Walking in the Light

In this chapter, there's much mention of walk and our walk with God.

And in verse 8 it mentions this idea of walking in the light.

And it says, for one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the world.

Walk as children of light.

We all know, I'm sure, it's not an easy thing to live as a Christian in the world in which we are today.

If it was easy, I think we should be asking ourselves questions.

Why? Where are we going wrong?

Because the Bible makes it quite clear to us that it's not going to be easy.

Whether we're looking at it in the Old Testament or the New Testament,

we find right throughout all the generations of God's people,

that in Christian life, walking with God is not an easy thing.

But we also see too, as you think of our walk with God,

that there are so many blessings and privileges in it as well.

Seeing that, even in hearing the men praying,

we come with all that's sort of going wrong around us in our own lives as well.

But we also come giving thanks to God for all that we have through the creation,

the wonder of creation,

and the wonder of the fact that we have his word that still speaks to us.

So there's so much variety in our lives.

There's the challenges and there's the joys,

there's the highs and there's the lows.

And we see that even as we read in this chapter in Ephesians.

You see the similarities of the world in which we live today,

the challenges that they were facing are the same challenges that we face today as well.

So how do we cope with the challenges that we face on a daily basis?

How do we cope with people who spurn God,

reject God,

go so blatantly against the law of God?

How do we deal with people who make God just a joke,

make a laugh of God?

We look around as we see all that,

but as well as that,

how do we deal with ourselves?

How do we cope with ourselves?

And we think of our own hearts,

how they can be hard,

how they can be cold,

how we can be distant from God.

How do we cope with that?

How do we tell a generation coming after us how to live as Christians?

How do we tell our young people,

this is how you deal with the pressures to conform in this world?

When society says the norm is one thing,

but the Bible says something very different.

When we hear our young people saying that they're the ones who are odd

because they don't do these things,

how do we help them stand up and say,

no,

you are the ones who are in the wrong.

We have the word of God as the light to our feet,

and it helps us along the way.

So there's all of these challenges going on.

How do we encourage people to seek the Lord?

How do we show them the light of the gospel in a world that says the gospel is strange

or at odds with the world,

the day that we live in,

the age that we live in?

How do we show the reality of the gospel

and the power of the gospel

and the beauty of the gospel to our people who are blind?

We have all of these challenges to face.

To live as a Christian today isn't easy,

but we shouldn't be surprised.

And we can take heart because of the word of God

and that word that is even before us this evening,

the light of the gospel that we have.

And that's really the theme that Paul has in this section

as we think of the light and being imitators of God

as he starts at verse 1 in chapter 5.

Therefore, be imitators of God as beloved children and walk in love.

You have that theme of walking with God there from the outset of the chapter.

You have the theme of darkness and light throughout these verses as well.

And it is all about our walk with God.

How do we walk as Christians in this world?

Well, there's two things I just want us to take,

especially our two points are really from verse 8,

but it surrounds these verses as well.

And they are the change of life that we see here

and the call to live.

The change and the call.

Because Paul makes it very clear where the change comes in.

We see that with these words,

one time you were darkness,

but now you are light.

So there's the change that has come in.

But it doesn't end there.

Because then he goes on to say in the same verse

that you are to walk as children of light.

So it's to go on.

How are we to live?

We are to live walking as children of light.

So I just want to take these two things from this verse this evening.

The change and the call to live.

So the first thing we see here is the change.

Paul in these verses tells us that there is to be a difference in us

to those around us who are not believers.

But he does this in showing what we once were.

And notice what it says.

He shows us the difference by saying,

you were once darkness,

but now you are light.

The change is there for us.

And Paul in the letter to the Ephesians,

he quite often uses,

he uses this phrase often,

you were.

You see it a few times throughout the chapters here.

You were.

It says in chapter one,

you were sealed.

So it kind of begins with this idea of the Christian,

you are sealed in Christ.

You are brought in to Christ.

But he also makes it clear that you were dead.

You were dead in your sin.

So he's clear that what we were as well.

You were dead in your sins.

You were separated from Christ,

he says as well.

You were separated from Christ.

So once we were not with Christ,

we were separated from him.

He says you were far off.

Again,

it's that kind of distance.

It's this,

you were far off.

But then he says,

you were called.

So as you read through the letters of the Ephesians,

all these words,

you were,

it shows the whole change that comes into the Christian life.

How we are sealed,

is that we are brought from death to life in Christ.

We were separated and far off,

but we were called.

And so Paul is using all of these descriptions to remind us of the change that came about in our lives.

But the two of them,

the two that stand out for me in terms of these where,

is when you look at the fact of dead in your sins and the darkness that we see here.

Because what does he say?

Well, first,

what doesn't he say?

When you go back to that text in chapter 3,

when you were dead in your trespasses and sins,

he doesn't say you were dying in your sins.

He doesn't say you were falling away in your sins.

He says you were dead.

You were,

there was nothing.

You were dead in your sins.

There was no life at all.

You were dead.

But you were made alive in Christ.

So it's dramatic.

You were dead.

And it just shows us that's what we were.

And it changes,

the remarkable changes that we are brought to life through faith in Christ.

And you see,

it's quite similar here in verse 8 and chapter 5 as well.

It's a missing word,

if you like,

that changes.

At one time,

you were darkness.

You would expect in.

You were in darkness.

But it's not there.

It says you were darkness.

And that's the reality as well.

It's not just that we could say,

well,

I didn't know where I was.

I was.

I was lost.

It was not me.

He says,

no,

you were darkness.

Not just you were in darkness,

but you were darkness.

And that just adds to what he's saying here.

It's not just the reality of you were dying in sin or you were in darkness.

It's more than that.

You were dead in your sin.

And you were darkness.

You were the darkness in this world.

And then he changes that by saying,

you are light.

So again,

you might expect to say,

and maybe even more so expect to say,

you are now in light.

But he says,

you are light.

And then we see the burden of responsibility in this change.

You were darkness.

Everything that you showed to the world was darkness.

But now,

you are light.

Not just in the light,

but you are light.

You are what the world sees now.

A change has taken place.

And so,

it's dramatic.

And that's what being brought to life in Christ is.

It's dramatic.

For everyone who is brought,

not just from darkness,

but in the sense of being in it,

but being the darkness,

to being made light.

And being brought from death to life.

It's dramatic.

So you are light.

Light.

And when you think of Jesus himself,

and when you think here of verse 1,

be imitators of God as beloved children.

When you think of being light,

we have to think of Jesus.

And we have to go back to the Gospel of John,

especially chapter 8.

And there in the Gospel of John,

John 8 · chapter mention

chapter 8,

towards the beginning of the chapter,

Jesus is talking to a crowd then.

And it's at the end of a festival.

The festival of booths,

or the festival of tabernacles,

it was called.

And as this festival came to a close,

on the last night of the festival,

four great pillars of light were lit.

Enormous pillars.

It was said there was about 65 litres of oil

in each pillar burning.

And this light shone over Jerusalem as a whole,

and shone almost outwith Jerusalem.

There was so much light.

But then as the festival closed,

and there was much dancing and celebrating

at this festival,

as the festival closed,

the light would go out.

And it was at that point

that Jesus said to them in verse 11,

and Jesus spoke again to them saying,

I am the light of the world.

So he is the light of the world.

That's what he was making so clear there.

And he says,

whoever follows me

will not walk in darkness,

but will have the light of life.

The Christian will have the light of life.

And that's what we see Paul making so clear here.

Being imitators of God

as dearly beloved children.

Walk in love.

That's where he begins in this chapter.

And then in verse 8 he says,

you were darkness,

but now you are light.

When you become a Christian,

when you're born again,

it's not just the surroundings that change.

It's you.

You are changed.

Not just taken out of darkness

and put somewhere new.

You were part of darkness,

and now you're light.

A change takes place.

The Spirit of God awakens us

to see the sin in our heart

and to seek the Lord.

But we're not just in light.

We are light.

And so there needs

to be a difference.

There needs to be a difference in us.

If we are to be light in this world,

we have to reflect

the glory of Christ

in our lives.

And many people have approached this

in different ways.

How then are we to live

in this world?

What are we to be?

How is the change

to be seen by others?

We kind of find

we go from extremes,

one extreme to another,

where some people say,

well, we can be in this world.

We can become all things

to all men.

And they go on in this life

just seeking to live

almost just like they were

in some ways.

Doing the things they once did.

But saying,

maybe I'm a Christian now.

I'm trying to compartmentalise life

as a Christian

and saying,

oh, I can still do these things.

I'm not that different.

And to go to that extreme

is dangerous

because we often err

on falling back

into our old ways.

And it happens.

Or we downplay truth.

We don't hold on to the truth

as we should

because we don't offend people.

So we can be like those

who are blowing in the wind.

You think of the decision

of the Supreme Court just now

and how you see people

all of a sudden

speaking very differently.

When that wasn't the case,

when it hadn't been made

that clear in law,

so many were just going along

with what they thought

people wanted to hear.

Now it's made law,

they've got a different opinion.

So it's like blowing in the wind.

It's our truth,

whatever we want to believe.

And that's the danger

with a Christian as well.

We can be blown around

by the wind of change as well

if we're erring

in that side of things.

But the other danger is

that we go to the other extreme

where we separate ourselves

completely.

And Paul again

makes clear that

we are to be

in the world

but not of the world.

So it's finding that place

where we don't just

bring ourselves

out of the world

and completely

a bit like the Amish people

who

not wanting to be influenced

by a godless culture

just take themselves

right out of things

and live just by themselves

in their own ways

and over time

they've just become

so odd

to the world.

Same as being a monk.

You can think

we should just take ourselves

right out of things.

Sometimes we feel

like we just want to get away

from the world

but we still have to be

in the world

because that's what

this is saying to us.

You were darkness

but now

you are light.

And if we are to be light

well that light

has to shine.

It has to shine

into this world.

We are to be light.

We know we can't be

the perfect light

but we are still

to be the light

that shows the glory

of God.

Someone once

put it like this.

He said

when the sun sets

and the moon rises

we see the moon

because the sun

reflects

its light

off it.

We sometimes

see the moon

full

and on a bright

full moon night

it can be

so bright at times.

Other times

it might be a half moon

or a quarter moon

and it's dimmer.

And he said

likewise

it is with the church.

When Christ

has

departed

this world

the church

is to be his witness

but it's reflecting

that light

and there's times

he said

when the church

reflects

like a full moon

brightly shining

into this world.

There's been glorious

times for the church

reformation times

revival times

times of great blessing

other times

when the light

has not been

so bright.

We could think

of our own day

is the light

shining as bright

it's been dark

but maybe we are

seeing glimpses

of more light

coming

but it's all

about reflecting

the glory

of God.

And our prayer

is that we would

be this light

in this world

that people would

see the change

and that people

would desire

that change

in their own lives

and their own hearts.

You were darkness

but now

you are

the light.

So

we see

this

change

but we also see

there's this call

to live.

It's not just

about coming

to Christ

in faith

and that's it.

You were darkness

but now

you are light

in the world.

Walk

as children

of the light

for the fruit

of light

is found

in all that is

good

and right

and true.

And so

he's going on here

there's this call

to live

to walk

as children

of light

you must be

children of light.

must be

the children

of God.

We were blind.

It wasn't just

that we didn't

see God's glory

we were incapable

of seeing it.

We couldn't

see it.

We had no ability

or desire

to see such a thing.

We didn't even sense

a need of the saviour.

We didn't understand

the justice

and holiness

of God.

They meant

nothing to us.

Issues of life

death

and eternity

these were just

words.

But the call

to live

is when God

comes

and opens our eyes

to the understanding

and seeing things

anew.

I think it was

Morda that quoted

the text from

2 Corinthians

the light

of the knowledge

of the glory

of God

in the face

of Jesus Christ.

We have seen that

and we are called

by God.

And we begin

then to see

our condition

as guilty sinners

but we also see

the wonder

of the grace

of our Lord

Jesus Christ.

We see his death

on the cross.

We see all

that it meant

and entailed

all it showed

us of our sin.

But then we see

the glory

of his resurrection.

We see the fact

that he is risen

and that he is

coming again

and all of these

things

they begin

to open our eyes

and to give us

understanding

and we begin

to live

in the light

of this truth

in the light

of the gospel

in the knowledge

of the glory

of God

in the face

of Jesus Christ.

So we come

to faith

and we go on

in faith

and we seek

to live

as children

of light

but how do we

do this?

Well

the fruit

of light

as it says

here is found

in all

that is good

and right

and true.

So you have

these three words

all that is

is good

the fruit

of light

consists

of these things.

Goodness

is one of the

attributes

of God

wisdom

power

holiness

justice

goodness

and truth

that is how

God

is described

and verse 1

says

be imitators

of God.

So this goodness

should be

in us.

Behind the word

goodness

here is

generosity

generosity

serving

the Lord

and that can

go back

to verse 2

walk in love

as Christ

loved us

and gave

himself up

for us

a fragrant

offering

and sacrifice

to God.

The goodness

of our Lord

the generosity

of our Lord

and that he

gave all

for us

and so in

walking in the

light

we should be

marked

in that way

as well

with the

goodness

of Christ

in us.

You are

light

therefore

this goodness

should be

part of our

lives

to walk

in dependence

of him.

Again

goodness

is seen

as one of

the fruits

of the spirit

in Galatians 5

and since

it's a fruit

it can take

time to

develop in

us as we

probably know

too well

change in

our hearts

is ongoing

that sanctification

so goodness

should always

be growing

in us

that generosity

of spirit

of God

then we see

too we are

to walk as

children of

light with

this righteousness

all that is

right

we should

walk as

children of

light

for the

fruit of

the light

is found

in all

that is

good

and right

so righteousness

is part

of it

seeking to

conform to

the righteous

standards

of God's

word

and in

every way

that we

live

upright

before God

and before

others

that's what's

behind

this word

how do we

treat all

people around

us

how do we

show the

justice of

God to

all around

us

so the

righteousness

of this

light should

be growing

in us

as well

and then the

third one

there we see

we are to

be a people

of truth

honesty

and again

integrity

comes into

this as well

the life of

the unbelievers

is those who

are deceived

those who have

believed a lie

who are being

led astray

but we are to

be marked out

by truth

let no one

it says

in verse 6

deceive you

with empty

words

so we have

the word

of God

we have

truth

in the word

of God

and all of

these things

should be

working together

in us

so that as

we see

these three

then it

leads us

then into

verse 10

trying to

discern

what is

pleasing

to the

Lord

and where

do we

find

where do

we discern

what is

pleasing

to our

Lord

what we

find it

in his

word

we don't

make up

our own

truth

we have

the truth

of God

and so

for this

to walk

as children

of the light

we need

to be

with

God

corporately

together

informally

together

and personally

in all

of these

ways

making

Jesus

our

priority

every day

walking

in the

light

and when

you look

at the

light

that there

is in

Christ

and coming

to him

there's

this

progression

in our

lives

as well

there's a

few

texts

just

four

texts

I want

to

highlight

as we

conclude

one is

Exodus

34

and you

go back

to the

time

when

Moses

was up

Mount

Sinai

when he

came down

from Mount

Sinai

it says

he didn't

realize

that the

skin of

his face

shone

because he

had been

talking

with God

so you

have there

the light

of the

glory

of God

shining

in the

face

of Moses

because he

had been

talking

with God

so there's

the reality

for us

to be

talking

with God

to be

in the

presence

of God

and then

you come

into the

New Testament

and you have

Matthew

Matthew 5:14

chapter 5

verse 14

so if we

have the

light in us

we are to

let that

light shine

you are the

light of the

world

a city

set in a

hill

cannot be

hidden

nor do

people light

a lamp

and put it

under a

basket

but on a

stand

and it

gives light

to all

in the

house

in the

same way

let your

light shine

before others

so they may

see your

good works

and give

glory to

your

father

who is

in heaven

let this

light

shine

before

others

we have

this light

you were

darkness

and now

you are

light

then we

have the

text here

in Ephesians

that comes

in verse

14

it says

there

therefore

it says

awake

o sleeper

and arise

from the

dead

and Christ

will shine

in you

it's almost

like there's a

summary there

of Paul's

letter to the

Ephesians

you were

dead in your

sins

awake

it is time

to awake

and to

rise

and Christ

will shine

in you

so here

is the

hope

that we

have

as the

Christian

the Christian

life

is full

of

challenges

but we

must live

in the

darkness

of this

world

by being

lights

in this

world

by allowing

Christ

to shine

in us

and so

as we

go on

in this

world

we also

have the

hope

of

eternity

as well

the darkness

that we are

taken out

of here

the light

that we

are

is with

the hope

of the

fullness

of this

glory

and we

see that

in the

gospel of

Matthew

Matthew 13:43

chapter 13

verse 43

where it

says then

the righteous

will shine

like the

sun in

the kingdom

of their

father

so you

have this

it's a

conclusion in

some ways

but it's just

a beginning

in another

where you

will shine

like the

sun in

the kingdom

of their

father

with a

Christian

will shine

for all

eternity

that's the

wonder

that we

have

we're brought

from being

darkness

in this

world

to being

light

letting our

light shine

before us

the light

of Christ

to being

eternally

shining

in the

kingdom

of the

father

so that

we have

the wonder

of the

salvation

that is

ours

in

Christ

the

light

that we

have

in

Christ

in

us

and the

light

that we

have

for

eternity

with

him

so let

us

seek

to be

those

who

discern

this

light

we

were

darkness

but now

your

light

walk

as

children

of

light

let us

pray

our

father

in

heaven

we do

thank you

for the

light

of the

gospel

we thank

you that

it shines

in the

hearts

of

unbelievers

not just

to bring

us from

darkness

to light

but to

bring us

from being

darkness

to being

light

and we

pray that

each one

of us

will seek

to walk

ever

closely

with you

being in

your

presence

that we

might

shine

the

glory

of

God

even

in

our

faces

as we

think

of

Moses

how he

did

Lord

draw us

ever

closer

to

yourself

and keep

us

as the

apple

of your

eye

we ask

all these

things

for the

forgiveness

of our

sins

in

Jesus

name

Amen

we're

going to

conclude