by Pastor Bob Lawrenz
To announce that there is sickness, disease, death, and evil in this world would be a moot point. Those things are evident to all, except perhaps the most naïve of individuals.
To proclaim that there are absolute truths in the world would conversely insult the majority of contemporary students and adults who have adopted a post-modernist view of the world that are no absolute truths.
My computer printer might be in agreement with post-modernist thought: it prints in black and white, and in hundreds of shades of gray, not to mention color! The consideration of color or "gray-scale” is a personal preference when printing a page, and that indicates personal choice. In Biblical terms, that exemplifies free-will.
All of this points to the semantics or the Bible. While Psalm 23 speaks of the valley of the shadow of death, Psalm 91 introduces us to the refuge found in the shadow of the Almighty! It is in God’s shadow that we find refuge and safety in a world that brings us fear and shaking in the midst of death and dying.
It is here in Psalm 91 that we are introduced to variations in shadows, and in particular, how the Lord Jesus uses them in our lives. While some are dark and gloomy, others are light and comforting. I recall as a child playing hide’n’seek, that I would look for shadows to hide in, in order to not be found. Now as an adult, I look for shadows to cool off and avoid the heat of the sun.
God’s depiction of shadows in scripture to bring home a point: light dispels darkness. “This then is the message which we have heard of Him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.” (1 John 1:5) Analogous throughout the stories of the Bible is that light represents life and freedom, and darkness represents bondage and sin. And in the physical realm of the Earth, light actually creates shadows. It is a free will choice how we use them. We can look for the darkest corners to hide from the light, or we can experience a shadow’s chill, and seek the warmth of God’s marvelous light.
Hide’n’seek is childhood game best played at dusk. Like Adam and Eve in the Garden, there is nowhere we can hide from the One who brings us life and freedom. In spite of our attempts to avoid exposure, Jesus already knows where we are.
~ Psalm 17:8 ~
“Keep me as the apple of the eye (which requires light to see), hide me under the shadow of thy wings.” (a refuge from evil)
