Last night I watched part of an interesting documentary, "Our Nixon," produced by CNN. I can't attest to the complete accuracy of the film's portrayal of President Nixon and his administration, but no one can deny that Nixon had really bad moments, particularly during the Watergate scandal - times where his language, demeanor, attitude, and actions seemed completely opposite of his public image. Tape recordings of his Oval Office telephone conversations are telling and reveal a man living a double and conflicted life. One of the most striking contrasts to me was his encouragement to top administrators to "keep the faith" while taking God's name in vain in the very next breath. 

This morning I continue my reading in 1 Thessalonians. In chapter 5, Paul contrasts night and day, darkness and light. He writes to believers, "you...are not in darkness....  You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness." 

It is interesting how the Bible contrasts good and light with evil and darkness. Generally speaking, most sins, crimes, and bad things are perpetrated in settings that offer little to no exposure. That's why we have terminology like "under cover of darkness,"  "behind closed doors," and "under the table."

Watching "Our Nixon" makes me ponder dual identities - the idea that we can be two people at once - one in public and another in private. Now I fully understand that, as long as we are in our mortal bodies, we contend with two natures - one fleshly and one spiritual and that the two constantly war against each other, but have you ever known anyone who projected one image to the outside world (maybe in the workplace or in church), but who was vastly different at home or in their innermost circle of family and friends?

Granted, we are all generally most "raw" when among those we are closest to and feel most comfortable with. In those circumstances, we tend to "let our hair down" a bit more and drop any fronts or guards we may have been holding up. But even in those down times, our Christianity should remain intact - the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart should still be acceptable in the sight of The Lord. 

What else does the Bible say about such things?  

Psalm 44:21 and 119:113, Jeremiah 17:10, and 1 Corinthians 4:5 and14:21 tell us that God knows the secrets of the heart, that He hates double-mindedness, that He searches the heart and examines the mind, that He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts, and that the secrets of the heart will be laid bare before Him. This is reiterated in Hebrews 4:13 - "Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account."

Psalm 90:8 says, "You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence."

John 3:19-21states, "Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God." 

2 Corinthians 6:14 asks, "what fellowship can light have with darkness?"

Ephesians 5 tells us, "For you were once in darkness, but now you are light in The Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases The Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is light that makes everything visible.  Be very careful, then, how you live - not as unwise but as wise, making the most if every opportunity, because the days are evil."

James 2:9&10 says, "With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be."

1 Peter 2:9 says, "You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

1 John 1:5-7 says, "God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin."

The bottom line with all these scripture references is that there is a right and a wrong way to live according to the principles given in God's Word, that the life and conduct of a believer ought to be consistent, and that everything done in secret will eventually be revealed. 

That last point ought to be a sobering one and something that keeps us in check. At the time Nixon was tape recording his phone conversations, he likely never considered that they would be used against him or that they would one day be a matter of public record or that they would lead to a historical assessment of his character and legacy. That ought to be a lesson to all of us. Do we have secret sins that we would not like exposed?  If our conversations or e-mails or text messages or the things we watch or take part in were made public, would we be embarrassed and humiliated?  Do we conduct ourselves in a consistent way with all audiences?  Is our language the same at home as it is in church?  Is our Sunday face the same one we wear every other day of the week?

"Father, I sin and fall short of Your glory on a daily basis, but You have give me Your Holy Spirit to help me live in victory. Help me to consistently walk in the light of Jesus. Amen."