Evil Walking Openly
"Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness." — Isaiah 5:20
What We Refuse to See
Evil is walking openly in our land and around the world to an extent that would astound and horrify the average Christian if they opened their eyes and looked.
That is not an exaggeration written to alarm you. It is an observation about how much we have agreed not to notice.
We are so busy hiding in our comfortable homes, in our comfortable church buildings, and in our multitude of projects that we cannot run fast enough to cover our eyes and ears against what is happening around us.
Through every available channel of communication and through the actions of millions of people, one message is coming through with perfect clarity: serve me, or die.
Why We Look Away
Be fair to yourself about the reason. It is not usually wickedness. It is usually self-protection.
Because seeing obligates us. Once you have genuinely seen a thing, you cannot un-see it, and you become responsible for what you know. Not seeing is cheaper.
Because it frightens us. And fear is unpleasant, and we have arranged our lives to minimize unpleasantness.
Because we are exhausted. Most believers are already carrying more than they can manage, and adding a war to the list feels impossible.
Because our comfort depends on it. A great many arrangements in an ordinary Christian life quietly require us not to look too closely.
These are understandable reasons. None of them is a defense.
The Prophet's Complaint
Scripture has a settled contempt for religious people who will not look.
"Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter." (Isaiah 5:20)
"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge." (Hosea 4:6)
"Watchman, what of the night?" (Isaiah 21:11)
And most pointedly of all, the charge given to Ezekiel: that a watchman who sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet is held accountable for the blood of those who fall (Ezekiel 33:6).
The watchman's sin was not that he attacked anyone. It was that he saw and said nothing.
Seeing Without Despair
There is a wrong way to obey this lesson, and it must be named.
Some believers, once they begin to see, become consumed — reading endlessly about darkness, tracking every conspiracy, frightened of everything, useless to everyone. That is not vigilance. That is a different bondage, and the enemy is entirely content with it.
The purpose of opening your eyes is not to become an expert in the dark. It is to be able to work.
"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." (2 Timothy 1:7)
Look clearly. Then get up and do something.
Point to Ponder
We do not look away because we are wicked. We look away because seeing obligates us.
Verse to Remember
"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." — 2 Timothy 1:7
Today's Practice
Ask God for one thing today, and mean it: "Lord, show me what I have been refusing to see."
Then pay attention for a week. Not to the news — to your own life. Your workplace. Your street. Your extended family. The young people you know. The things you have noticed and quickly explained away.
Write down what you see, plainly and without embroidery.
Then do the second half of the exercise, which is the important one: beside each item write one thing you could actually do. Pray for a specific person by name. Speak to someone. Remove something from your house. Ask a direct question of someone you love.
Seeing without acting is only a heavier form of sleeping.
Question to Consider
What have I noticed and deliberately not thought about?
Prayer
Father, I have kept my eyes closed on purpose and told myself I was keeping the peace.
I have been busy — genuinely busy — and I have used that busyness as a wall. I have seen things in my own family and my own street and turned away because looking would have cost me something.
Open my eyes. Not to terrify me. To make me useful.
And guard me from the opposite error. Do not let me become a person consumed by darkness, frightened of everything, of no earthly use to anyone. Give me power, and love, and a sound mind.
Make me a watchman who sees clearly and blows the trumpet. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The watchman's sin was not that he attacked anyone. It was that he saw, and said nothing.