The Day the Masks Come Off

“For when I kept silent my bones wasted away

Through my groaning all day long.

For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;

My strength was dried up as in the heat of summer.

I acknowledged my sin to you,

And I did not cover up my iniquity;

I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD

And You forgave the iniquity of my sin.’”

Psalm 32:3-5

On Monday, as I rode the U-Bahn, there were a lot of people on that train dressed “oddly.’  One person wore a bunny costume.  Another had her face painted a kitty.  A third was dressed like a clown.   All these people were on their way to work or school.   I wondered, “What is going on?  It’s not Halloween.”  Then it hit me – Its Carnival or Mardi Gras.  In Germany they call it “fasching.”    They have parades and parties.  People wear costumes.  I understand that the City of Mainz really celebrate big.    “Fasching” is the last big party before Lent, before Ash Wednesday. 

Ash Wednesday is the day when all the masks come off.    What a great spiritual lesson there is for us in this.  After all, we all wear masks.  We all hide things about ourselves.  We try to control what others think of us.  We especially seek to cover up or hide the bad things.  King David comes to mind.  In an attempt to cover up his sin, David wore some pretty grotesque masks.    To cover up adultery he first put on a mask of deception.  Next he chose an even more grotesque mask - murder.    After that he used something good… He used marriage as a mask to hide the truth about Bathsheba’s pregnancy. 

The problem with our masks is that we can fool others. We may even be able to deceive ourselves.  But we can’t fool God.   God saw right through David’s masks.  Listen to David describe what it was like trying to hide from the LORD. “When I kept silent my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.  For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My strength was dried up as in the heat of summer.”  (Psalm 32:3-4)  God had a better answer.     He sent the prophet Nathan to bring David’s guilt out into the light.  To us God sends days like Ash Wednesday.  He invites us to take off our masks.  He invites us to confess our sin.  Then He marks us with Ashes to remind us of what sin does to us.  “Dust you are,” He says, “and to dust you shall return.”  The words we speak at the grave side come to life, “Dust to dust and Ashes to ashes.”   

Why can’t He leave our masks alone?    God knows that masking our guilt doesn't make it go away.  He loves us too much to let us go on hiding behind our masks.  After all, He is a God who does not desire the death of a sinner but that he turn from his ways and live.    He is a God who desires to forgive us our sin.  He desires this so much that He gave His one and only Son Jesus.   Jesus gave His life to pay for our sin.  He rose again that we might never have to wear masks again.    What happened to David?  “I acknowledged my sin to you, And I did not cover up my iniquity; I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD and You forgave the iniquity of my sin.’”  So today is the day to take off the masks… to be marked with ashes…to acknowledge the truth about our sins… to celebrate the even greater truth of God’s love in Jesus Christ – that he forgives all Your sins… and He forgives all my sins!