Some people lead secret lives. They have a public life, the life everyone knows about, and they have a private life, a life no one knows about.
Recently, a politician had his private life paraded before the American people. He had appeared to be one thing to his constituents but in reality he was something else. He was a closet homosexual. He was one thing in public but something else in private.
People live secret lives for various reasons. One person told me, “Nobody around here knows it, but I belong to the Democratic Party!” I won’t comment on either his courage or political wisdom, but that man felt it was something to keep secret.
I know of another person who appears normal in every way, except he is a secret chocoholic. He’s addicted to chocolate and occasionally goes on a binge gorging himself on chocolate. He eats nothing but chocolate until he’s sick. It’s his own private vice.
A lot of people live secret lives. They keep things secret from friends and family. Embarrassment, guilt, social pressures and fear keep things private.
CLOSET CHRISTIANS
Some people are secret Christians. They’ve accepted Jesus but they’ve never told anyone. They have never gone public with their faith.
The Bible tells of two men who were secret believers. In their hearts, they believed in Jesus. They knew Jesus was the Son of God and was the one way to heaven, but they kept their faith hidden inside. They were afraid to go public.
Both these men reached the point where they had to make a decision. Would they deny the Lord and close their eyes to what was happening, or, would they go public and stand up and be counted? They both made the right choice. When decision time came, they bravely declared their faith in Jesus. The two men are Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus.
RELIGIOUS POSITION IS NOT ENOUGH
Both men were members of the Sanhedrin, the highest ruling authority of the Jewish people. The Sanhedrin was composed of the top 70 Jewish leaders. They were educated and respected and they exercised power and influence. They were deeply religious and knew the Old Testament Scriptures, but religious position didn’t make them right with God.
Both men had encountered Jesus and had been deeply affected by Jesus. We don’t know when Joseph first met Jesus, simply that he had, and that he believed Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. (John 19:38).
We know more about Nicodemus. Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him. (John 3:1-2).
Some believe he came at night because he didn’t want to be seen going to Jesus during the daytime. That may be true. On the other hand, he may have gone to Jesus at night so he could talk privately without the crowds interfering.
Jesus cut through the polite verbiage, zeroing in on the key issue. Jesus declared, I tell you the truth, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. (John 3:3).
Jesus’ words puzzled Nicodemus, so he asked more questions. Jesus answered all his questions, telling him the only way salvation would come.
Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. (John 3:14-18).
THE DILEMMA
We don’t know if Nicodemus responded that night. There’s no evidence he believed and no indication he chose to be born again. We are left with the impression that Nicodemus walked away without making a decision, wanting to think it over.
Joseph and Nicodemus faced a dilemma. Joseph had believed and Nicodemus knew the truth and had been deeply affected. The Sanhedrin opposed Jesus, were threatened by his teaching and were seeking Jesus’ death.
It must have been hard for these men to sit on the Sanhedrin. They didn’t agree with what their peers were doing. They knew Jesus was right and didn’t deserve to die.
However, to speak out in Jesus’ defense would end their careers. Emotions were running so high that to speak out in favor of Jesus would bring down the wrath of the Sanhedrin. It was tough to speak for Jesus among associates. There was pressure to go along with the crowd.
A couple of times they almost declared their faith. Once, Nicodemus spoke in Jesus’ defense. Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus earlier and who was one of their own number, asked, Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him to find out what he is doing? (John 7:50-51). When Nicodemus said this, the men turned on him, asking, Are you from Galilee too?
It was when the Sanhedrin voted to crucify Jesus, that Joseph first indicated his faith. The vote to crucify Jesus was not unanimous; Joseph didn’t vote for it. Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, who had not consented to their decision and action. (Luke 23:50-51).
These two men were in a difficult situation. Joseph was a believer. Nicodemus wanted to believe. But both were under intense pressure not to say anything about their faith.
GOING PUBLIC
Eventually, Joseph and Nicodemus went public. They couldn’t live with their troubled consciences any longer. They couldn’t live with the guilt of what their associates had done in hanging Jesus. They couldn’t handle the inner tension of trying to straddle the fence. They had to go one way or the other. Perhaps it was the sight of Jesus hanging on the cross. Possibly Nicodemus remembered Jesus saying, Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. (John 3:17).
A little voice inside these men said, “It’s decision time.” Something told them it was time to go public; it was time to come out of the closet.
These men made the biggest decision of their lives, choosing to come out on the side of Jesus. They wanted everyone to know and were prepared to live with the consequences. They were ready for the Sanhedrin’s criticism. Position and power weren’t going to hold them back any longer. They weren’t going to be bound by what others thought; they were going to do what was right and declare their faith.
When the danger was greatest, when emotions were running high in Jerusalem and when the angry mob was controlling the city, these men mustered their courage, asking Pilate for permission to bury Jesus’ body.
The body of Jesus was still on the cross. The Roman custom was to leave the bodies of criminals hanging on the cross for days until they would decay and be eaten by the birds, but Jewish law said the bodies had to be buried the day of death before sundown. Joseph donated his private grave for Jesus’ burial while Nicodemus brought 75 pounds of burial spices in which to wrap the body of Jesus.
SOMETIMES IT’S DIFFICULT TO DECLARE YOUR FAITH IN JESUS
Don’t fear what people might say. Joseph had trouble going public because he feared the Jews. He feared ridicule and was afraid of losing his position. He was controlled by peer pressure.
Many people are like Joseph. They know that God loves them, Jesus died for them, Jesus is the only way to heaven and they need to be born again, but they are afraid to take a stand for Jesus. If you hesitate to make a public commitment, you’re not alone; there are many folk like you.
Don’t doubt Jesus’ teaching. This was Nicodemus’ situation. He had questions. How can a man be born when he is old? Nicodemus asked. Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born! (John 3:4).
Nicodemus had questions that made it difficult for him to believe, and some today are like that. Questions are OK. Investigate the Bible and you’ll discover answers for all your questions.
DECLARE YOUR FAITH
It’s not enough to simply believe in your heart. For a variety of reasons some shy away from making a public confession of their faith. This was Joseph and Nicodemus’ problem. They believed for a long time but they didn’t want to go public and let others know.
We must confess our faith. That if you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. Romans 10:9-10).
Salvation happens when you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth. Jesus said our confession must be public; it’s something we must do before our friends and family. Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven. (Matthew 10:32-33).
It’s quite easy to accept Jesus. Believe in your heart. Faith is a matter of the heart. Confess Jesus as Savior. Ask God to forgive your sins. Confess Jesus and announce your decision to someone else. Tell a friend you believe Jesus. True faith is more than a matter of the heart; it becomes a matter of public confession.
DEMONSTRATE GREAT COURAGE; REAP GREAT REWARDS
Going public takes courage. It may take courage to tell your wife you believe in Jesus or to tell the guys on the job site you’re a believer. It takes courage to lift your hand for prayer or walk to the front of the church in front of hundreds of other people.
It took courage for these men to stand up for Jesus and it takes courage today, but there are great rewards for going public with your faith. There’s a release in your spirit because you know you’ve done the right thing. There’s a new peace that comes from a clean conscience. There’s a new sense of direction in your life because you are following Jesus. There’s forgiveness of sin and cleansing for the heart. You feel clean on the inside; the guilt is gone.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9).
If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. (1 John 4:15).
DON’T DELAY, YOU MAY MISS GOD’S BLESSING
When Joseph and Nicodemus went public with their faith, they experienced forgiveness and salvation. I’m sure we’ll meet both of them in heaven.
The sad thing is that they took so long to do it. They lived with the tension of being secret believers. They had the discomfort of sitting in the Sanhedrin as it planned the death of Jesus. In waiting, they missed much. They missed the thrill of walking and talking with Jesus. They missed the intimate teaching sessions.
Don’t miss God’s blessing.
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