In July, 1942, a 13-year-old Jewish girl named Anne Frank and her family fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding in an old office building. The building contained an annex unknown to the outside world and was accessible only through a revolving bookcase. She and her family and an acquaintance faced hunger, boredom, and constant cruelties from living in a confined space, along with the ever-present threat of being discovered by the German Gestapo. Anne kept a diary of the experience, and it was discovered in the attic where she spent the last years of her life.
“Words from Above” in the Bible” tell us that the very first man and woman who ever lived on the earth tried to hide themselves from the Lord, but definitely without success. God had given them only one single rule to obey, but they were deceived by the devil into breaking that commandment. It was then that they tried to hide themselves from God when He came for His daily visit with them in the Garden of Eden, where he had placed them after creating them. Years later the prophet Moses told the tribes of Israel who wanted to settle across the river from the Promised Land that they could do so if they helped the other tribes drive out the former inhabitants. He said that if they failed to do so they would be sinning against the Lord, and then he warned them that they could be sure that their sin would find them out.
Ever since the sin of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, people have been trying to hide their sins from God, and trying to hide from God Himself without success. Jesus very plainly said in Luke 8:17, “Nothing is secret, that shall not be revealed, neither is anything hidden that shall not be made known.” Not only will every act be revealed, but also according to Matthew 12:36, for every idle word that people speak, they shall give an account of it on the day of judgment. Jeremiah 23:24 asks the question, “Can any hide himself in secret places that God shall not see him?”
It’s not possible to hide our sins from God, but the good news is that God can be our hiding place from harm or danger. Psalm 32:7 says that God will preserve us from trouble and shall also surround us with songs of deliverance. Psalm 119:114 tells us that God is our hiding place and our shield of protection, and we can always hope in His Word. So, we cannot ever hide from God, but we can hide ourselves in His everlasting arms.
Larry R. Steffee is pastor of the Center Hill Brethren In Christ Church on Miller Road in Smithville. Everyone is welcome to attend. For informa-tion, you may email lrsteffeetn@yahoo.com.
