The briefest glance through my television listings magazine reveals 15 different detective programmes shown just this week – clearly, the concept of the fight for justice, detecting wrong and catching the perpetrators is a popular one.

The range of people and settings is broad - we might be in a teeming city or rural wilds and our hero may be a woman of a certain age or a priest or a police officer and we will surely catch a glimpse of their fallen humanity.

Perhaps she is lonely or he has a temper, maybe they have unhappy relationships and resort to alcohol more often than they should but there is no doubt of our hero's dedication to righting wrongs.

There will be assistance, of course, a wing man or perhaps a team who are steadfastly loyal and give their leader opportunities for cheeky rejoinders and wise observations.

The story often begins in an everyday situation - the sort of place we can easily imagine ourselves - but there is suddenly murder and mayhem, despair and fear, running, shots and screaming and the detectives must be called and the search begins.

Our minds are quick to embrace stereotype and they are sometimes led to a suspicious character on whom guilt is poured, despite their protestations, but then another murder is discovered which means that they couldn't possibly have done it and it's back to the office to tussle with the clues.

Then, a moment of realisation! Our hero puts two and two together and a tense chase ensues; sometimes her bravery and willingness to risk everything puts her into mortal danger, music mounts and the panic rises but, of course, with a clever move the criminal is caught and peace restored.

We seem to need these stories, and so many more like them, to remind ourselves again of the triumph of good over evil and surely, they are shadows of the greatest story of all; the reality of God's love for us and the promise I hold onto that, though we will be beset by human frailty and doubt, in the end, God's justice and mercy will prevail and we will not be overcome.