The Lie in the Shadows

There is a famous allegory from the great philosopher Plato called “The Allegory of the Cave.” Imagine a beautiful meadow, filled with brilliant sunlight and flowers. At one end of this meadow is a cave. Inside the cave is a fire, and beyond the fire is a bench where people are chained facing the far wall of the cave. Their vision is limited to the shadows dancing on the wall in front of them. This is all they have ever known, and, for all intents and purposes, their entire world. Now imagine that one of the people chained to the bench is able to escape his or her bonds. This person gets up, turns around, and seeing the entrance to the cave beyond the firelight, bursts out into the blinding light of the meadow, where he or she is overwhelmed by the sights, sounds, and smells of the outside world. When this person had spent some time out in the meadow, drinking it in, he or she decides to go back into the cave and help the others escape. But to this person’s dismay, no one believes him or her. They think this person is insane to be describing such a place as the meadow, and because they cannot conceive of anything except what is right before their eyes, they refuse to leave and remain chained to the bench for the rest of their lives.

Mark 13
“As he was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, "Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!" 2 "Do you see all these great buildings?" replied Jesus. "Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down."  3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John and Andrew asked him privately, 4 "Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are all about to be fulfilled?" 5 Jesus said to them: "Watch out that no one deceives you. 6 Many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am he,' and will deceive many. 7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 8 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains. 9 "You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. 10 And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. 11 Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit. 12 "Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. 13 All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 "When you see 'the abomination that causes desolation' standing where it does not belong-let the reader understand-then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 15 Let no one on the roof of his house go down or enter the house to take anything out. 16 Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. 17 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! 18 Pray that this will not take place in winter, 19 because those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now-and never to be equaled again. 20 If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened them. 21 At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'Look, there he is!' do not believe it. 22 For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and miracles to deceive the elect-if that were possible. 23 So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time. 24 "But in those days, following that distress, "'the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; 25 the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.'   26 "At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens. 28 "Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 29 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it is near, right at the door. 30 I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. 32 "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. 34 It's like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch. 35 "Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back-whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36 If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37 What I say to you, I say to everyone: 'Watch!'" 

As disciples of the Anointed One, we know two worlds: the world before our eyes and the kingdom of God. However, most people around us do not know there are two worlds, and they scoff at the idea that there is more to our existence than this shadowy world of shifting images. We have been sent back from the meadow to those in the cave, to persuade them that there is more out there. What’s more, we also know that this world will not last forever, but at the end of this age, it will be destroyed. The friction between the this world and the kingdom of God will finally erupt into a blast furnace where even the very elements of this world will be burnt away. Only the kingdom of God will be left, and as His ambassadors, we must find ways to communicate the truth of that kingdom in ways that cavedwellers understand.