Is Your Shadow Dangerous?
Shadow—reflection of an object that is visibly seen due to an array of light.
"Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by evil spirits, and all of them were healed (Acts 5:14-16 NIV)."
Imagine a shadow of an individual being used as an evangelistic tract on the streets of our nation today. Is it possible? YES! It is possible, and I believe it to be more and more likely in the days ahead.Years ago, I was sitting in my office with another brother in the Lord, and we were working on a series of evangelistic tracts to be used for a particular outreach. After hours of prayer and discussion, I jokingly said, “There is nothing wrong with printed tracts, but why don’t we pray and ask the Father to use our shadows.” At that moment, something was released into the atmosphere. We sat and envisioned Acts 5 coming alive. If Peter’s shadow was used as an imprint for the Kingdom of God, then why can’t God do the same today?
Radiating Glory
Everyone knows that there are people whose very presence can change the atmosphere around them. I know Christians who carry such a countenance of joy and praise, that wherever they go they are leaking joy into the atmosphere. Some exude love, others charge the atmosphere with faith. There are also people who enter a room and the joy and peace leaves. I have been in places where people walk with such a countenance of darkness, that when they enter the room evil invades the air. Russian dictator Joseph Stalin was said to have had a presence about him that would affect the atmosphere anytime he walked into a room. Those who saw him personally said he carried such a commanding presence that whenever he entered a room, a cold chill settled over the atmosphere and people stood up instantly in fear and terror. Many people have said this to be true.If a man who was as demonically possessed as Joseph Stalin could have an affect on the atmosphere, how much more could God’s children have in changing the atmosphere with the radiating glory of Jesus Christ?
The glory that saturated Peter’s shadow was nothing new. In fact, Jesus walked in the manifested glory everywhere He went. Even though the natural eye sometimes couldn’t see it, it was with Him all the time. How do I know? The sick were healed, the dead were raised, and demons were cast out. The Pharisees said it was by the power of the devil, but we know that it was the works of the Father being manifested in Jesus. It was the outflow of divine life; the power of the Holy Spirit.When Jesus came on the scene, the whole atmosphere was changed. When the Son of God passed by, joy replaced grief, pain fled, death retreated, and devils screamed in terror and frustration.
"But even if our Gospel (the glad tidings) also be hidden (obscured and covered up with a veil that hinders the knowledge of God), it is hidden [only] to those who are perishing and obscured [only] to those who are spiritually dying and veiled [only] to those who are lost. For the god of this world has blinded the unbelievers’ minds [that they should not discern the truth], preventing them from seeing the illuminating light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ (the Messiah), Who is the Image and Likeness of God. For what we preach is not ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves [merely] as your servants (slaves) for Jesus’ sake (2 Corinthians 4:3-5)."
Paul makes a profound statement here in this passage when he says to the Corinthians that the preaching of the Gospel is not the preaching of ourselves. Paul says not to humanize the Gospel, because when we do we remove the power of God from the equation.Never in the history of the church were we ever commissioned to go out and evangelize the world without His power. After all, isn’t that why the power of the Holy Spirit was given to the Church to begin with? There is a price to pay for the power of God, yes; but there is an even higher price to pay if we shun or neglect the power of the Gospel.
I read a fantastic book entitled Dark Sun by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author Richard Rhodes. The book is about the development of the atomic bomb. Rhodes states that when the United States dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, scientists discovered that as the bombs detonated, the initial flash burn created a photo-like image of various objects such as: trucks, signs, and even people. The illuminating flash burned silhouette-type impressions onto concrete walls.The fire of the Holy Ghost manifests in a similar way. This is why Peter’s shadow was able to heal the sick. The anointing that was on Peter’s life acted as heavenly detonation of God’s glory that left a photographic impression of the Kingdom of God. “Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by evil spirits, and all of them were healed” (Acts 5:16 NIV). What a glorious expression of His nature portrayed in this Scripture passage! Think of the joy and the praise that filled the streets that day as the glory of God passed by. Peter must have been possessed with the joy of the Lord as he stepped out of the house and walked down the stone steps. His countenance had been consumed by the Shekinah Glory.
I often wonder if it was visibly seen by the people. Was there a glow that encompassed him, or was it rather sensed by the spirit? There must have been a radiating presence that emanated from Peter that touched and electrified the people. God was unveiling His tangible glory to the world, giving us a demonstration of what can happen when we carry the ark of His presence.
The Early Apostles Walked as Kingdom Citizens
I was born and raised in this country. I am an American citizen. However, I am not American just because I have a birth certificate to prove it, I am American because I have experienced living in America. My demeanor and personality reflect to the world that I am indeed American. It is the same way with the Kingdom of God. When we experience the Kingdom, we begin walking and acting like a Kingdom citizen.Kingdom citizenship is a glorious citizenship because it allows us to walk in dominion authority. Do you realize that as Kingdom citizens, we have been given power to change the atmosphere? No matter how dark or depressing the atmosphere may be, we can radiate with His power and glory like a blazing light where darkness covers the earth and gross darkness the people.
Peter’s shadow was ultimately a shadow of God’s love, and as we approach the Lord’s return, we must not only have the understanding of His love and of His love toward His Bride, we must also understand that God’s love for the lost will deepen. The church must embrace the revelation of this love like never before. Out of that love, the Bride will be compelled to help the poor, blind, crippled, lame, hurting, and desperate.It is my firm conviction, and prayerfully I hope it is yours as well, that like the shadow of Peter, the church will strive to once again shine and illuminate the darkness with the glory of the Lord. Though Peter’s shadow was merely a reflection impregnated with God’s glory, likewise, the Church, the beautiful Bride of Christ, is coming into a time when her body will reflect the same glorious nature. The holy radiation of His presence will drive out all kinds of illnesses in these last days. God will do things never before witnessed. The Lord’s mighty army will go into every place on the face of the earth, sharing His glorious Gospel.