Masking up.

Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.  Matthew 23:12-13

Most of us read this and go … “Go get ‘em Jesus!” But in reality we all need to take a good long look at our own behaviors. Especially in the area of ‘masks’. We’ve certainly been trained to wear ‘masks’. “Put on a brave face.” “Don’t let them see what you feel.” There seem to be countless sayings that encourage a mask of a type. We certainly have our Sunday ‘go to meeting’ mask. We have our ‘greeting the stranger at the door’ mask. Maybe even our late hour supermarket ‘don’t mess with me’ mask. I often catch myself wondering if I am trying to ‘mask’ certain feelings I have. Although I’ve been told I don’t have much of a ‘poker face’. I can …if I have to — be very stoic if I need to be — just ask my wife. And then I think about the fruit of the Spirit and how I am displaying those fruits. Am I? Is my face showing those fruits?

I think the most dangerous behaviors are the ones Jesus calls the Pharisees out on … that being very outwardly ‘religious’ but not really having an inward heart towards God. I see it as our “Sunday best”. Putting on our “Sunday best” to show people how much we really love God. (Sarcasm)

This kind of behavior was drilled into me at a very young age. Basically …we had to put on a ‘show’ for our fellow ‘Christians’ when we went to ‘Church’. Best clothing, smile —no matter how I felt, and very polite conversation without any confrontative questions about anything. ‘Social graces’ I was told. I became very good at wearing masks. And I also became very good at identifying that same behavior in others — as I had learned it so well. I could easily see the masks people were trying so hard to wear.

I wonder is this type of mask wearing anywhere close to the behaviors the Pharisees displayed that got Jesus so angry?  

And He said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written,

“‘This people honors me with their lips,

    but their heart is far from me;

in vain do they worship me,

    teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ Mark 7:5-7

Are we just teaching the ‘doctrines’ and formulas or are we pointing their hearts to Jesus? Am I trying so hard to be the ‘good Christian’ that I am no longer honest with myself and God? But when I get around the Sunday folk — I smile and nod — and never say anything. Too many people are literally trapped by mask wearing. They think it is the ‘correct thing’ to do. Actually it is only ‘politically correct’ not spiritually correct.

Now I am very moved emotionally when I see someone being entirely ‘mask-less’ in front of me who is being very honest, raw, transparent, and vulnerable. That is real. That is what we all need more of. I encourage those brave enough NOT to wear a mask.

Does this sound like you? Where are you on this mask wearing practice?