Secret Believers
Shortly after the resurrection of Lazarus and the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, there were a number of religious leaders that believed in Jesus. It was the height of popularity for Jesus and with the multitudes following Him, anything could happen. Some thought it was the time for the Messiah to free Israel from Roman domination. There was excitement in the air as the people shouted, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel.” (John 12.13) This moment was intoxicating as prophecies were being fulfilled and the hope of the nation was at hand. It was easy to believe.
There was, though, another side to this event; the opposition. The Pharisees were afraid of losing their hold on the people and were planning to kill Jesus as well as Lazarus. Those leaders that believed that Jesus was the Messiah kept it to themselves for fear of being expelled from the synagogues. They tried to be both a believer and an unbeliever for as the Scriptures tell, “they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God,” (John 12.43). They believed, but not enough to take up their cross and follow the Lord. Their belief was a “fair-weather” kind of faith. Just a few days after this exciting praise event, many changed their faith into rage and cried out: “Crucify him, crucify him!” When it is easy to believe, it is also easy to deny what you believe.
Is it possible to be a secret believer? I don’t believe it is. You are or you aren’t. In Proverbs, it states that, “the fear of man lays a snare.” Fear causes you to compromise. Fear places you before temptation. Where there is fear, there is no faith. Fear places one’s eyes on the circumstances and projects negativity into the future. The fearful put their trust in man and not in God, and this brings a curse. For this reason, I don’t believe in secret faith.
As Jesus entered Jerusalem, the Pharisees wanted Him to command the people to be quiet. They were nervous at such exuberance and emotional display in their praise. Maybe if the people would just calm down, they wouldn’t draw the attention of the Roman authorities. Jesus responded by saying that if they didn’t praise Him the rocks would cry out. Jesus knew that what is in our heart will be expressed through our mouth and manifest in our lives. “Let the redeemed of the Lord say so…” (Ps. 107.2) I remember listening to a member of our church share how she had worked side-by-side with a colleague at work for years and only recently found out she was a believer. I wonder, who was the secret believer?
Fear of man must be defeated for your faith to flourish. The summer before Helen and I were married, I worked at a youth camp as a counselor. Each week we would take the teens to the neighboring town to evangelize in the park. I had never done this before, and I was scared to death. I remember sitting and reading my Bible, trying to avoid making any contact, but I was a leader and needed to be an example. The first person I talked to, I’m sure I didn’t make any sense at all, but to my surprise the person was open and wanting to accept Jesus as His Savior. Fear is only strong once, then it is easily overcome; so, come out of the shadows and be bold.
Scriptures to meditate on:
John 12.12-43; Jeremiah 17.5-8; Luke 19.40; Proverbs 29.25. Psalms 107.2