THE UNVEILED FACE

We wear masks consciously or unconsciously on a daily basis. From pretty pictures on social media to looking busier at work to hiding alone on our darkest days, we walk around never disclosing who we are fully. 
 
We look in the mirror in the morning and think, If anyone ever knew that about me, they would reject me. We have a gnawing sense of being found out. Even if there is nothing horrific to hide, our instinct is that what we are is not enough. 
 
Some masks are slapped on us by the world. Some are self-imposed. Some of us have been hiding behind a pretense of who we think the world wants us to be or who we want to be ourselves, so much so that we are totally out of touch with our true selves. We have layered so many masks on top of our true selves that we are blinded, lost, veiled, and numb. We hide because we long to be employed, loved, accepted, and embraced. 
 
When Adam and Eve turned away from God, ushering in sin and death, their first instinct was to hide among the trees (Gen. 3). God’s first question to them was, “Where are you?” From the very beginning, we see God searching after anyone who wants to hide from him. He longs to bring restoration, grace, mercy, and reconciliation to every single person on the planet and indeed the whole of creation itself. 
 
Lent is an invitation to gaze upon the unveiled face of Jesus Christ crucified. With arms outstretched, stripped naked, nailed, and lashed, the Lamb of God took upon himself all of our sin, brokenness, and death that we desperately try to hide. With thorns piercing into his skull, Jesus is crucified for the sake of the world. On the cross, we see the TRUE UNVEILED face who took upon himself everything that makes us want to hide. 
 
Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, we have been set free from any mask that tries to suffocate us. Because of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we can now come to the throne of grace with unveiled faces ourselves with all confidence (Heb. 4:16). Followers of Jesus should be people who confess our sins, showing who we really are so that God may be glorified in us. We are sinners with unveiled faces who have been set free through Jesus Christ.
 
Prayer: Lord, thank you that we can remove our masks and show our true selves to you—the good, the bad, the beautiful, and the wretched. You died on the cross so that we could be forgiven and set free. Help us to reach out to others and create safe spaces where they too can remove their masks and receive the good news that they are forgiven, accepted, unconditionally loved and set free. Amen.