You may or may not be familiar with the CCM song “Slow Fade” by Casting Crowns, but in case you’re not, the title says it all. Sin is a slow fade. The popular quote: “Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay” is also appropriate here. The picture above is at the end of the slow fade – depicting Caleb Flynn as further down, staying longer, and costing him everything. His physical transformation is the reflection of a spiritual one – or at least a reflection of the loss of the benefits of spirituality. If he is born again, what we are seeing here is the deceitfulness of sin and the effect of guilt and a burdened conscience. If he is not saved, we are seeing the weight of common grace upon his soul. He is thin, emaciated, seemingly no joy, belabored. I truly doubt he is a Christian but have to leave open the possibility. Maybe this is the very thing God will use to make him poor and needy. Maybe this is the undoing of hypocrisy. Maybe we’re finally seeing the true face of Caleb Flynn and this is the result of the mask coming off. He looks sick. Good thing is, that’s exactly who Jesus came to save.