Recently, I was watching a recorded live stream service, and one of my friends-who I LOVE to listen to- was singing a song during the service. The song she chose was “Hide Me Behind the Cross”. While I was listening to the words, I thought about the game Hide and Seek. When you are the one “hiding,” you did not want to be the first one found. You always try to find the best place to hide so you are not seen.
The chorus to the song she was singing goes like this- "Hide me behind the cross, where my gains become as loss, and only Your glory is in view. Your power will be revealed, the more that I am concealed, hide me behind the cross so the world sees only You".
What such profound statements! When we take Christ and place Him ahead of ourselves and take us out of view, the glory of God shines through. Human nature is for us to be front and center. But as Christians, we are called to stand apart from others.
We know we are called to be salt and light, and we know we are commanded to love one another. But what does that look like? There is a passage in Scripture that tells us how to be Jesus to the world.
Romans 12:9-20 tells us, “Let love be without hypocrisy. Detest evil; cling to what is good. Love one another deeply as brothers and sisters. Take the lead in honoring one another. Do not lack diligence in zeal; be fervent in the Spirit; serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer. Share with the saints in their needs; pursue hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud; instead, associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Give careful thought to do what is honorable in everyone’s eyes. If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for God’s wrath, because it is written, Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord. But if your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink.”
It is easy to let your heart be hardened because of things you experience, but the hard task we face is loving others regardless of how they treat us.
Jesus also said in Matthew 5:14-16, "You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven”.
We are called to be beacons of light that lead others to Jesus and to have our good works bring praise to God.
It is often through serving other people's needs that we find the most effective way to invite others to establish a relationship with Jesus. This is reflected in the words of the song, Who Will Be Jesus? Bruce Carroll wrote: “Wounded people everywhere, and when they look at us, do they see Jesus there? Who will be Jesus to them? Who’ll show the love that restores them again? Oh, they do not need a judge, they need a friend. Who will be Jesus to them?”
So how can the world see Jesus in us? By living and loving just like He did. By putting the things He did and others first and ourselves second. Our human selves should be placed behind Christ so that the world sees only Him in us. Stand apart from the world, let Jesus be revealed in our lives to all those we encounter daily.
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