I Know Your Secrets
Everything will come to light eventually.
He said to them, "Is a lamp brought in to be put under the bushel basket, or under the bed, and not on the lampstand? For there is nothing hidden, except to be disclosed; nor is anything secret, except to come to light. Let anyone with ears to hear listen!" And he said to them, "Pay attention to what you hear; the measure you give will be the measure you get, and still more will be given you. For to those who have, more will be given; and from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away." He also said, "The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. The earth produces of itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle, because the harvest has come." He also said, "With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade." With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples. - Mark 4:21-34
When Jesus warned all secrets will eventually be revealed, he was talking to us about our secrets.
It is funny, though, that we don't think about our secrets when we hear this. We think about the others, those we know who harbor secrets and misdoings.
They are the ones we want to be exposed.
We feel totally justified in pointing out the flaws in others, especially when those others are in power. Do we think we can convince them to change?
In Jesus' day, gathering in protest against the Roman authority was punishable by death, so it was comforting to know that God would eventually deal with them.
But we live in a "free" country. We have the right to speak up, and we employ that right often.
I wonder if it is the most effective way to inspire change.
Jesus tells us it doesn't take much to accomplish a great deal. Look at the mustard seed, he says.
What does that mean for us?
We often attribute it to spreading the Gospel, but sometimes being so direct doesn't work. When challenged or confronted, people get defensive. Did you ever talk to an atheist about God?
Maybe what we are supposed to do is model the behavior we seek in others.
The Pharisees and scribes stood on tradition and law, arguing that Jesus was evil and demon-possessed and that only resulted in more followers.
Jesus sat and ate with the sinners, and they came to believe in him.
Just saying, seeds grow.
More to come...