Will your life endure sunlight?
As I write this, it is an extremely cold and cloudy day with no sunlight. I long for the warm sunlight of an early summer morning as it gently takes away the chill of the night. But sunlight does more than just warm us; it also illuminates and in so doing it exposes everything to scrutiny.
Not everything stand up well to open scrutiny. John’s gospel notes that "everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed" (3:20). What would divine light expose in our lives?
Paul’s prayer for the saints at Philippi was that they would be able to approve (in the sense of "test") the things that are excellent and that they themselves might be sincere and without offense until the day of Christ (1:10). The Greek word translated "sincere" (NKJV) is a compound word whose derivation is uncertain. The constituent parts of the word seem to indicate that it literally means "tested by or in sunlight." The idea is that Christians need to be pure, genuine and unmixed with evil.
The translation "sincere" is especially appropriate since that word means literally "without wax." Albert Barnes suggests that the phrase had reference to honey which was totally pure, i.e., unmixed with wax from the comb (Commentary, 149). It is also possible that the word is derived from ancient commercial practices. Earthen pottery which was improperly fired or dropped could crack. Sometimes such pottery was fixed with wax so that it could be sold. The seller could push warm wax into the crack, smooth the wax so that it was not readily visible in subdued lighting and paint over it. The buyer, however, could hold the earthenware to the heat and light of the sun and see the crack which was otherwise disguised by the wax. The pure ("sincere") pottery was that which could be viewed in the sunlight and yet no such flaws or cracks be revealed.
Like the merchant who covers the flaws in his pottery with wax, we can attempt to hide our flaws from our fellowman. The "insincere" person can sometimes hide for a long time. Use a little wax here, a little there and stay out of the sunlight. Usually, however, others eventually see us for what we really are.
It is easier in the short run to cover the flaw with wax than to work to "fix" it, i.e., improve one’s character or change one’s habits. Those who successfully hide the flaw once are encouraged to take the easy route for the long run. It can be extremely stressful to maintain the hypocrisy, however, over the long run. One always has to be careful of getting in the light!
Ultimately, everyone will be examined by the One to whom all things are naked and open (Hebrews 4:13). The final judgment will shed light on all of us and no amount of wax will conceal our flaws. Will your life endure scrutiny by sunlight?