00:00:00.000 - 00:00:09.980

[Music] ♪ I will serve you ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ I will serve you ♪

00:00:09.980 - 00:00:21.560

♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ I will serve you ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ Lord, I'll serve you ♪

00:00:21.560 - 00:00:35.000

♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ Lord, I'll serve you ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ I will serve Him, hallelujah ♪

00:00:35.000 - 00:00:51.500

♪ I will serve Him, hallelujah ♪ - I will praise Him. ♪ Praise Him, hallelujah ♪ ♪ I will praise Him, hallelujah ♪

00:00:51.500 - 00:01:07.880

♪ I will praise Him, hallelujah ♪ ♪ I will praise Him, hallelujah ♪ - Thank you Jesus. ♪ Hallelujah ♪

00:01:07.880 - 00:01:19.980

- Thank you Jesus. ♪ Thank you Jesus, hallelujah ♪ ♪ Thank you, thank you ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪

00:01:19.980 - 00:01:52.400

♪ Thank you Jesus ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪ During the announcement of our second Shetty and I neglected to announce that sister Desi Washington is in Holy Cross sister Desi Washington in Holy Cross room 304 let's remember her along

00:01:52.400 - 00:02:34.000

with the others. Our scripture lesson is 1 Corinthians 13, 9-13. we know in part and we prophesy in part but when that which is perfect is come then that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child I spake as a

00:02:34.000 - 00:03:30.720

a child. I understood as a child. I thought as a child. But when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass darkly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, But then shall I know, even as also I am known. Now bideth faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

00:03:30.720 - 00:04:28.260

The subject of the message remove the mask remove the mask. Matthew. The seventh chapter. The 15th verse are these words, "Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly they are ravening wolves." John 3 and 2, "Beloved, now are we the children of God, and it doth not yet appear what we

00:04:28.260 - 00:05:11.440

shall be. But we know that when he shall appear, we shall be like him." the mask. Yesterday around the noon hour I was driving down Forest Avenue in Dallas, Texas and there was a parade celebrating some event. I never knew what

00:05:11.440 - 00:05:57.020

the event happened to be. There was a band, there was a drill team, there were several different groups in that parade. Then there was one who was in a mask, a masquerade, dressed as a huge rabbit and while I was parked at the traffic signal waiting for it to change. The parade continued and he came over to my car and

00:05:57.020 - 00:06:40.940

shook hands with me. I suppose it was a he, I really don't know. And I wondered who was underneath that mask, but I could not see. And I wanted so much to say remove the mask. But that's the way it is in wearing a mask. Mask is something we are able to hide behind. The mask is that which enables us to conceal our true

00:06:40.940 - 00:07:23.280

identity. Mass enables us to give others the impression of some of being that which we are not. And this is a time when we ordinarily think about mass. So I have my wife to thank, I ask her to prepare the decorations you see on the piano in keeping with the spirit of this season. Well, there are certain masks that we wear.

00:07:23.280 - 00:07:35.840

We wear a mask many times when we are on TV. We get ourselves

00:07:35.840 - 00:07:50.520

painted up and dressed up in such a way we get what we call made up. So that we can look as good as we can possibly look on the screen.

00:07:50.520 - 00:08:19.080

And this is not only true for TV appearances, but it is true for the dramas in which we may participate. We may play many parts and And we may dress in certain costumes in order to play the role that is set apart for us.

00:08:19.080 - 00:08:51.240

And we must wear a mask in order to do that. A mask you see separates us from ourselves. A mask not only separates us from ourselves, but a mask separates us from one another.

00:08:51.240 - 00:09:27.200

We don't know who we are as far as our communication, one with the other, because in most instances, each one is wearing a mask. The mask not only separates us from ourselves and prevents us from truly knowing ourselves,

00:09:27.200 - 00:10:08.040

and not only does it separate us from each other, but a mask separates us from reality. We don't know life as it really is because we wear a mask. Several years ago, I delivered a message and I use as a subject of that message, false faces.

00:10:09.480 - 00:10:44.460

And as this thought is today under the caption of remove the mask. When you take a look at a mask like this mask here, this mask. It is something that one can hide behind. And you never know what's really behind it when you look at this you see.

00:10:44.460 - 00:11:16.840

And France Phanon has said that in a book entitled black skins and white masks. That what has happened to the black peoples all over this world is that they have black skins,

00:11:16.840 - 00:11:53.480

but they are trying to wear a white mask. In some instances, that is what has happened to our worship services. in some instances. But what Jesus is saying here in this word which is addressed to us all is beware of false prophets. This word has to do with

00:11:53.480 - 00:12:40.500

Being aware of those who wear masks, be aware of it. Beware of those who are just playing a part that they really don't mean. Beware of the mask. There is an article which I read a number of years ago entitled Japanese psychology. It was during the time of war with Japan and the article went on to state that the

00:12:40.500 - 00:13:10.920

Japanese people kept the same kind of face no matter what their intentions were. That they may, the person may be preparing to kill you but he was still looking the same way. And that it was the actions and the appearance were altogether opposite. That you could not tell by the way the person looked what

00:13:10.920 - 00:13:48.080

the person's intentions were, what the person's purposes were. Well when I read that article I said now that's not peculiar to the Japanese that's just the way people are that for the most part many of us wear a mask we are one thing at home and we another at church. We act one way on our jobs another way when we

00:13:48.080 - 00:14:13.920

go out to our social events we put on a different mask and sometimes the the The mask that one wears is just copying somebody else. We were in school, we talked about one being a copycat. One person was just copying off the other's paper.

00:14:13.920 - 00:14:37.000

Whatever that person put down, that's what they would put down. In one case, they even copied the name of the other person. You see a mask fools the public. You can fool some of the people some of the time and you can fool some people all the

00:14:37.000 - 00:15:12.740

time but you can't fool all the people all of the time and we can't fool God any of the time. Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly they are ravening wolves. The mask we wear. Now what Jesus is saying here is something which is familiar to his audience because you see the shepherds

00:15:12.740 - 00:15:51.860

were responsible for keeping watch over their sheep and the shepherd usually wore a coat or cloak that was made of sheepskin and there was fleece that was turned inward and there were many who had on the cloak of a shepherd but were not true shepherds and Jesus says here beware of those who are false prophets

00:15:51.860 - 00:16:29.540

who come to you wearing sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravening wolves beware of wearing masks, those who wear masks. Now Satan always wears a mask. We will be celebrating Halloween and children will go forth wearing their masks, their false faces and we'll go out and knock on doors, ring doorbells, say trick or treat.

00:16:29.540 - 00:17:09.020

And then after that the mask for the most part will be put away. But you know the masks I'm talking about have to do with masks that we are wearing all the of giving the impression of being that which we are not. Satan wears a mask. He masquerades as an angel when in reality he is not an angel of light but he is a demon of darkness. He wears a mask.

00:17:09.020 - 00:17:52.180

So beware of wearing the mask because the mask keeps us from being ourselves. It keeps us from knowing one another as we really are. Beware of wearing the mask. So much so that many times we have developed the attitude of not really being ourselves in church or other places.

00:17:52.180 - 00:18:31.360

I've had people say to me, "You know, Reverend, I wanted to say amen, but I was afraid because I didn't want people to look around at me and so I didn't. But remove the mask and be as you are and God has so arranged it that he wants us to be the person that he has made us to be remove the mask. In the Greek dramas the persons

00:18:31.360 - 00:18:56.780

who were in the drama the persona dramatis were given masks to wear in fact it is said that in the Greek drama that one person might play many parts And so he would only change masks for that part. He would have a mask for this part and a mask for that part,

00:18:56.780 - 00:19:20.280

but it would be the same person wearing the mask. And sometimes the mask is worn so well that we often think that that which is parading underneath a mask, that which is a phony,

00:19:20.280 - 00:19:30.560

and that which is a counterfeit, that we often think that it is the real thing. They act apart so well. Here a few years ago,

00:19:30.560 - 00:19:57.600

we were rehearsing for a documentary, having to do with a certain scene that occurred here at Ebenezer a number of years ago. And some of you may remember that we had John Henry Falk here. And he dramatized the part of a prejudiced, southern, white person so well

00:19:57.600 - 00:20:22.360

that many of us were beginning to get a little angry. And he hastened to say, "Now look, Falk, I don't think like that. I'm just acting that part." And many times we can act so well the part that really is not related to our true nature that we come to believe and others come to believe that we are just like the part that

00:20:22.360 - 00:20:45.120

we are acting. But Jesus is saying here, "Remove the mask. Remove the mask." A little town out from Waco about 50 years ago, the Ku Klux Klan had decided to march,

00:20:45.120 - 00:21:21.120

and they are marching again. People are complaining in Dallas because the Ku Klux Klan had gotten a permit from the city to march, and they are marching in various sections of our country. But as you know, it is the way of the Klan to have on hoods and robes and they hide behind the masks so that those who are not in the Klan will not know who really is hiding behind the mask.

00:21:21.120 - 00:21:49.180

And in this particular little town, the sheriff had said that the Klan would not march behind a mass. That anybody who marched in that town would have to remove the mask. Well, that's the word that has come down to us, to remove the mask. that if we would get in the parade of history, if we would be in the

00:21:49.180 - 00:22:20.180

pilgrimage that Jesus has for those who are his saints, we must remove the mask. We must remove that which is artificial and that which is superficial and we must be genuine, we must be ourselves. We must remove the mask. We can't march in his parade unless we remove the mask. So you see while Satan seeks to parade

00:22:20.180 - 00:22:45.860

under a mask, God wore a mask for a different reason. Because of his holiness, because of the brightness of his holiness, one couldn't stand it. The cloud was around the mount because they were unable to stand God if he revealed his holiness it was too much it's like being a bright a light that's

00:22:45.860 - 00:23:08.760

too bright that shines upon us they first said well we want to we want to stand before God ourselves and we want to see him as he is we don't want to have you Moses as the mediator but when they discovered just just a little other true brightness of God they were glad to have Moses and you see God was wearing a

00:23:08.760 - 00:23:34.620

mask there was a great cloud that that's around the mountain and there's a sort of a cloud that surrounded God all through history but there came a time when God removed the mask God removed the mask and he sent his son Jesus Christ and God somehow unrobed himself and came down here on earth and walked

00:23:34.620 - 00:24:05.100

among us, he removed the mask that we might see him as he really is. To let others know that our God has a human face. To let others know that our God cares and that our God is one who reaches out and touches a leper. God removes the mask that we might see him as he really is. Well somehow we find ourselves wearing masks ever since that time when Adam and Eve were in the

00:24:05.100 - 00:24:22.260

Garden of Eden and when God made them they were naked but they could see each other as they really are. But somehow when they sinned they began to wear a mask. They wanted to have something to cover themselves up. They wanted to have something to hide behind.

00:24:22.260 - 00:24:35.060

And we find ourselves in a world where we're always looking for something to hide behind, something to protect us, something to make us look like that which we really aren't.

00:24:35.060 - 00:24:57.140

But in the end, we are on a journey that is made up of being true, of really being the real person, of being related to God in such a way that only the pure in heart will be able to see Him remove the mask.

00:24:57.140 - 00:25:09.580

Well, you know, it's rather interesting in this life that we play games. We play games. We play games with ourselves. We play games with one another.

00:25:09.580 - 00:25:36.220

Many times we don't say really what we mean, we say what we think the person wants to hear. And we find ourselves seeking the refuge of that mask, but there comes a time when the mask is to be removed, and when we are to be ourselves and be open to God and stand in His presence just as we are.

00:25:36.220 - 00:25:54.700

Remove the mask. Oh, many of us, we sort of love the titles and we talk about the reputation and the other little things that we have, but when those things are removed and we stand as we are before God, we stand based on what we really are.

00:25:54.700 - 00:26:15.340

And I see them as they stand at the judgment. I see them in that great day as they come and they stand there in the day of judgment and Jesus says that there will be the sheep on the right hand and the goats will be on the left and the mask will be removed the mask will be removed and I

00:26:15.340 - 00:26:33.580

hear him as he says to the sheep that come ye blessed of my father and I hear him as he says to the goats depart from me depart from me and I hear them as They said, "Lord, what do you mean? What do you mean?"

00:26:33.580 - 00:26:47.060

Said, "We had a reputation of being do-gooders in the world. We had a reputation. We had our names on the social register. We had our names even on the church road."

00:26:47.060 - 00:26:58.020

He said, "Yes, but the mask is removed. When I was sick, you visited me not. When I was in prison, you weren't there to give me fellowship.

00:26:58.020 - 00:27:11.500

When I was hungry, you did not feed me. But I see the others, they were meek and lowly. The mask is removed now. They were sort of ignored in the world.

00:27:11.500 - 00:27:23.700

But here they are. As he says to them, come ye, blessed of my father. Come and inherit the kingdom that has been prepared for you since the foundation of the world.

00:27:23.700 - 00:27:31.060

Lord, you mean us? Yes. So what did we do? "Well, when I was sick, you just came to see me.

00:27:31.060 - 00:27:43.580

When I was hungry, you fed me. In other words, you just were yourselves, and you removed the mask." God is saying to us today, "Remove the mask,

00:27:43.580 - 00:27:55.780

for there comes a time, there comes a time when we shall all gather." He said, "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be,

00:27:55.780 - 00:28:09.360

But we do know that when he shall appear, that we shall be like him. When all other masks are removed, that somehow we can stand in his presence

00:28:09.360 - 00:28:23.480

and see him face to face. I think that's what every one of us is struggling toward a goal at the end of the way. Just to behold his face.

00:28:23.480 - 00:28:43.840

just to be able to see him, the one who has given himself for us, the one who loved us so, to be able to behold his face. That's the great privilege that he grants to us through his grace. And as we come to this moment now, we ask that you would join in that pilgrimage of

00:28:43.840 - 00:29:13.960

reality, that you would make this your prayer, that you would say to the Lord, "Remove the mask and let me be the person that you made me to be, just that I might have the opportunity to behold your face at the end of the way. We ask you to come now. The doors of the church are open. We ask you to make a decision for Jesus Christ.

00:29:13.960 - 00:29:43.320

Don't worry about what someone else may think or say. Just remove the mask, cast it aside today and say I'm gonna be what you want me to be dear Lord that I might have the privilege of beholding your face. We ask you to come now the doors of the church are open.

00:29:43.320 - 00:30:24.040

(music playing) Not just to kneel with the angels, ♪ Oh, to see loved ones who've gone ♪ ♪ Not just to drink at the fountain ♪

00:30:24.040 - 00:31:14.280

♪ In the under the great white river ♪ Why throne not for the crown that he giveth? That I'm trying to run this race. It will be all I want up in heaven.

00:31:14.280 - 00:31:58.360

♪ And it's just to behold his face ♪ ♪ Just to behold his face ♪ to behold his face. Yes, just to behold his face.

00:32:03.360 - 00:33:02.880

All I will want up in the heaven is just to behold His face. ♪ Yes, I want to see Jesus ♪ ♪ Who bore His cross in my stead ♪ ♪ Who willingly suffered affliction ♪

00:33:02.880 - 00:33:32.020

♪ With a crown of thorns on his head ♪ ♪ Precious fault that was opened on Calvary ♪ ♪ On Calvary ♪ ♪ For me ♪

00:33:32.020 - 00:33:54.440

♪ What amazing grace ♪ What joy, what joy. ♪ Will be mine there forever ♪ ♪ Just ♪

00:33:54.440 - 00:34:26.420

♪ To behold his face ♪ ♪ Just to behold his face ♪ ♪ Yes, just, just to behold his face ♪ ♪ To behold his face ♪

00:34:26.420 - 00:34:53.740

♪ All I will want up in the heaven ♪ ♪ Is just to behold his face ♪ Let's all sing that chorus. [MUSIC - "JUST TO BE HOPED IN THE END"]

00:34:53.740 - 00:35:30.220

(SINGING) Just to be hoped in the end. Just to be hoped in the end. ♪ For all of my love to him ♪ ♪ Is bound to be found ♪

00:35:30.220 - 00:35:58.580

♪ In you ♪ (music) [MUSIC] [BLANK_AUDIO]