We continue our series on the New Covenant using the songs from the New Covenant musical as a track to run on. And there will be a link to a YouTube version of the song to listen to at the end of each Catch. Enjoy and learn.

What about the first thing Adam and Eve did when they sinned against God and ate of the forbidden fruit? It says they immediately knew they were naked so they made a covering of fig leaves to cover their suddenly vulnerable parts. So all the time they lived an idyllic life in the garden, they had been naked and innocent. Now suddenly they were ashamed of their nakedness. What changed?

Sin had entered their nature. They were suddenly aware of the evil things they could do against the will of God even if they didn’t do them. They now had a sin nature and a sin nature demands a covering. Now nakedness represented shame and fear.

So you see that for human beings, hiding one’s true self behind something has a long history. The next part of our New Covenant story has to do with this idea of cover-up that seems to be a necessary component of our sin nature. We don’t want anyone to be able to see our “naked” selves — not physically, but emotionally and spiritually. We resist such vulnerability. We are threatened and ashamed, so we hide.

In Moses’ day, that cover-up took the form of a veil that he wore over his face. It was a harmless scheme that I don’t think he planned, but he fell into as he realized what he had. He first put on the veil because his face was so bright after being with God that the people could not look at him. But it only took a few days until he realized that the glory on his face was just an “afterglow” from the presence of God. It didn’t last.

So even though the veil was no longer necessary for its original purpose, he cleverly kept it on, because he realized the people would assume that behind the veil, his face was as bright as it appeared the last time they saw him without a veil. As it turns out, he was not only hiding the weakness of his humanity (the fading glory), he was giving off a false impression of himself (that under the veil, his face was still glorified). Sure enough, the Old Testament makes it clear that this was not just a one time deal, but the way he operated the rest of his life.

Here is his pattern as spelled out in Exodus 34:34-35:

But whenever he [Moses] entered the Lord’s presence to speak with Him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, they saw that his face was radiant. Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the Lord.

“Until he went in to speak with the Lord,” could be months apart. So Moses wore the veil all the time. And the only time the people saw his face was when they still couldn’t see his face (because of its glory). So Moses never had to be vulnerable in front of the people. He never had to show his humanity. He never had to be “naked” before them.

As you think about this, think about how we as Christians do very much the same thing. It’s human, you know. We want to present our best impression of ourselves and our “spirituality to others so we wear “veils” too — “evangelical veils” — that present a false self, and hide the failures, sins and inadequacies we all struggle with. Now you are ready to hear the next song in the New Covenant musical, “Evangelical Veil Productions.” Enjoy… laugh… and maybe even feel the pain.

Evangelical Veil Productions
Words and music by John Fischer

Evangelical Veil productions
Pick one up now at quite a reduction
Got all kinds of shapes and sizes
Introductory bonus prizes
Special quality, one-way see-through
You can see them, but they can’t see you
Never have to show yourself again

Just released a Moses model
Comes with shine in a plastic bottle
Makes you look like you’ve just seen the Lord
Just one daily application
And you’ll fool the congregation
Guaranteed to last a whole week

Now we got a back-from-a-summer-camp veil
With a mountain-top look it’ll never fail
As long as you renew it every year
Plus a special Jesus freak file
Everyone comes with a permanent smile
A one-way button and a sticker for your car

Click here for a YouTube version of “Evangelical Veil Productions”.

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LET’S RALLY AROUND DEBORAH

We want to tell you about someone many of us know, and all of us can learn from.

Deborah is a mom of three young children, all under 14. Her days are full in the way only a mother’s days can be. School schedules. Meals. Appointments. Encouragement. All the small, unseen things that hold a family together.

Her husband is a disabled soldier. That alone brings challenges most families never have to think about. But Deborah carries more than that.

She lives with constant migraines. Frequent kidney stones. Adrenal insufficiency. Some days, just getting out of bed requires grit most of us never have to summon. On a good week, she can manage maybe 10 hours of work from home. On a hard week, even that feels like climbing a mountain.

And yet, she keeps going.

Deborah is not without skill or drive. She’s a highly capable web engineer with strong experience in SEO and helping businesses improve their online visibility. She wants to work. She wants to build steady income for her family. She has the talent to do it.

What she needs right now are a few practical pieces to make that possible:

First, a working Mac computer. It’s the primary tool for the kind of web and SEO work she does. Without reliable equipment, it’s difficult to take on consistent projects.

Second, help getting their vehicle back into working condition. Reliable transportation affects everything. Medical appointments. Family needs. Basic stability.

These aren’t luxury requests. They’re the kind of immediate, practical needs that can shift a family from constant strain to steady footing.

As many of you know, Catch Ministry maintains a small emergency fund. It’s overseen by a volunteer board and reserved for urgent, short-term needs affecting Catch citizens. The fund is limited, but it exists for moments like this. For sisters like Deborah.

If you’re in a position to help, would you consider it?

Maybe you have a working Mac you’re not using.

Maybe you can give financially toward vehicle repairs.

Maybe you can contribute to the emergency fund so it’s there for Deborah and others who may need it next.

When one part of the body struggles, we don’t look away. We lean in.

Let’s lean in for Deborah by writing Marti at [email protected] to contribute specifically for Deborah.