The following is a Bible study on Walking in the Light by Bob Deffinbaugh. This is a lengthy read, but worth every minute...
Walking in the Light (Ephesians 5:7-14) Study By:
From the Series: Ephesians: The Glory of God in
the Church
7 Therefore do not be partakers with them; 8
for you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as
children of light 9 (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness and
righteousness and truth), 10 trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. 11
And do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even
expose them; 12 for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are
done by them in secret. 13 But all things become visible when they are exposed
by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light. 14 For this reason
it says,
“Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And
Christ will shine on you.”
Introduction
Several months ago, our blue Jetta was
involved in an accident, rearranging the front end. I opted to repair the car
myself. I went to a place that sold used Volkswagen parts. There were several
Jettas in this small wrecking yard, with similar body styles. I was looking
each car over to find the body parts which were in the best condition. Among
these Jettas, I was more than delighted to find a blue one. Since its body
parts were in very good condition, I bought them.
As I was completing this repair project, I was
amused, and just a little proud that I had been able to obtain parts which were
the same color. I didn’t even have to repaint the car! It was getting dark as I
finished the car. My daughter, Jenny, and I decided to drive it to the service
station and fill the fuel tank. Under the lights of that service station I
realized something I had not previously known—Volkswagen has more than one dark
blue. The new body parts were not the same color. The colors were similar, but
not identical. In the darkness, the difference was unnoticeable, but in the
light, the discrepancy was obvious.
Light has a way of exposing what darkness
tends to conceal. That is precisely the truth upon which Paul bases his
instruction in https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Ephesians+5%3A7-14Ephesians 5:7-14. In chapters 4-6, Paul
sets down the standards of the conduct which God requires of those who have
come to faith in Jesus Christ. These high standards define the conduct which
the gospel was purposed to produce (see https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Ephesians+2%3A8-10Ephesians 2:8-10), which reflect the
glory of God through the church (1:3-14), and which are pleasing to Him who
saved us by His grace (5:10).
Light and darkness are prominent themes in
Paul’s epistles.97 These symbols are
prominent in the gospels,98 and in the teaching of
our Lord.99 They are employed as well
by Peter100 and John.101 The symbols of light and
darkness are not new in the New Testament; they are themes which are rooted in
the Old Testament, and which are drawn upon and applied in the New. In our
text, Paul likens our former nature and conduct as “darkness,” contrasting our
nature and conduct as Christians by likening it to “light.” Let us listen well,
to grasp what it means to walk no longer as children of darkness, but to live as
children of light.
Paul’s
Argument
Paul’s argument is based upon a fundamental
premise: Christians have undergone a dramatic transformation which is here
described as having been transformed from darkness to light. In the Bible,
salvation is never spoken of as a trivial matter. Those who are saved by faith
in Christ are not merely improved, they are radically transformed. They have
been delivered from death and given eternal life and have been saved from a
life of sin to a new life which is characterized by good works (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Ephesians+2%3A1-10Ephesians 2:1-10). They have been
delivered from slavery to sin and to Satan to become sons of the living God
(see https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/John+1%3A12John
1:12; https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Ephesians+2%3A11-22Ephesians 2:11-22; https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Romans+8%3A1-25Romans
8:1-25). Here, in our text, Paul describes the transformation which the
Christian experiences in terms of the change from darkness to light. His words
in our text are similar to his teaching in the Book of Colossians:
9 For this reason also, since the day we heard
of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled
with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so
that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all
respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of
God; 11 strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the
attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously 12 giving thanks to the
Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in
light. 13 For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us
to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the
forgiveness of sins (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Colossians+1%3A9-14Colossians 1:9-14).
This change in our condition should be
accompanied by a corresponding change in our conduct. At the beginning of
chapter 4, Paul exhorts each believer to walk in a way that is consistent with
his calling as a Christian: “I, Therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, entreat
you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Ephesians+4%3A1Ephesians 4:1).
The Christians “walk” or Christian lifestyle has
been described in several different ways thus far inhttps://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Ephesians+4Ephesians 4 and 5. The Christian is
to walk in unity and in community with his fellow saints (4:1-16).102 The Christian is to walk
in a way that is dramatically different from his walk as an unbeliever
(4:17-32). Christians are further instructed to “walk in love” (5:1-6). And
now, Paul speaks of the Christian’s lifestyle as a “walk as children of light”
(5:7-14). If we are to walk in a manner that is consistent with our calling,
Paul instructs us, we are to live as those who are “children of light.”
It may be well here to pause for a moment, and
to reflect on what Paul is telling us, for Paul’s teaching and the popular
perception of Christianity differ greatly. The gospel is often presented as
though faith in Jesus Christ requires no great change, and that one need but to
“add” Christ to his experience, to “invite Christ into his life,” and then life
will become more pleasant, but at little cost to the Christian. Jesus spoke of
discipleship, and he cautioned those who would too quickly follow Him to “count
the cost” (see https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Luke+9%3A23-24Luke
9:23-24, 57-62; 14:25-25).
Becoming a Christian is not so much a matter
of adding Christ to your life as it is abandoning your life to find true life
in Christ. And when one thus trusts in the person of work of Jesus Christ, the
change is not small. It is a radical transformation. It is a change from death
to life, from darkness to light. Paul’s words indicate that our calling as
Christians should have a radical impact on our conduct. We will never be the
same again. We should never think or act the same. Our thinking and our
behavior after our conversion should compare to our former “walk” as though it
were night and day. Anyone who thinks of salvation differently would seem to do
a disservice to the teaching of our Lord, and of the Old and New Testament
writers.
While Paul has been privileged to reveal
certain truths previously mysterious to the saints (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Ephesians+3%3A1-13Ephesians 3:1-13), his call to conduct
our lives as “children of light” is not new. It is consistent with the teaching
of the Scriptures of both the Old and the New Testaments. And so he calls our
attention to this citation in verse 14: “For this reason it says, “Awake,
sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you.” As it has
often been observed, this citation does not precisely match any Old Testament
text. Some have therefore concluded that this must not be a citation of
Scripture, but rather a reference to an early Christian hymn, or spiritual
teaching known to Paul and the Ephesians. A number of the more recent
commentators understand it in this way.
There are difficulties with this explanation.
Not only do many of the older scholars reject it, but the way in which Paul
introduces it strongly suggests to us that it is a Scriptural quotation. While
several texts in Isaiah are suggested (9:2; 26:19; 52:1), the text which is
most similar is found in https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Isaiah+60%3A1Isaiah
60:1.
Hodge (along with other older commentators
such as Calvin) concludes that this citation in verse 14 is intended by Paul to
be understood as a quotation from the Old Testament. He writes,
“As this formula of quotation is never used in
the New Testament except when citations are made from the Old Testament, it
cannot properly be assumed that the apostle here quotes some Christian hymn,
with which the believers in Ephesus were familiar, or some apocryphal book, or
some inspired book no longer extant. We must understand him either as referring
to many exhortations of the Old Testament Scriptures, the substance of which he
condenses in the few words here used; or as giving the spirit of some one
passage, though not its words. Both these methods of explanation may be
sustained by appeal to similar passages.”103
Hendriksen, in his fine commentary, seems
inclined to agree with Hodge when he writes, “For myself, the more I study https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Isa+60%3A1Isa.
60:1 in the light of its own context the more I begin to see certain
resemblances.”104 Hendriksen goes even
further, however, by proposing a solution to the problem by suggesting that
Paul may have been referring to the Isaiah text(s) and to a hymn at the same time:
It is conceivable that though https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Ephesians+5%3A14Ephesians 5:14 is
in the final analysis rooted in https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Isa+60%3A1Isa.
60:1, the form in which the latter passage is here reproduced by Paul was that
of lines from an early Christian hymn. The hymn, in other words, may have been
based on the Isaiah passage.105
Contemporary Christians often have difficulty
understanding how the writers of the New Testament employ Old Testament texts,
even when it is clear which text is being quoted. The reason is that our
understanding, interpretation, and application of biblical texts is often too
narrow. We expect the connection between the Old Testament text and its use in
the New to be both obvious and direct.
Sometimes there is a direct, obvious
correspondence between the Old Testament text and its appearance in the New.
Such would be the case with some of the commandments (see https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Romans+13%3A8-10Romans 13:8-10). If an Old Testament
prophecy, this may have been evident even before the prophecy was fulfilled
(see https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Matthew+2%3A5-6Matthew
2:5-6). The connection with New Testament events may also not have been
understood beforehand (see https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Matthew+2%3A17-18Matthew 2:17-18). It may come as a complete
surprise:
And he arose and took the Child and His mother
by night, and departed for Egypt; and was there until the death of Herod, that
what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying,
“OUT OF EGYPT DID I CALL MY SON” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Matthew+2%3A14-15Matthew 2:14-15).
There are times when a New Testament writer
may claim Old Testament support for his teaching, but does not actually cite a
biblical text: “Let the women keep silent in the churches; for they are not
permitted to speak, but let them subject themselves, just as the Law also says”
(https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/1+Corinthians+14%3A341 Corinthians 14:34). At other times, a
text is cited, but somewhat loosely, and without a precise reference to its
location:
But one has testified somewhere, saying, “WHAT
IS MAN, THAT THOU REMEMBEREST HIM? OR THE SON OF MAN, THAT THOU ART CONCERNED
ABOUT HIM? (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Hebrews+2%3A6Hebrews
2:6).106
Not infrequently, an Old Testament text is
cited in the New, but in a form that is less precise than the original text.
This is sometimes due to the fact that the quotation is cited from the
Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament, frequently employed by
the New Testament writers), a sometimes rather free paraphrase of the text,
rather than a precise Greek equivalent of the original Hebrew text. At other
times, the quotation by the New Testament author may not precisely follow any
known Old Testament text. It may even be that the New Testament writer
deliberately departed from the Old Testament text, for his own reasons.
Sometimes, a New Testament author may apply an
Old Testament principle in a way that appears to go well beyond its original
instruction. This may be due to the New Testament writer’s greater insight into
the meaning and application of the Scriptures. In seeking to show how the Old
Testament Law supported his teaching that those who minister the gospel should
be financially supported, Paul cites this text which refers to the treatment of
an ox:
I am not speaking these things according to
human judgment, am I? Or does not the Law also say these things? For it is
written in the Law of Moses, “YOU SHALL NOT MUZZLE THE OX WHILE HE IS
THRESHING.” God is not concerned about oxen is, He? Or is He speaking
altogether for our sake? Yes, for our sake it was written, because the plowman
ought to plow in hope, and the thresher to thresh in hope of sharing the crops (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/1+Corinthians+9%3A8-101 Corinthians 9:8-10).
I believe that there is yet another use of the
Old Testament Scriptures, which both the Old and the New Testament authors
often employ, which often goes over our heads, unnoticed. This is the use of
symbolic terminology, which refers to previous events or to prominent biblical
themes, with which the reader is expected to be familiar.
Let me seek to illustrate this from the Old
Testament. The Old Testament prophets frequently referred to events which
happened earlier in Israel’s history, often by the use of terms associated with
those events. In the prophecy of Isaiah, for example, the theme of creation is
often employed. God created the heavens and the earth. He also created the
nation Israel. These events involved great miracles. The God who accomplished
creation is the same God who now promises to do great things for His people.
Reference to God’s previous work as the Creator gives assurance that He is able
to accomplish that which is yet future. The “exodus motif” is yet another
prominent theme to which the prophet Isaiah refers. In Isaiah, both the
creation and the exodus are drawn upon to give the readers courage and
confidence in the words which God is speaking through His prophet, Isaiah:
Do you not know? Hove you not heard? The
Everlasting God, the LORD, the creator of the ends of the earth Does not become
weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Isaiah+40%3A28Isaiah 40:28).
But now, thus says the LORD, your creator, O
Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel, Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I
have called you by name; you are Mine! “When you pass through the waters, I
will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you
walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you.
For I am the LORD you God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I have given
Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in your place (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Isaiah+43%3A1-3Isaiah 43:1-3).
“I am the LORD, your Holy One, The Creator of
Israel, your King.” Thus says the LORD, Who makes a way through the sea And a
path through the mighty waters (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Isaiah+43%3A15-16Isaiah 43:15-16).107
Paul frequently employs the imagery of light
and darkness in his preaching and in his epistles (see https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Acts+13%3A47Acts
13:47; 26:22-23; https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Romans+13%3A11-14Romans 13:11-14; https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/2+Corinthians+4%3A3-62 Corinthians 4:3-6; 6:14-18; 11:13-15; https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Colossians+1%3A9-14Colossians 1:9-14; https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/1+Thessalonians+5%3A1-111 Thessalonians 5:1-11; https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/1+Timothy+6%3A13-161
Timothy 6:13-16). When he does so, I believe that he expects us to understand
his references in the light (no pun intended) of the progressive development of
the light/darkness theme in Scripture. I believe that his citation in verse 14
of Ephesians chapter 5 not only draws upon the “light” imagery of Isaiah, but
also of the rest of the Scriptures. Let us pause to consider the development of
this prominent and powerful image through the Scriptures.
The first creative act of God recorded in
Genesis chapter 1 is the creation of light:
And the earth was formless and void, and
darkness was over the surface of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving
over the surface of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there
was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light
from the darkness (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Genesis+1%3A2-4Genesis
1:2-4).
At the beginning of this creation account, the
earth was dark and in disarray (formless and void). At the end, it has light
and is ordered. The progress is from darkness to light and for disorder to
order. Light was created by God to separate darkness and light. Paul will later
draw on this creation of light and relate it to godly living (see https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/2+Corinthians+4%3A3-62 Corinthians 4:3-6).
In the Psalms, light and darkness are used symbolically.
Light becomes the symbol for salvation (27:1), life (36:9; 49:19; 56:13),
righteousness (37:6), truth (43:3), the Word of God (119:105, 130),108 and God’s splendor and
presence (104:2; 44:3; 89:15; 90:8). Darkness symbolizes ignorance (82:5). Of
particular importance, light is symbolic of the Christ who is yet to come:
The stone which the builders rejected Has
become the chief corner stone. This is the LORD’S doing; It is marvelous in our
eyes. This is the day which the LORD has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in
it. O LORD, do save, we beseech Thee; O LORD, we beseech Thee, do send
prosperity! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the LORD; We have
blessed you from the house of the LORD. The LORD is God, and He has given us
light; Bind the festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar. Thou
art my God, and I give thanks to Thee; Thou art my God, I extol Thee. Give
thanks to the LORD, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Psalm+118%3A22-29Psalm 118:22-29).
Proverbs speaks of the conduct of the godly
using the imagery of light, while using darkness in reference to the wicked:
But the path of the righteous is like the
light of dawn, That shines brighter and brighter until the full day. The way of
the wicked is like darkness; They do not know over what they stumble (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Proverbs+4%3A18-19Proverbs 4:18-19).
It is in Isaiah, however, that the symbolism
of light and darkness becomes most prominent in the Old Testament:
Come, house of Jacob, and let us walk in the
light of the Lord (2:5).
Woe to those who call evil good, and good
evil; Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness (5:20)
To the law and to the testimony! If they do
not speak according to His word, it is because they have no dawn (8:20).
The people who walk in darkness Will see a
great light; Those who live in a dark land, The light will shine on them (9:2;
see https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Matthew+4%3A15-16Matthew
4:15-16).
And the light of Israel will become a fire and
his Holy One a flame, And it will burn and devour his thorns and his briars in
a single day (10:17).
“I am the LORD, I have called you in
righteousness, I will also hold you by the hand and watch over you, And I will
appoint you a covenant to the people, As a light to the nations, To open blind
eyes, To bring out prisoners from the dungeon, And those who dwell in darkness
from the prison” (42:6-7).
“And I will lead the blind by a way they do
not know, In paths they do not know I will guide them. I will make darkness
into light before them And rugged places into plains. These are the things I
will do, And I will not leave them undone” (42:16).
“He says, ‘It is too small and thing that You
should be My Servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the
preserved ones of Israel; I will also make You a light of the nations So that
My salvation may reach to the end of the earth” (49:6).109
“Who is among you that fears the LORD, That
obeys the voice of His servant, That walks in darkness and has no light? Let
him trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God (50:10).
“Pay attention to Me, O My people; And give
ear to Me, O My nation; For a law will go forth from Me, And I will set My
justice for a light of the peoples” (51:4).
“Then your light will break out like the dawn,
And your recovery will speedily spring forth; And your righteousness will go
before you; The glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.” … And if you give
yourself to the hungry, And satisfy the desire of the afflicted, Then your
light will rise in darkness, And your gloom will become like midday” (58:8,
10).
Therefore, justice is far from us, And
righteousness does not overtake us; We hope for light, but behold, darkness;
For brightness, but we walk in gloom (59:9).
“Arise, shine; for your light has come, And
the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. For behold, darkness will cover the
earth, And deep darkness the peoples; But the LORD will rise upon you, And His
glory will appear upon you. And nations will come to your light, And kings to
the brightness of your rising (60:1-3).
“No longer will you have the sun for light by
day, Nor for brightness will the moon give you light; But you will have the
LORD for an everlasting light, And your God for your glory. Your sun will set
no more, Neither will your moon wane; For you will have the LORD for an
everlasting light, And the days of your mourning will be finished” (60:19-20).
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, Because
the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to
bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives, And freedom to
prisoners; to proclaim the favorable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance
of our God; To comfort all who mourn (61:1-2).
Other prophets join with Isaiah in using the
imagery of light and darkness:
It is He who reveals the profound and hidden
things; He knows what is in the darkness, And the light dwells with Him (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Daniel+2%3A22Daniel 2:22).
But as for me, I will watch expectantly for
the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me. Do not
rejoice over me, O my enemy. Though I fall I will rise; Though I dwell in
darkness, the LORD is light for me. I will bear the indignation of the LORD
Because I have sinned against Him, Until He pleads my case and executes justice
for me. He will bring me out to the light, And I will see His righteousness (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Micah+7%3A7-9Micah 7:7-9).
If darkness symbolized man’s sinful ignorance
and actions, it was also employed by the prophets to speak of the coming day of
God’s wrath. Some unbelieving Jews mistakenly looked forward to the coming of
Messiah, thinking that it was a day of “light,” of divine blessing, when it was
to be, for them, a day of “darkness,” of divine judgment:
Alas, you who are longing for the day of the
LORD, For what purpose will the day of the LORD be to you? It will be darkness
and not light; As when a man flees from a lion, And a bear meets him, Or goes
home, leans his hand against the wall, And a snake bites him. Will not the day
of the LORD be darkness instead of light, Even gloom with no brightness in it? (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Amos+5%3A18-20Amos 5:18-20),110
Before we give particular attention to https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Isaiah+60%3A1-3Isaiah
60:1-3, let us press on to the New Testament, to see how the themes of “light”
and “darkness” are taken up by our Lord and by the apostles:
At the time of His coming as a child, Jesus
was worshipped as the “light” that was to come:
25 And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem
whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the
consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been
revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had
seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when
the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the
Law, 28 then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said, 29 “Now
Lord, Thou dost let Thy bond-servant depart In peace, according to Thy word; 30
For my eyes have seen Thy salvation, 31 Which Thou hast prepared in the
presence of all peoples, 32 A LIGHT OF REVELATION TO THE GENTILES, And the
glory of Thy people Israel” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Luke+2%3A25-32Luke 2:25-32).
John, in words reminiscent of the first
chapters of Genesis, introduced his gospel by presenting Jesus as the “light.”
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All
things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that
has come into being. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5
And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. 6
There came a man, sent from God, whose name was John.
7 He came for a witness, that he might bear witness of the light,
that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came that he
might bear witness of the light. 9 There was the true light which, coming into
the world, enlightens every man. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made
through Him, and the world did not know Him (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/John+1%3A1-10John 1:1-10).
Matthew also spoke of our Lord as the light.
When Jesus left Nazareth and settled in Capernaum, Matthew informs us that this
was a fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy of the Messiah who was the light:
12 Now when He heard that John had been taken
into custody, He withdrew into Galilee; 13 and leaving Nazareth, He came and
settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and
Naphtali. 14 This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet,
saying, 15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the
sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—16 “The people who were sitting
in darkness saw a great light, And to those who were sitting in the land and
shadow of death, Upon them a light dawned” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Matthew+4%3A12-16Matthew 4:12-16, citing https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Isaiah+9%3A1-2Isaiah
9:1-2).
Jesus clearly and repeatedly spoke of Himself
as the “light”:
Again therefore Jesus spoke to them, saying,
“I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness,
but shall have the light of life” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/John+8%3A12John 8:12).
“While I am in the world, I am the light of
the world” (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/John+9%3A5John
9:5).
As the “light,” Jesus was God’s provision for
salvation:
16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave
His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have
eternal life. 17 “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the
world, but that the world should be saved through Him. 18 “He who believes in
Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he
has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 “And this is
the judgment, that the light is come into the world, and men loved the darkness
rather than the light; for their deeds were evil. 20 “For everyone who does
evil hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be
exposed. 21 “But he who practices the truth comes to the light, that his deeds
may be manifested as having been wrought in God” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/John+3%3A16-21John 3:16-21).
“I have come as light into the world, that
everyone who believes in Me may not remain in darkness” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/John+12%3A46John 12:46).
When our Lord died for sinners on the cross of
Calvary, darkness supernaturally fell upon the earth for three hours. I
believer that this “darkness” was symbolic of the divine wrath which God had
poured out upon His Son, as our substitute.
45 Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon
all the land until the ninth hour. 46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out
with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My
God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Matthew+27%3A45-46Matthew 27:45-46).
Our Lord also declared that all who believed
in Him were to live as “lights,” or as “sons of light.” They were therefore to
be a reflection of His light:
35 Jesus therefore said to them, “For a little
while longer the light is among you. Walk while you have the light, that
darkness may not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where
he goes. 36 “While you have the light, believe in the light, in order that you
may become sons of light.” These things Jesus spoke, and He departed and hid
Himself from them (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/John+12%3A35-36John
12:35-36).
“You are the light of the world. A city set on
a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do men light a lamp, and put it under the
peck-measure, but on the lampstand; and it gives light to all who are in the
house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your
good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Matthew+5%3A14-16Matthew 5:14-16).
Little wonder that in Acts and the Epistles of
the New Testament “light and darkness” are such prominent symbols. Saul’s
conversion was one which resulted from our Lord’s appearance to Him in a
blinding light (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Acts+9%3A3-4Acts
9:3-4, etc.). Paul understood that the gospel of our Lord was a “light,” not
only for Jews, but for Gentiles as well:
“For thus the Lord has commanded us, ‘I have
placed You as a light for the Gentiles, That You should bring salvation to the
end of the earth’” (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Acts+13%3A47Acts
13:47).
“And so, having obtained help from God, I
stand to this day testifying both to small and great, stating nothing but what
the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place; 23 that the Christ was to
suffer, and that by reason of His resurrection from the dead He should be the
first to proclaim light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Acts+26%3A22-23Acts 26:22-23).
For the Apostle Paul, the imagery of light and
darkness was a prominent theme:
11 And this do, knowing the time, that it is
already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to
us than when we believed. 12 The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand.
Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.
13 Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not
in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. 14 But put on
the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its
lusts (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Romans+13%3A11-14Romans 13:11-14).
3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is
veiled to those who are perishing, 4 in whose case the god of this world has
blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the
gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not preach
ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for
Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the
One who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory
of God in the face of Christ (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/2+Corinthians+4%3A3-62 Corinthians 4:3-6).
14 Do not be bound together with unbelievers;
for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has
light with darkness? 15 Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a
believer in common with an unbeliever? 16 Or what agreement has the temple of
God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, “I
will dwell in them and walk among them; And I will be their God, and they shall
be My people. 17 “Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,” says
the Lord. “And do not touch what is unclean; And I will welcome you. 18 “And I
will be a father to you, And you shall be sons and daughters to Me,” Says the
Lord Almighty (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/2+Corinthians+6%3A14-182 Corinthians 6:14-18).
9 For this reason also, since the day we heard
of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled
with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so
that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all
respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of
God; 11 strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the
attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously 12 giving thanks to the
Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in
light. 13 For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us
to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the
forgiveness of sins (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Colossians+1%3A9-14Colossians
1:9-14).
1 Now as to the times and the epochs,
brethren, you have no need of anything to be written to you. 2 For you
yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief
in the night. 3 While they are saying, “Peace and safety!” then destruction
will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child; and they
shall not escape. 4 But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day should
overtake you like a thief; 5 for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We
are not of night nor of darkness; 6 so then let us not sleep as others do, but
let us be alert and sober. 7 For those who sleep do their sleeping at night,
and those who get drunk get drunk at night. 8 But since we are of the day, let
us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet,
the hope of salvation. 9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but for
obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, that
whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him. 11 Therefore
encourage one another, and build up one another, just as you also are doing (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/1+Thessalonians+5%3A1-111 Thessalonians 5:1-11).
13 I charge you in the presence of God, who
gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession
before Pontius Pilate, 14 that you keep the commandment without stain or
reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 which He will bring
about at the proper time—He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of
kings and Lord of lords; 16 who alone possesses immortality and dwells in
unapproachable light; whom no man has seen or can see. To Him be honor and
eternal dominion! Amen (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/1+Timothy+6%3A13-161 Timothy 6:13-16).
Both Peter and John spoke of “light” as well:
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal
priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, that you may
proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His
marvelous light; 10 for you once were not a people, but now you are the people
of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/1+Peter+2%3A9-101 Peter 2:9-10).
5 And this is the message we have heard from
Him and announce to you, that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at
all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness,
we lie and do not practice the truth; 7 but if we walk in the light as He Himself
is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus
His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we are
deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He
is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and
His word is not in us (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/1+John+1%3A5-101
John 1:5-10).
8 On the other hand, I am writing a new
commandment to you, which is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is
passing away, and the true light is already shining. 9 The one who says he is
in the light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now. 10 The one
who loves his brother abides in the light and there is no cause for stumbling
in him (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/1+John+2%3A8-101
John 2:8-10).
And the nations shall walk by its light, and
the kings of the earth shall bring their glory into it (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Revelation+21%3A24Revelation 21:24).
3 And there shall no longer be any curse; and
the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His bond-servants shall
serve Him; 4 and they shall see His face, and His name shall be on their
foreheads. 5 And there shall no longer be any night; and they shall not have
need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God
shall illumine them; and they shall reign forever and ever (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Revelation+22%3A3-5Revelation 22:3-5).
Little wonder, then, that Paul should speak of
the Christian’s conduct in terms of the contrast between light and darkness.
Living as light fulfills God’s purpose for Christians, as seen throughout the
Scriptures, Old and New Testament. Our overriding purpose in life is not just
to preach the gospel, to win souls, or even to make disciples. Our overriding
goal is to reflect God to an ungodly world, and to a heavenly host, to the
glory of God. The goals of missions, evangelism, and discipleship are an outgrowth
of our function as lights. We proclaim the gospel and make disciples because
this is what God has done, in Christ. We do these things because they are a
part of living as lights in a dark world.
What
Does It Mean To Live As Lights?
Having seen that we are obligated to live as
lights, we must now turn our attention to the application of Paul’s
instructions. What does it mean to live as lights? Paul does not leave us
without guidelines in this matter. Our text not only contains Paul’s
exhortation, it provides us with instruction concerning the implementation of
living as lights.
We are not left to wonder what “light” is
like. Light produces certain fruit. The fruit of the light,111 Paul tells us, is
goodness, righteousness, and truth.112 Goodness is the
predisposition to do that which is both wholesome and helpful, what is
beneficial. Righteousness encompasses all that is consistent with the holy
character of God and which meets the standards set down by His Word. Truth not
only excludes falsehood, but it includes only that which God’s Word defines as
true, truth as God’s Word declares it.
Living as children of light is living so as to
manifest goodness, righteousness, and truth, as Paul has indicated in verse 9.
Living as children of light can also be described as “trying to learn”113 what is pleasing to the
Lord” (verse 10).
The children of light desire to live as light.
Therefore, they do not merely avoid the thinking and the deeds of darkness out
of a fear of divine chastening alone, but they genuinely desire to do what is
right in order to please the One who delivered them from darkness to light.
Where there are negative motivations for avoiding sin, the motivation of which
Paul speaks here is a positive one. The children of darkness have pleasure as
their goal, too, but they live in order to please themselves, not to please
God.
While it is true that living as lights is for
our own best interest, this should be a secondary motive, not a primary one. We
should seek to please God and others before seeking to please ourselves (see https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Romans+15%3A1Romans
15:1). All too often I hear evangelical Christian leaders urging Christians to
act in a certain way primarily because it serves their own interests best. This
is not the “high road” of the Apostle Paul, nor of any other writer in the
Scriptures.
The expression “trying to learn” suggests
something more to us. It suggests that learning to walk as children of light is
an on-going process. The commands of the Scriptures, Old Testament and New,
provide us with some clear absolutes as to what we must and as to what we must
not do. But these commands do not cover every choice we are called upon to
make.
Let me illustrate this in terms of marriage.
When we marry, we make vows which express our commitment to our mate. We are
obligated to keep our vows. But in addition to the keeping of these vows, there
is a process of getting to know our mate (see https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/1+Peter+3%3A71 Peter 3:7), so that we may please them (see https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/1+Corinthians+7%3A33-341 Corinthians 7:33-34). There are many
books published which “instruct” men on how to “please” their wives, but I
believe that a wife’s greatest pleasure comes from her husband “learning” this
on his own, and doing it out of the joy which he finds in pleasing her.
So it is with pleasing God. God delights in
His children learning to know Him, and then doing that which we believe gives
Him pleasure. What we decided to do (or to avoid doing) may not be what another
believer chooses to do, but this is a matter of personal conviction, not of
keeping a command. Pleasing God is a life-long process, one that is never
complete, but one in which there should be both perseverance and growth.
Paul’s teaching in our text indicates that
living as children of light will have a radical impact on our relationships. We
have already seen this indicated earlier in the epistle. While we Gentiles were
once alienated from Israel, her covenants, and her blessings, we have now been
reconciled to God in one body, the church. We who were once at odds with
Israelites are not united with them inseparably. This union was not grasped by
the Old Testament saint (chapter 3), but it has become clear to the church
through the teaching of Paul (4:1-16).
If, in Christ, we have become one new man
(2:15) and one new building (2:19-22), we also discover that in Christ we have
a new relationship with unbelievers, those who are still the children of
darkness (see 2:1-3; 4:17-24). As children of light we now have far greater
intimacy with those who, like us, are in Christ. But we also experience a
corresponding detachment from the children of darkness.
Paul describes this detachment in terms of two
prohibitions. The first is expressed in verse 7: “Therefore do not be partakers
with them.” The second “do not” is found in verse 11: “And do not participate
in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them.”
In some of His final words to His disciples,
our Lord indicated to them that their relationship with Him would bring about a
corresponding animosity from those who rejected Him:
“If the world hates you, you know that it has
hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love
its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the
world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A
slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also
persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/John+15%3A18-20John 15:18-20)
Years later, Peter writes to those who are
suffering persecution at the hand of unbelievers and assures them that such is
the normal reaction of those in darkness, whose deeds have been exposed by the
light:
For the time already past is sufficient for
your to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles, having pursued a course of
sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousals, drinking parties and abominable
idolatries. And in all this, they are surprised that you do not run with them
into the same excess of dissipation, and they malign you (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/1+Peter+4%3A3-41 Peter 4:3-4).
In https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Ephesians+5%3A7Ephesians 5:7, Paul urges the saints to not
become partakers with those who are godless because their actions are (1)
improper for saints (5:3) and (2) because the wrath of God is the fate of those
who live in sin (5:5-6). In verse 11 Paul presses the matter even further.
Christians are to avoid participation in the “unfruitful deeds of darkness”
because their task as lights is to expose the deeds of darkness.
Light reveals that which darkness conceals.
Darkness conceals sin and even promotes it. Light exposes sin and thus living
as children of light has the function of exposing the sins of those in
darkness, which is the first and fundamental step in evangelism.
Our Lord Himself came as the “light” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/John+1%3A1-13John 1:1-13). Those who acknowledged their sin
turned to Him for salvation, while those who preferred darkness to light
rejected Him (see https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/John+3%3A16-21John
3:16-21). We, like Christ, are to live as children of light as a part of our
calling to reflect and reveal Christ and to proclaim the gospel. It is the
contrast in our conduct with that of the world which makes the gospel clear. It
is by our contrast with the world that we fulfill our obligation as “lights”:
“You are the salt of the earth; but if the
salt has become tasteless, how will it be made salty again? It is good for
nothing any more, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. You
are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do men
light a lamp, and put it under the peck-measure, but on the lampstand; and it
gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in
such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in
heaven” (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Matthew+5%3A13-16Matthew 5:13-16).
The rub comes in determining where it is that
we draw the lines of separation. We are not to be partakers with those in
darkness (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Ephesians+5%3A7Ephesians
5:7), nor are we to participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness (5:11).
Where, then, do we draw the line in terms of our relationships with the lost?
The Pharisees of our Lord’s day drew the line
far too conservatively. They hypocritically drew the line at the level of
association with sinners. To have any contact with sinners was thought by them
to be ungodly. They were wrong, as our Lord made clear, both by His teaching
and His preaching. Very early in His ministry Jesus offended the self-righteous
Pharisees by His association with sinners. Jesus indicated that it was
necessary to associate with sinners in order to save them:
27 And after that He went out, and noticed a
tax-gatherer named Levi, sitting in the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow
Me.” 28 And he left everything behind, and rose and began to follow Him. 29 And
Levi gave a big reception for Him in his house; and there was a great crowd of
tax-gatherers and other people who were reclining at the table with them. 30
And the Pharisees and their scribes began grumbling at His disciples, saying,
“Why do you eat and drink with the tax-gatherers and sinners?” 31 And Jesus
answered and said to them, “It is not those who are well who need a physician,
but those who are sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to
repentance” (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Luke+5%3A27-32Luke
5:27-32).
The Corinthian church seems to have agreed
with the position of the Pharisees, but they went to an additional extreme.
They, like the Pharisees of our Lord’s day, seemed to hold the conviction that
they could not associate with unbelievers (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/1+Corinthians+5%3A9-101 Corinthians 5:9-10). And yet, while
they were careful to shun unbelievers, they were puffed up with pride in the
fact that they accepted a man who professed to be a believer, yet who lived
with his father’s wife, something which even shocked the pagans (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/1+Corinthians+5%3A1-51 Corinthians 5:1-5).
Paul’s teaching on separation and fellowship
is clear. In general terms, as “children of light” we are not to have
fellowship with darkness. More specifically, we are not to shun unbelievers,
nor to avoid association with them. We are to avoid intimate fellowship with
them, especially as they practice what is displeasing to God. As Christians, we
are not to have fellowship with those who profess to trust in Christ, but whose
conduct denies Him.
9 I wrote you in my letter not to associate
with immoral people; 10 I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this
world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters; for then you
would have to go out of the world. 11 But actually, I wrote to you not to
associate with any so-called brother if he should be an immoral person, or
covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even
to eat with such a one (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/1+Corinthians+5%3A9-111
Corinthians 5:9-11).
14 Do not be bound together with unbelievers;
for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has
light with darkness? 15 Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a
believer in common with an unbeliever? (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/2+Corinthians+6%3A14-152 Corinthians 6:14-15),114
In some ways, I fear that the contemporary
Christian church surpasses the error of both the Pharisees and the Corinthians.
Both the Pharisees and the Corinthians drew the line somewhere, even if they
drew it in the wrong place. We don’t seem to be willing or able to draw the
line anywhere. Because we equate the success of a church with its size, we seem
unwilling to discourage any from attending and taking part, let alone to act in
discipline by putting someone out of the church.
As I read the Book of Acts, the church grew
dramatically. In the context of the Book, Luke is careful to indicate that the
church grew because of its faithful proclamation and practice of the Word of
God (see https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Acts+2%3A43-47Acts
2:43-47; 4:32-35; 6:1-7).115 Luke also indicates that
the church grew as its purity was protected. Thus, as a result of the deaths of
Ananias and Sapphira, great fear came upon the whole church and the unbelieving
community, and with it came more converts:
11 And great fear came upon the whole church,
and upon all who heard of these things. 12 And at the hands of the apostles
many signs and wonders were taking place among the people; and they were all
with one accord in Solomon’s portico. 13 But none of the rest dared to
associate with them; however, the people held them in high esteem. 14 And all
the more believers in the Lord, multitudes of men and women, were constantly
added to their number (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/Acts+5%3A11-14Acts
5:11-14).
The purity of the church does not hinder the
proclamation of the gospel; it is an essential manifestation of the gospel. I
believe that this truth underlies the words of Paul in our text. In other
words, by living as children of light we not only practice the truth of the
gospel, we proclaim it to an unbelieving world.
I fear that in many churches today which
proclaim to be evangelical, we are not “manifesting the light” to the glory of
God and to the health of the church, and to the salvation of the lost. To keep
with the symbolism of light and darkness, I fear that some churches are trying
to win the lost by “turning the lights down low.”
Allow me to explain. The underlying premise of
the “lights down low” folks is that people won’t be attracted to a gospel which
threatens their beliefs, values, and lifestyles. And so, in order to get people
saved, we need to play down the negative aspects of the gospel (sin,
righteousness, judgment) and slip the gospel in positively. We need to make the
unbeliever comfortable with Christianity if we are to attract them to our
churches. If sin and hell are unpleasant topics, then these should be set
aside, at least for a time. Once people are saved, they tell us, then we can
speak to them about discipleship. This sounds a whole lot like the “bait and
switch” methodology of unscrupulous salesmen.
There are many difficulties with this
philosophy and methodology. In the first place, it does not square with our
Lord’s methods or teaching. There were many who seemed eager to follow Jesus,
but He consistently warned them of the cost of discipleship. Neither does it
square with the Lord’s teaching concerning the ministry of the Holy Spirit in
evangelism, as found in the Gospel of John:
7 “But I tell you the truth, it is to your
advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper shall not come to
you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. 8 And He, when He comes, will convict
the world concerning sin, and righteousness, and judgment; 9 concerning sin,
because they do not believe in Me; 10 and concerning righteousness, because I
go to the Father, and you no longer behold Me; 11 and concerning judgment,
because the ruler of this world has been judged” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/John+16%3A7-11John 16:7-11).
If the Holy Spirit is to convict men of sin,
righteousness, and judgment, then surely we dare not avoid these truths in
dealing with unbelievers. The very subjects which Scripture identify as the
foundation and starting point of the gospel are those which the “low-light
gospeleers” would set aside. The truth of the matter is that the gospel, in its
pure form, is not appealing. Indeed, it is repulsive, to lost men.
Nevertheless, it is our task to proclaim it in the simplest and clearest terms
possible, relying upon God to draw men through the ministry of His Spirit (see https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/1+Corinthians+1%3A181
Corinthians 1:18–2:5).
Jesus did not come to minister to the healthy,
but to those who are sick. He did not come to speak to those who were
comfortable, but rather to those who mourned and were broken-hearted. He spoke
words of comfort, healing, and salvation to the hurting, and He spoke words of
rebuke and warning to those who were comfortable and complacent. Why should we
do anything less?
As Paul’s words indicate, our task is not to
ignore sin, but to expose it. This is done by living righteously, living as
lights. Those whom God has chosen, He will draw to the light by His grace and
through His Spirit. And those who love their sin and the darkness will seek to
extinguish our light. And so it is that some of the texts which speak about
light are found in close proximity to those which speak of persecution (see https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Matthew+5%3A10-16Matthew 5:10-16). We are not to identify
with darkness, nor to withdraw entirely from it, but to live as lights in a
darkened world, so that sin might be exposed by righteousness, to the glory of
God, to the salvation of the lost, and to the blessing of the believer.
Conclusion
Let us conclude our lesson by seeking to sum
up what Paul has said. First, the Christian’s
conversion calls for a radically new lifestyle and a new relationship with the
world and with unbelievers. Jesus is the light of the world, and all who name
His name as believers are to walk in the light and to walk as lights, just as
He did when He was physically on this earth.
Second,
to walk as children of light is also to walk in love. All too many play down
our obligation to walk as lights by emphasizing their intention to “walk in
love.” We dare not attempt to separate these two aspects of our Christian walk.
Paul has just spoken of our “walk in love” in https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Ephesians+5%3A1-6Ephesians 5:1-6. Now, in verses 7-14, he
presses on to remind us of our responsibility to “walk as light.” There is no
conflict. If we do no walk as light we will not be walking in love. Love does
not “support” the sinner and the expense of righteousness. Love admonishes,
rebukes, and seeks to restore the sinner in the promotion and practice of
righteousness. Note the close connection of “love” and “light” in Paul’s letter
to the Romans:
11 And this do, knowing the time, that it is
already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to
us than when we believed. 12 The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand.
Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.
13 Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not
in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. 14 But put on
the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its
lusts (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/Romans+13%3A11-14Romans 13:11-14).
To walk as children of light is the ultimate
calling of the Christian. It is in so doing that we obey and please God. It is
in so doing that we glorify God. It is in so doing that the gospel is
proclaimed.
Walking in the light will, in all cases,
glorify God. It will in some instances result in the salvation of lost souls.
It will in many cases lead to persecution. And it will also put us at
cross-purposes with Satan. We should expect him to seek to blind men with
respect to the light of the gospel:
3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is
veiled to those who are perishing, 4 in whose case the god of this world has
blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the
gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/2+Corinthians+4%3A3-42 Corinthians 4:3-4).
Satan is not content to stop here. In his
attempts to “turn out the lights” he goes so far as to disguise himself as an
“angel of light,” thereby hoping to directly attack the church through
deception and distortion:
13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful
workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for
even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is not
surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of
righteousness; whose end shall be according to their deeds (https://net.bible.org/ - !bible/2+Corinthians+11%3A13-152
Corinthians 11:13-15).
These false lights will be evident because
their fruit will not be the fruit of the light, as Paul indicates.
Paul’s emphasis is not merely upon individual
compliance with our duty to “walk as lights,” but on the task of the church,
collectively, to be a light. The church must take a hard line toward sin. The
church must act decisively and rigorously to root sin out of the church. We are
not only to seek to “stimulate one another to love and good deeds” (https://net.bible.org/
- !bible/Hebrews+10%3A24Hebrews 10:24), but to rigorously root sin
out of the church (see https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/1+Corinthians+5%3A1-131 Corinthians 5:1-13).
If I understand Paul’s teaching on “light”
correctly (including his citation from the Old Testament in verse 14), it is
not the unbeliever that is challenged to “wake up” and to “rise from the dead,”
but rather the believer. This text, as I understand it, is not primarily a
salvation text, but a sanctification text. We can be lights only in a
reflective way. Christ is the only true light. We shine as He shines upon us.
In Isaiah chapter 60, the exhortation was for the people of Israel to “wake up”
and to turn from their sin to righteousness, from darkness to the light.
Elsewhere, when Paul takes up the theme of light and darkness, he is exhorting
Christians to wake up:
1 Now as to the times and the epochs,
brethren, you have no need of anything to be written to you. 2 For you
yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief
in the night. 3 While they are saying, “Peace and safety!” then destruction
will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child; and they
shall not escape. 4 But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day should
overtake you like a thief; 5 for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We
are not of night nor of darkness; 6 so then let us not sleep as others do, but
let us be alert and sober. 7 For those who sleep do their sleeping at night,
and those who get drunk get drunk at night. 8 But since we are of the day, let
us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet,
the hope of salvation. 9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but for
obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, that
whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him. 11 Therefore
encourage one another, and build up one another, just as you also are doing (https://net.bible.org/ -
!bible/1+Thessalonians+5%3A1-111 Thessalonians 5:1-11).116
Only those who are in Christ can be lights.
This compels me to ask you a simple question of the greatest import: “Have you
seen the light?” Have you acknowledged your sin, Christ’s righteousness, and
the judgment which awaits all who reject the sacrifice of Christ on Calvary?
These are dark days. Those without Christ are not only darkness, subjects of
the prince of darkness, but they also await the dark day of God’s coming wrath
on sinners. Come to the light. Trust in Him who suffered and died for your sins,
and whose righteousness can be yours by faith.
May God grant that we may not only see the
light in personal salvation, but that others may see the light in us, as we
live lives that are marked by goodness, righteousness, and truth, to His glory.
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