Who Was That Masked Man

From 1949 - 1957 a television series was aired entitled "The Lone Ranger." Although this was an old western TV show, for five decades reruns have appeared off and on since it originally aired. The Lone Ranger worn a mask that covered his eyes and he traveled about with a companion known as Tonto. Together they sought justice for those being oppressed by "the bad guys." The mask that he wore concealed his identity and at the end of ever show someone would always say, "Who was that masked man" and naturally someone would respond, "Why he's the Lone Ranger."

The word mask or masking is defined as "a covering to conceal something from view." This definition in many ways describes Jesus not only to those who saw Him during His ministry as the Son of man on the earth, but unfortunately to many in the church today. According to Matthew, "Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people. Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them. Great multitudes followed Him — from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan." (Matthew 4:23-25)

Although Jesus went about doing these things, Israel, His Covenant people did not recognize Him, yet they claimed to believe the very words that spoke of Him, the Torah, or Law (the Pentateuch), the Nevi'im, or Prophets, and the Ketuvim, or Writings or Hagiographa. In every sense of the word, Jesus was masked to them because they did not recognize Him. The apostle Paul tells us, "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17) Although this may seem very obvious at first glance, it has a far reaching meaning than most believers today truly understand.

This statement is found in a letter that Paul wrote to the believers in Rome contrasting Jew and Gentile in the light of Jesus Christ. (I am not going to do a commentary of the Book of Romans, but only address the issue of Jesus being masked to many in the church today) We need to understand, at the time the letter to the Romans was written, what we call the New Testament had not come together. When Paul says by the Holy Spirit, So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" he is referring to what we call the Old Testament. This is a very important key today for the church. Contained in the Word of God in both the Old Testament and the New Testament is knowledge and truth that builds faith, because both Old and New Testaments are the Word of God.

We must remember, when the church was launched into the world, Christ was preached from the very books that Israel considered most sacred, and yet to them Jesus was masked. Why? They did not see God's Word as being alive but only words written on stone. This caused them to receive God's Word externally where it became nothing more than ordinances and rituals to be worked out in the natural. This does not take away the fact that there was knowledge and truth contained with God's Word. What this does reveal is that knowledge and truth contained within God's Word are a matter of the heart not the flesh.

If we were to review Hebrews chapter 11, we will find that many people under the law of Moses found heart filled faith in the same God that most of Israel never found. The thing that should shake us to the core, is how could these people under the law could exercise faith and do such great exploits when the church is not under law but grace? How is it that the majority of the church today follow Israel's footsteps by living their Christianity externally through ordinances and rituals? The answers are quite simple.

Unfortunately, many church leaders and Bible teachers have masked Jesus to others because they only see God's Word as a book of words in which to do works without faith, rather than a book of life that builds faith to do good works. They have allow various doctrines to persuade them that the wonderful things that God has done in the past are not for today. However, let's look at what the writer of Hebrews tells us, "For indeed the gospel (the Word of God) was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it." (Hebrews 4:2) Here we see the problem as to why Jesus is concealed from most Christians. God's Word must be mixed with faith. In other word, as Abraham did (who by the way did not have God's Word written in a book that he had at his disposal) Christians must do also, "And not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform." (Romans 4:20-21)

Although mixing God's Word with faith is how Jesus is unmasked, this is not as easy as it sounds. Many Christians today who truly love the LORD just do not know where to begin. They have been trained most of their lives to doubt God's Word through a barrage of smoke and mirrors that sounds theological correct. Why would they do this? They have accepted these things from church leaders and Bible teachers whom they trust and respect. It is difficult for most people to change their belief system when they have repeatedly been  trained to think and believe in the opposite direction. However, like everything else pertaining to God, especially His Word, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened." (Matthew 7:7-8) So let's start by preparing our hearts (soil) to receive God's Word (seed) on good ground. (See Mark 4:1-20)