who we really are. We hide Christ. What is it about our human nature that makes us want to hide? Is it shame? Do we want to fit in? Is it a matter of trust? I've hidden things before. When I was overseas, I knew that if the Mission Board was privy to some of my sin, they would have sent me home early. I didn't trust anyone enough to confess my sins and seek accountability because I knew that God could still work through me. And while God did work through me, my hiding place became my own prison. And I struggled mightily. This is not the way to live. Of course, lording someone's sin over their heads and fostering an environment of behavior modification is not a way to live either. The essence of christian faith, as Joel Osteen says, is morality. Joel Osteen could not be more wrong. Yet, I feel this belief has permeated the church and has birthed a spirit of fear among believers. Fear that we might get caught and people would know us as we truly are. Fear that we would let people down. Fear of actually coming to grips with ourselves. There is no fear in Christ. The essence of christian faith is Jesus Christ, who has born your guilt in your place.

We have no reason to hide. Let us take off our masks and be real with each other. Come to my hiding place, so that we may help each other repent of our sins and be made holy. Jesus already knows our sins and He still loves us! Why then would we fear the opinions of man? On Derek Webb's House Show LP, he says that he wishes that his sin were exposed on the 6 o'clock news, so that he would not be able to hide anymore. What a powerful and humbling concept.

The light of Christ will shine through our lives once we boldly walk in His grace. Not only should we not hide our sins from one another, but we should seek to live a life in which we boldly preach his Name. Why does the church think that it is ok to just let the lost world know that we are christians? Just because my non-believing friends know I'm a christian doesn't really do anything for them, unless I speak truth into their lives, unless I love them and seek to serve them. Being the christian guy or gal that abstains from the activities or conversations of your non-believing friends and co-workers is not enough. Preach the Gospel. Do not hide the light that Christ has given you. I'm reminded of Peter, who denied Christ three times, and then once filled with the Holy Spirit, boldly proclaimed Christ at Pentecost and then the rest of his life. That same Holy Spirit indwells and works in the lives of every believer, so let us all take a lesson from Peter.