using node_load() to inline content - but PHP is repeated, not evaluated

hi folks,
i wrote a function in my theme to get the body of an arbitrary node so it can be printed out inline - we are abstracting some content "blocks" to other nodes. it works great except for when the node to be incorporated contains PHP. yes, it is set as input format "PHP Code" (format=2). i literally get the <?php and so on delivered to my browser instead of being executed. what do you folks think might be up?

thanks,
aaron.