BEHIND THE MASK

   He is arrogant, and he has no fear.
   He is not concerned with the words people speak about him, write about him, or even think about him.
   He is not bothered by neither private nor public opinion about him.
   He is a man totally consumed with himself, of himself, by himself, and for himself.
   His goal is to control, dominate, manipulate, deceive, and rule.
   He has no shame, no apologizes, no admission for any naughty behaviours, or mistakes of any kind.
   In his own mind, he is perfect in all of his ways.
   He is not really interested in mundane or boring titles, such as president, poet, prophet, preacher,  priest, or pope; nor czar, dictator, monarch, caesar---or even king:  His Majesty has more of a heavenly ring to his ears, followed by trumpets and harps, with servants dancing and praising him, and subjects on bended knees.
   His biographical background is shrouded in mystery:  in shadows, sketchy, and protected by secrecy.
   Most of his adult life has been in institutions:  colleges, universities, law school.
   What is he hiding? 
   What is there about him that he does not want people to know? 
   What is behind the mask of this man we see every day?
   Who is he?
   Where is he from?
   How did he get to where he is so quickly?
   He came from out of nowhere. 
   There is no leadership experience on his resume, nor in his family history. 
   There is less known of him than is known, yet, when he speaks, people are moved to cheers and even to tears.
   Where is he going and what is his future?
   But wait!
   How would you characterize your husband?  Your wife?  A brother-in-law, sister-in-law, an uncle or aunt?
   How would you characterize your boss, someone you work with, or someone on your social circuit?
   Secondly, how do others characterize you?  What would people write about you in a personality profile?  And how would even strangers characterize you?
   To some degree, do not all of us live behind a mask at least some of the time?  Are there facts in our lives that we do not want others to know?  Do we have behaviours that we do not want revealed?  Do we really want others to know our fears and weaknesses? 
   To live where we live, not many people know us or know much about us.  We can live virtually unknown and the world will never know us in our lifetimes.  But if we should suddenly be plunged in the spotlight of national and international attention, all things change:  and our lives will be examined under microscopes. 
   It is easy to point fingers at people in public arenas; but when the fingers point at us, it's a whole new ball game, isn't it?
   When Jesus hung on a cross in Jerusalem, He was completely exposed.  The Romans stripped victims of their clothes as a way to humilate them in front of family, friends, foes, and even strangers.
   How would you characterize Jesus, the man without a mask?
   He had no private life.  Everything He did and said was public information.  The only time that He was ever alone was when He slipped away from people to pray to His Father.  And even with a never-ending assault against Him, they found no fault with Him.  He had no secrets, no hidden agenda.  He broke no laws of religion or laws of man.  Yet He was killed for telling the truth.
   If you take off your mask today and speak the truth, you will not be popular.  You will be hated and disliked, just as they hated and disliked the Lord.  You will be marked as a radical, an extremist, or a non-conformist in a world that is conforming to evil. 
   And this choice is up to you.  You can exercise your right to speak, or you can invoke your privilege to remain silent.