Reasonable Evil

A couple of old-time Baptist deacons approached me after seeing a performance of an Easter drama that I had written about Judas Iscariot. I expected complaints. The focus was on what might have caused the disciple to turn against Jesus. One of them said, "What Judas did really made sense. It was the reasonable thing to do."

They got it. The bad guy doesn't always wear a black hat, yell at old ladies, or steal treats from little children. Judas might have done what seemed reasonable to him. Perhaps he thought giving Jesus a little shove would force the reluctant king into taking his rightful place. What seemed like the right thing to do could have been completely wrong.

Evil doesn’t always show up in outrageous clothing. An obvious temptation is not nearly as difficult to brush aside as an evil that approaches us clothed in common sense.

Stephen Goforth