The Evil That Lurks

I had the dubious honor of playing the part of Judas in our church’s 2010 Easter drama. A member of our congregation remarked afterwards, he would hate to meet me in a dark alley. Was I really that evil? My answer: “We are all that evil.” It is the nature with which we are born. The title question once began every broadcast of a popular weekly radio drama. The answer was, “The Shadow knows.” I disagree!

Evil is not known by the shadow. It is shown by the shadow. You see, our shadows are nothing more than the absence of light. The outline of the shadow marks the lack of light which would be present, were it not blocked by our flesh in its path. Jesus Christ claimed to be a living embodiment of Light. He was the Truth present in Creation, made manifest in flesh. When God inhabits our flesh as the Holy Spirit, He desires to shine through us into a dark world. But too often, our sinful nature serves to obscure and block the Light attempting to shine from within. It is when our flesh gets in the way that we, and those around us, realize how much evil still lurks in the hearts of men. Especially those upon whom our shadows fall.