Jeremiah 16:17

“For my eyes are upon all their ways; they are not hid from me, nor is their iniquity concealed from my eyes.”

Would you consider committing your grievous and horrible sins in front of your family?  If you knew that everything which you commit unto iniquity would be found out and thereby known by everyone with whom you come in contact, would you remain in that consideration?  Suppose there is a corporate client whom you are wishing to secure for such and such manner of business: would you have him know the manner in which you commit your iniquity?  Suppose there is a girl whom you are attempting to date, or perhaps marry, would you have her know all the evil and wickedly immoral things you commit in your secrecy?  Man is known to hide all these wretched things from the sight of their compatriots in order to withstand the flood of demeaning and wicked talk about such actions, however, we make no attempt whatsoever to disguise these from the Lord God Almighty.  I just ran through a strict line of questioning, but allow me to continue once again.

Which of these above mentioned humans do you prefer over the Lord of Hosts?  Be honest in your consideration herein, for it may simply be easy to state to yourself that your preference lies with the King of kings, that you love God more than any man.  O hypocrite, how can you claim to love the Lord above your fellow man when you would rather He discover and find out your iniquity rather than they?  Why do you hide your sins from the eyes of men whilst committing these very things against the Father?  Indeed, the consideration of your reputation lies before your love for the Lord, as displaying a public image of righteousness and purity whilst being rendered full of rottenness and dead men’s bones should surely hand you over to the executioner for destruction.  What will the verdict be when you are placed before the Lord of Hosts at the final judgment?  Your friends and compatriots might look upon you in that situation and consider that you will most assuredly be passed into the blessedness of life everlasting, but you look into the eyes of the Judge and bear witness to your own iniquity.

Why do you remain pure before the sons of men whilst forsaking this pursuit at the very moment that you are left to yourself?  Why do you love the outward appearance, you wicked Pharisee, whilst seeking out the things that bring momentary happiness and a pleasurable thrill?  Why do you preach purity and holiness when you remain in darkness and wicked actions?  How can one man state to another that he should work upon the mortification of his sins while remaining in the very things commanded to destroy?  You suppose that your outward righteousness will give you safe harbor in the final day of judgment: what foolishness and self-centeredness!  For there is no more good in you than in the devil himself, at least he is outward and honest about his iniquity; you would much prefer to hide it and squirrel it away in some dark hiding place than own up to the fact that your love and devotion lies with the working of iniquity.  You would prefer for the men of this world to declare you worthy and righteous herein than have the Most High pronounce the perfection of your redemption in glory forevermore.

Again, returning to the verse written above, why do you hide away your sins?  Why do you not bring them into the light of holiness and work unto their destruction?  Not because of the pleasure herein found do you engage in the wretched act of secrecy, but rather that you might retain your perception of righteousness whilst continuing in your sins.  Christian, I declare unto you that those who murdered and harmed others will receive a lighter sentence in hell than you.  I declare that there is nothing more absolutely detestable and abhorrent to God Most High than the working of a hypocrite: for he claims to serve the Lord, but the pursuit of his own ends leads him to the forsaking thereof and the pursuit of pleasure.  Would you have your minister know about your iniquity?  Would you be comfortable or willing to discuss with everyone around you the very depths of your depravity?  If the answer herein be found to be no, then why do you love man more than God?  Why do you seek the approval thereof, through the hiding of your iniquity, rather than giving yourself over to complete submission unto the Lord?

For every time you conceal a sin, this does nothing to affect the outcome of the condemnation of your soul; for the eyes of man are easy to fool, simply pull the wool over their vision and they will be none the wiser.  However, the Lord beholds everything, He witnesses every act of wretchedness and adds it unto the list for your condemnation.  Would you work this iniquity in front of your mother?  Would you engage in these heinous acts if you knew that your earthly father was watching and disapproving?  Most assuredly not!  However, the difference herein lies not within the level to which we respect either of these parties, but rather in the visibility thereof.  When you commit some grievous sin before the sons of men, their physicality and presence will be changed: they will look upon you with disdain and sickness, they will physically avoid you and declare you as an unworthy companion: these are difficult because we witness the strength of their disapproval physically, instantly.  However, when we secretize these iniquitous actions and fool them into thinking that we are perhaps a bit more righteous than we really are, then they will remain as our compatriots and friends, all the while being none the wiser to our sinful actions.  

The Lord of Hosts, on the other hand, remains not as a physical presence (for the moment) that will reject us for the iniquity of our souls, but rather as a spiritual essence whereby we must repent.  Now, this repentance is significantly different from when we need to beg forgiveness from someone that we know; for the forgiveness promoted by the Lord of Hosts is bestowed upon us freely, instantly, without us having to worry about the truth thereof: Christian, the danger oftentimes lies within the ease of asking forgiveness and thereby receiving it.  If we sin against a friend, then there is a process of forgiveness and trust that must herein be rebuilt; however, with the Lord God Almighty, the promises have been made in surety and perfection, they cannot be broken.  Therefore, we oftentimes enter into great pains to conceal our wickedness from the sons of men, for their forgiveness if not so easily won as that from the Lord; however, the danger herein lies that if we never mortify the sin that continually entangle our minds, there will be no forgiveness from the Lord, no second chance, no salvation. 

For after a certain while, once we have faded from life unto death, repentance cannot be made and we have thereby demonstrated through our lives that we would prefer the working of iniquity to the perfection of the Almighty.  Christian, would you be serving the Lord?  Then every semblance of iniquity must be removed from the suggestion of your mind, lest you bear witness against yourself and work unto your own condemnation.  Why do you conceal from the sons of men the things hated by the Lord?  You know that these actions are wrong, you know that every Christian will wholeheartedly declare you as unrighteous and a servant of the devil if you are caught herein, therefore, why do you spit in the face of God and conceal them from the sons of men?  Christian, mortify this lust that continually perverts your mind, utterly despise it and forsake every suggestion thereof, for there is no goodness to be found herein, only complete and utter destruction.  Respect God before man, in all moments, at all times, whether available for public viewing or not are you to keep the commandments thereof unto holiness.  Despise not the Lord through your iniquity, but rather dedicate yourself unto the discovery of mortification and sanctification.