Nothing in Secret…

Because of hypocrisy, Jesus warned us to avoid motives of self-glory which opposes God’s rightful glory for all good. In matters of charitable deeds, prayer, and fasting we are called to have some honest secrecy from others as we are in the sight of God ALONE (Mt 6:3-6, 17-18). And of course, there are definite elements of privacy and secrecy in marriage which are pure and undefiled as God has said in Heb 13:4. This goes against the grain of teaching for some as they would not rather have these things in secret. But what would some of these same people have in secret?

This is the key word today on this post:

"Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God." (2Cor 4:1-2)

When receiving and believing the Truth, God commands us to be bold in sharing this with others. Unless we have something to hide through whatever we believe, it is to be revealed to all, for nothing is to be hidden in matters of doctrine and practice. For our consciences are to be naked as we wisely but openly offer the Truth as we know it. If we don’t see the Truth, we must pray for God’s Grace to see it. If we do see this Truth, there is nothing to fear as you manifest it in the Light before all to see.

"For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light. Therefore He says:
“Awake, you who sleep,
Arise from the dead,
And Christ will give you light.” (Ep 5:8-14)

Are you willing for your conscience to be manifested before all? Or do you carry something that you would be ashamed of if Light manifested your belief before others and you became conscious of God’s awareness of your thoughts and other's awareness of your beliefs. Do you have a clear conscience before God? Is there any belief that you feel you must hide for fear of other's thoughts about it? If so, maybe it would do you good to ask yourself, why?

"For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil." (Ec 12:14)

As God’s Word so clearly speaks in the Light, none can hide from His all-seeing Eyes. Christ is the Light of the world and has made His children the same for Himself. He has not spoken in secret but all the fullness of the Gospel --the New Covenant in His blood-- has been made manifest by His Holy Apostles and Prophets. It is settled and no one can add anything to it or take anything away without the eventual dread of falling into the Hands of the Living God.

"I have not spoken in secret, In a dark place of the earth; I did not say to the seed of Jacob, ‘Seek Me in vain’; I, the Lord, speak righteousness, I declare things that are right." (Is 45:19)

“...which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets: that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel,” (Ep 3:5-6)

If your doctrine is said to be one thing but is actually hidden by practices that are contrary to God’s Divine Nature, then evil is lurking with you. For those who “appear to say one thing but then do another” will give an account of their will to cover up deceit with fraudulent words said to be of the Holy One. In other words... Blasphemy in the Eyes of the Holy God.

"Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, And prudent in their own sight!" (Is 5:20-21)

“I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran. I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in My counsel, And had caused My people to hear My words, Then they would have turned them from their evil way And from the evil of their doings. “Am I a God near at hand,” says the Lord, “And not a God afar off? Can anyone hide himself in secret places, So I shall not see him?” says the Lord; “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says the Lord." (Jer 23:21-24)

You are hiding from the eyes of men but God sees your heart. And it grieves Him that you are resisting the Truth by hiding and not being willing to reveal your conscience before God and men. You must ask yourself, why are you hiding? What are you afraid of?

Also He said to them, “Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lampstand? “For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light. “If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” Then He said to them, “Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given. “For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.” (Mark 4:21-25)

It is not in sharing words only but your very public presence will reveal to other that you have nothing to fear. It is those who desire to hide something that will go and hide themselves when the Light shines on them in public places. Do you not realize we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God. And every knee will bow --yes, yours, mine and all will be there-- before the Holy name of Jesus Christ, the only Living Deity who is a man and yet all things were created through Him and for Him. Do you make yourself well known to the consciences of others or do you have something in your teaching and practice to hide from others?

"Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are well known to God, and I also trust are well known in your consciences." (2Cor 5:9-11)

“No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light. “The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness. “Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness. “If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light.” (Luke 11:33-36)

Is there a dark part in you which you would not want the world --or more importantly-- Christ’s discerning Christians to see? Speaking to you who know you are a hypocrite in your dealings as a leader in a church: Other than those you have duped, would you meet with Christians in public who have concerns of you and your ways?

Speaking to discerning Christians: If you have been maintaining a clear conscience before God and man, and then encounter someone who you know --by their practices or fruit-- are full of lies and hypocrisy or false accusations toward the brethren, God will give you a boldness to look them in the eyes physically and spiritually and know God’s grieving over this with an anger for their sin. I have experienced this at a few times in my walk with Christ, and I believe God would grant me the boldness again as needed if I am to encounter another of these known hypocritical liars as God unmasks them before me. For their mouths MUST be stopped! If this sounds “arrogant” for me to say, I didn’t say it, Paul did. I just agree with him and wish to have the same mind of Christ in obedience to God.

I am far from sinless, and Christ has been faithfully working His Spirit in me to sin less as I learn to yield to His Grace for change. But there are those who would resist God’s Grace altogether --as Stephen spoke of-- and in this, resist His Hand of Change. I know I have fallen short of God’s best in my approach toward obvious hypocritical people at different times. I have gotten a bit upset and sternly verbal at these times. The Bible says “be angry and sin not” . So I am praying for the right attitude to take when approaching these wolves in sheep’s clothing who are found to be walking in clever craftiness and handling the word of God deceitfully as they abuse many. I have been accused of being arrogant due to the way I respond to such individuals face to face, even in public. But because I don’t wish to have the sin of arrogance in my heart, or have my true brothers and sisters in Christ think it's so, I’ve been praying and asking God how to respond to these people with the Love of Christ. But because I have no other better examples to follow but those of the New Testament Saints, I have found myself wanting to imitate them even as they imitated Christ. I’ll share some of the examples of men who looked those in the eyes who were full of hypocrisy or deceit…

Jesus -- way too many to list here but I‘ll give some:

“Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. (Mt 12:34)

“Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. (Mt 23:24-25)

John the Baptist:

“Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?" (Mt 3:7)

Stephen:

“You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you." (Acts 7:50)

Peter:

"But Peter answered him, “May you and your money go to hell, for thinking that you can buy God’s gift with money! You have no part or share in our work, because your heart is not right in God’s sight. Repent, then, of this evil plan of yours, and pray to the Lord that he will forgive you for thinking such a thing as this. For I see that you are full of bitter envy and are a prisoner of sin.” (Acts 8:20-23)

Paul:

“Then Saul, who also is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, “O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?” (Acts 13:9-10)

“Now as Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, disapproved concerning the faith; but they will progress no further, for their folly will be manifest to all, as theirs also was.” (2Tim 3:8-9)

And then Paul said to us:

"Therefore I urge you, imitate me." (1Cor 4:16)


"Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ." (1Cor 11:1)

"The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you." (Phil 4:9)

So if I am accused of arrogance in my speech, please understand what has motivated me.

Every single one of the men rebuked in the examples above were in a place of leading others astray and also had hidden secrets in their hearts which God made manifest to others. And some were out to discredit valid testimonies of others against them so as to detract from the fact that they were serious frauds. No worries… God will expose them further as He has promised us! The men who rebuked these frauds knew of God’s grief and anger for they were known of God and had compassion for those being misled.

One final Word:

Jesus answered him, “I spoke openly to the world. I always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where the Jews always meet, and in secret I have said nothing” (John 18:20) …If you are of Christ, can you say the same Truth before all people of the world in any public seen today? I trust God may give you this opportunity to prove it, and hopefully sooner than later for the sake of those you have been misleading.

Fear is not of God. If your doctrine is of God you will have great boldness for all men to know it, not just the few naïve or innocent people that you have led into the darkness which you claim as light. What a dreadful shame and disgrace for the name of Christ --of which you claim to be-- as you offer secret lies to deceive, if it were possible, the elect of God. For Love will open the heart for all to see, hiding no good thing of the Truth of the Gospel. For as Jesus said, there are those restricting the Key of Knowledge from others and will not enter in themselves for their grave blindness and pride.

By God’s Grace and Work, we shall know the Truth… and this Truth will set us FREE!

“Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. We love Him because He first loved us.” (1Jn 4:17-19)

If you are following one who will not come out into the Light before God and the consciences men in public with what they believe, think through these words for your own soul’s sake and go FREE BY THE POWER OF GOD'S GRACE!

-Scripture in NKJV-