As the grand “unmasking of America” begins to gather steam, it appears that mirrors across the country will be getting more face time with their owners. Millions of us will finally be allowed to breathe freely in public once again and enjoy re-discovering that faces consist of more than just two eyes and a swath of paper or cotton. Routines formerly lying dormant are being revived before “going out” now. Folks will be checking their teeth more carefully, some guys will start shaving more often, and gals who had avoided makeup will begin applying it once again. But not everyone will get to enjoy this exciting wave of mask emancipation. 

Some Are Left Out ~
For instance, multitudes of school children continuing to be held captive by teachers’ unions and politically-biased school boards will still be forced to wear them. Committed leftist ideologues enslaved by Marxist doctrines will continue to wear masks as a symbol of their perceived moral superiority over those who choose to display both their faces and their reinstated freedom. Finally, there are those whose unconditional surrender to government induced paranoia has made the mask so strong a symbol of personal safety and security that taking it off is simply too frightening to contemplate. So, to mask or not to mask will be debated for some time to come, but there’s another masking issue that portends more danger to our freedom and our future than anything ever used to cover our faces, and we must not overlook it. 

More and more of us have come to realize that the ubiquitous COVID masks imposed on us have been hiding much more than America’s faces. What began as a coordinated effort to protect us from what was initially presented as a virtual death sentence, gradually became a pretext under which opportunistic political power grabs began to run rampant. Officials at almost every level of government and public administration began to appear more like narcissistic feudal lords than public servants. Under the unchallenged medical authority of “St. Fauci, the Divine” and his leftist disciples, personal freedoms were randomly put on the chopping block, right and left. Civil and religious rights guaranteed by the Constitution were swept aside with no debate and without recourse. Almost daily, as unreasonable and often ridiculous restrictions were mandated, another kind of mask began to come to light. 

Another Kind of Mask ~
Working together, a coalition of government officials, agency bureaucrats, digital media oligarchs, academics, and biased news networks fabricated what we could call a COVID “information mask.” Unlike the paper and cloth coverings they required us to wear, their information mask was incredibly effective. It captured and successfully filtered out nearly every shred of evidence that dared to challenge the narrative constructed by the ruling class. Raw, honest, unbiased data was denied exposure, and political vicissitudes were elevated to the level of “science.” Fear and ignorance spread faster and infected more people than the virus ever could as disobedience to the dictates of the power brokers became a criminal offense. 

Now, as we and our fellow citizens finally begin to shed our COVID masks, we must all begin to demand that the information “masks” being worn by elected officials come off as well. The hidden motives and objectives that have been guiding the power brokers in this country are far more dangerous to our health and way of life than any pandemic. But before we get all self-righteous in our denunciation of others who make a practice of hiding things behind masks, we’d better ensure that we haven’t been wearing more than one ourselves. Politicians aren’t the only ones for whom exposure is a frightening prospect. 

A More Damaging Problem ~
The Church of Jesus Christ is full of mask-wearers, too. We don’t pause enough to consider the far-reaching potential of widespread hypocrisy and spiritual duplicity among the professed followers of Jesus. The truth is that the impact of hypocrisy could be more damaging to the health and welfare of the country than anything going on in any political swamp. Jesus, who proclaimed Himself to be the “light of the world” had some things to say about those who felt a need to avoid exposure. 

And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God. (John 3:19–21 NKJV)

One of the things Jesus’ opponents hated about Him was that, unlike them, He didn’t have a secret, selfish, sinful set of motives that He was hiding. He was maddeningly transparent, and every trick they devised only reinforced who He was and further exposed them as jealous hypocrites. In addition to inflaming His enemies, the transparency Jesus practiced resulted in another dramatic reaction. Multitudes heard His offer of forgiveness and found the faith to rip off their masks and expose who they really were. 

A Powerful Unveiling ~
They confessed their hidden secrets and repented of their sins, and when they did that, an amazing thing happened. Their fears vanished and they were granted a new start with a clean slate. They learned what it meant to be “born again.” Now, rather than seeking to hide the evil they had done before, they openly testified of the pain and loss it was costing them, and how Jesus had broken their chains and set them free. Removing masks like that can unleash a healing and strengthening force with unlimited potential. 

As we celebrate the wonderful sense of freedom felt by simply removing a paper mask and exposing who we are, it’s a good time not only to call for the exposure of hidden political agendas, but to consider removing any other masks we may be hiding behind. In this time of uncertainty and damaged trust, Jesus still promises to receive all who come to Him by faith. Those who are willing to believe Him and expose everything to the light of His truth receive forgiveness and total immunity from the condemnation that their sins deserve. 

When all our masks are finally removed, the fear that made us want to hide gets removed along with them. We get to experience the incredible freedom of simply being who we really are, revealing to the world the person His grace has allowed us to become. Then we can join with the Apostle Paul and declare . . .

For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Corinthians 4:6 NKJV)

“TWEETABLES” ~ Click to tweet and share from the pull quotes below.  Each one links directly back to this article through Twitter . . .

• • “The impact of widespread hypocrisy and spiritual duplicity among the professed followers of Jesus could be more damaging to the health and welfare of the country than anything going on in any political swamp.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
  • “In addition to inflaming Jesus’ enemies, the transparency Jesus practiced resulted in another dramatic reaction. Multitudes heard His offer of forgiveness and found the faith to rip off their masks and expose who they really were.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)  
  • “Multitudes confessed their hidden secrets and repented of their sins, and when they did that, an amazing thing happened. Their fears vanished and they were granted a new start with a clean slate. They learned what it meant to be “born again.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)  
  • “Jesus still promises to receive all who come to Him by faith. Those who are willing to believe Him and expose everything to the light of His truth receive forgiveness and total immunity from the condemnation that their sins deserve.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)   
  • “When all our masks are finally removed, the fear that made us want to hide gets removed. We get to experience the incredible freedom of simply being who we really are, revealing to the world the person His grace has allowed us to become.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)  

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