A while back I presented a lesson on Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” as it related to the theme of Biblical redemption. Being inspired by the Halloween season this time around, I thought I would turn to another classic work of literature, one a bit more dark and foreboding…
Written by Robert Louis Stevenson, the novella “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” was first published in 1886. Possibly one of the first psychological thrillers, the story examines the duality of man’s nature, the struggle between good and evil, and the hypocrisy of social culture in the Victorian era.
So popular is this classic story that the phrase “Jekyll and Hyde” is recognized as referring to one whose moral character varies from one moment to the next… Even by those who have never read the novella!
Perhaps you’ve read the story in school or recall seeing a film version of the tale. Whatever the case, most of us are familiar with the story... Or at least the basic summarization: Mild-mannered Dr. Henry Jekyll concocts a formula in an experiment that goes horribly wrong, transforming him into the monstrous Mr. Hyde! Thus, Jekyll is often remembered as being a sort of tragic figure plagued by his wicked persona, Hyde.
“All human beings, as we meet them, are commingled out of good and evil: and Edward Hyde, alone, in the ranks of mankind, was pure evil.”
― Robert Louis Stevenson, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
But a careful re-read of this classic reveals something truly frightening… Mr. Hyde would not exist at all if he did not first exist inside of Dr. Jekyll!
“I learned to recognise the thorough and primitive duality of man; I saw that, of the two natures that contended in the field of my consciousness, even if I could rightly be said to be either, it was only because I was radically both.”
The novella details that Jekyll has spent much of his life trying to suppress “uncouth” urges not fitting for a man of his status and reputation. Thus, his intention in creating his potion was to separate parts of his psyche in hopes of masking the evil hidden within himself. But the serum also transforms him into the manifestation of all his repressed wickedness: Mr. Hyde.
As Edward Hyde the man is haughty and self-indulgent, cruel and remorseless. Hyde freely engages in depravities that Henry Jekyll would never (publically) be involved in.
At first, it is suggested that Jekyll uses the serum in an intentional manner as a means to indulge in his vices without being discovered and subsequently shamed. As Hyde, he has a disguise that allows him indulge himself as pleased. But as time goes on, Jekyll finds himself changing against his will. He finds himself transforming without the serum while awake, and then, disturbingly, changing to Hyde in his sleep! Eventually, he has to actually take the potion in order to revert back to being Jekyll!
Dr. Jekyll ultimately realizes that he has become a slave to Mr. Hyde and the wickedness within his own heart.
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After all, we all have a wicked, lawless side that resides within us…
The Struggle Within
Just as there is struggle within Dr. Henry Jekyll between two parts of his psyche, all of mankind struggles with our sinful nature. From the moment we first learn of the difference between right and wrong and willfully choose the latter, we are caught up in the snares of sin.
Romans 3:23 …For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…
We who seek to please God find ourselves confronting the wickedness of sin. We realize that sin is damaging to our spiritual well-being and displeasing to God. Thus, we are at a constant conflict within ourselves. The better part of our nature, seeking to do good is at odds with our worldly, self-seeking desires.
Romans 7:21-24 I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
Inward Corruption
I want to emphasize once again that the scariest part of the story of Jekyll and Hyde isn’t that that Hyde is a monster, but rather the idea that Hyde owes his existence to the evil that already resided in the heart of Jekyll. Likewise, we know that sin develops within before it manifests itself outwardly.
Jesus warned that we are corrupted from within.
Mark 7:20-23 And He said, “What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man.”
Elsewhere (Matthew 5) Jesus pointed out that murder, adultery; all sins begin in the heart. A hateful heart is what precedes any act of murder. Lustful thoughts, if not reigned in, inevitably lead to adultery.
The person we truly are inside has a way of manifesting itself in our words and deeds.
Luke 6:43-45 For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Sinful actions don’t just happen spontaneously; the “seed” of sin must take root in the heart before it develops into word or deed. Sin grows within our hearts, sprouting from temptation. Of course, we know what the final outcome is.
James 1:15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.
Our sin separates us from God (Isaiah 59:1-2), ultimately leading to our spiritual death. But God promises us a means of avoiding this sad fate.
1 Corinthians 10:12-14 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
In submitting our will to God and cultivating a righteous heart, God will lead us away from temptation. If we allow Him to God will help us to dodge the entrapment of sin by aiding us in cutting it off at the root.
Hiding Iniquity
Aside from the psychological horror described in Robert Lois Stevenson’s story, one of the major themes explored in the novella is the hypocrisy of Victorian era social and moral culture. During the Victorian era great efforts were made to separate public from private. Victorian etiquette dictated “gentlemanly” or “lady-like” behavior in public, but ignored “uncivilized” behavior if done in private. The story of Jekyll and Hyde unflinchingly condemns the “inward lust” of “outward respectability”.
We know that our sin is wrong… otherwise we wouldn’t try to hide it! Like Jekyll we might seek to hide our sins from others, attempting to hide our ugly side to appear upright to those around us. But acting righteous is just that: Acting. Jesus criticized this type of behavior in the scribes and Pharisees.
Matthew 23:27 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
Knowing this, we might still try to accomplish appearing righteous before others. The ploy might even work; we may even fool friends and family, members of the church.
However, no matter how good our disguise, God knows who we really are; we cannot hide our true nature from Him!
Hebrews 4:13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
Ecclesiastes 12:14 For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil.
James 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
We might fear the judgement of others in sharing our failings. We might feel like we’re letting our church down in revealing that sin is still something we struggle with as mature Christians. However, I would argue that confessing our weaknesses and faults is actually helpful to all. Younger Christians benefit in the knowledge that the battle against sin is a lifelong endeavor. Mature Christians can continue to develop spiritually through humbling themselves. Obviously all Christians would benefit from the healing prayers of others.
I’m not going to pretend that this is something easily done. Even the most mature Christian may struggle in confessing their sins to their brothers and sisters in Christ. However, this is extremely important! If we are not confessing our sins to each other, we are doing ourselves and our church a great disservice.
Victory in the Struggle Within
While Jekyll is just a fictional character, the lessons we can learn from his horrifying story are all too real. The duality of Jekyll and Hyde forces us to confront the potential for evil that lurks deep within all of us. Jekyll’s experiment gone horribly wrong brings into focus the hypocrisy and folly of seeking to hide our sinful nature. But perhaps most importantly “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” reminds us of the struggle between good and evil that rages within each of us and the need for resolution.
While Jekyll’s internal struggle results in destruction and death, we still have a hope at overcoming our darker side and the sin it births.
Let us revisit a passage from earlier in the lesson...
Romans 7:21-24 I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
At the end of this Paul rhetorically asked, “Who will deliver me?”
Of course, it is Christ who redeems us! Through His sacrifice we have the opportunity to escape the corruption of our sins. We can be forgiven of the wrongs we have committed and draw strength from Him in times of weakness.
Romans 7:25 I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.
The path to salvation begins with our recognizing the ugliness of sin and in seeking to develop a heart that yearns to serve God. In this way the mind is able to overcome the flesh, attaining ultimate victory through submission to Christ!
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References:
http://www.noelgreen.com/2014/06/jekyll-and-hyde/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strange_Case_of_Dr_Jekyll_and_Mr_Hyde
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