“The Shadow,” which originated under the title “Detective Story” was one of the most popular radio shows in history. The show went on the air in 1930 and ran until 1954.
It opened with the line “Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows!“ It immediately captivated listeners. The eerie voice known as The Shadow that uttered those words became so popular to listeners that the narrator became the star of the old-time mystery radio series.
“The Shadow” may think it knows “what evil lurks in the heart of men,” (and that may have scared some people), but the truth is that God alone knows “what evil lurks in the heart of men,” (and that should put “The Fear of the LORD” in all of us!)
Jesus reminded the Pharisees in Luke 16:14-15 that “God knows your hearts.”
“The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and scoffing at Him. And He told them: ‘You are the ones who justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly admired by people is revolting in God’s sight.’”
Jesus had been teaching about the dangers in the love of money through the Parable of the Dishonest Manager (vs 1-13). The Pharisees, the religious leaders of the day were “scoffing at Him.”
The word for “scoffing” is ekmuktérizó and it is a rather disgusting word. It means “to blow the nose,” to sneer, scoff, scornfully reject, like expelling mucus out of the nose. In our vernacular it would be to “blow someone off.”
People read us from the outside. The Pharisees were counting on that. They were reveling in their reputation as strict adherers to the law and men’s rules. They counted on being admired by people.
God, however, reads the inside. It is not about our reputation; it is about the purity of our hearts. And that should keep us striving to please Him!