Nothing is Covered Up That Will Not Be Revealed

“Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.” (Luke 12:1b-3)

Sin and hypocrisy thrive in secret. It’s easy to maintain a righteous front so long as no one knows what you’re really like. But as soon as it’s clear you’re not all you’re cracked up to be, hypocrisy is much harder to maintain and the power of secret sin begins to loosen its vice grip on the sinner. As I reflected on these sage words from Jesus this morning I came to this conclusion:

Live now as though everything is seen, heard, and known…because one day it will be.

How would my life be different if I lived in light of this truth? Let me count the ways:

1. I would not say anything behind anyone’s back that I would not want them to hear…because one day they will.
2. I would not say, think, or do anything behind closed doors that I would be ashamed to say, think, or do with the door open…because one day it will be.
3. I would not judge others’ sins and shortcomings with such harshness. Rather I would be humble and gracious in my assessment of others’ sins as one who’s own record of failure is publicly known…because one day it will be.
4. I would be much more careful about doing all the secret duties that I’m calling on others to do…because one day they won’t be secret anymore.
5. I would be quicker to repent of sin and would walk with less self-righteousness and greater humility…because one day the truth about me that only I know will be known by all.
6. I would be as diligent about my secret duties of prayer, fasting, holiness, giving and so on as I am about my public duties of preaching, teaching, and leading…because one day the private duties will be as well-known as the public.
7. I would never boast in myself or my own righteousness but only in the righteousness of Jesus…because one day it will be clear to all that his righteousness is the only righteousness I have worth boasting in.
8. I would be more honest about my own sins and failures with others seeing as there’s no reason to cover them up, which only promotes hypocrisy…because one day all will know the truth about my sins and failures.
9. I would be much more likely to ask for help with my secret sins since I would no longer be worried about trying to maintain a secret anymore, and others would be more likely to seek my help…because one day it will be clear that only Jesus never failed.
10. I would approach the intentional confession of sin to another Christian with eagerness and joy because I would see it as God’s appointed way of escape from the joylessness of hypocrisy and self-righteousness…because even today, it is.

Apply this how you will, but as for me, I will aim to be more intentional about confessing my sins not only to God but to another follower of Jesus. When we make confession of our sins to another person, we set in motion all of these effects of how we would live differently if everything secret was known, because we are literally taking the secret and making it known. Of course, it’s a frightening concept to reveal your true self to another human being. And if our only righteousness is self-righteousness, we could never do it. But for those whose hope is in the alien righteousness of Jesus, deposited as a gift in our empty hands of faith, we need not fear our lack of righteousness being exposed. Rather, honestly coming to terms with our lack of righteousness is an irreplaceable step toward true Christian righteousness…the kind Pharisees will never possess.

Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, so live today as though it already is and you will be on your way to freedom from the soul-poisoning leaven of hypocrisy.