Children Of Light

Ephesians 5:8–14 NRSV

8 For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord, you are light. Live as children of light— 9 for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true. 10 Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to mention what such people do secretly; 13 but everything exposed by the light becomes visible, 14 for everything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,

“Sleeper, awake!

Rise from the dead,

and Christ will shine on you.”

Let us pray,

INTRODUCTION

Out of the darkness comes the light. Every workday, at dawn’s early light, Kevin Napier crawls into a long, black hole. Coal mining is safer than it used to be, though it’s still dusty and dirty, and there’s always concern that something terrible could happen deep inside a cramped shaft. But sometimes something wondrous can happen, too. Napier remembers the time he had stopped in a mine to eat his lunch, and he reached up and turned off the light on his safety hat. “Everything was completely dark, and I looked up a way, where the men were near the top, and I could see a light,” Napier said. “It made me realize how Jesus Christ came to me in the darkness while I was a sinner and brought me out to the light. ‘It’s in 1 Peter 2:9. The Bible says Jesus brings them out of the darkness and into everlasting light'” (Lexington Herald Leader, March 9, 2002, story by Art Jester).

This was a story about Kevin Napier written in the Lexington Herald Leader on March 9th, 2002. Now, if you have ever been inside of a cave and turned off your headlamp and flashlight, then you would know what darkness was.

It’s so dark when you do this that you cannot see what is in front of you. You could stick out your hand and you would not even be able to see it. Someone could stand right in front of you, merely a few inches away, and you would have no idea they were there.

That is what darkness does, it takes away our ability to truly see. Sure, sometimes our eyes adjust pretty well, but we still need a bit of light for help. Otherwise, without it, in the darkness we are completely lost.

WHAT WERE WE AND WHAT ARE WE NOW?

However, our Scripture today tells us that we were not only lost in darkness at one point, but that we WERE the darkness. At first this may seem a bit odd of a statement, how can we be darkness?

Darkness in the Bible has many meanings. While it can refer to a time of day, it also refers to a state of being. When Paul says that “you were darkness” he is saying that you were dominated by sin and death, that you lacked understanding.

More than that, being darkness is a result of sin.

Sin makes us dark. It darkens our minds and our hearts. It makes us desire the shadows and gloom of this world, and any infusion of light into this environment will be looked upon as an intrusion.( Holmes, M. A. (1997). Ephesians: a Bible commentary in the Wesleyan tradition (p. 153). Indianapolis, IN: Wesleyan Publishing House.)

Being darkness is not a good thing. It’s not something that anyone should ever desire, and for those of us who follow Christ, we are no longer darkness.

Through Christ, we have been made light. It is only through Him that this is even possible.

During some Christmas Eve services or Hanging of the Greens services here in Paint Lick, we stand in a circle with candles. Usually, the pastor dips their candle into the flame of the Christ candle and then passes that light around to the congregation.

That’s exactly what happens to us as Christians. The light of Christ is passed on to us, and then we become children of light. John 8:12 says, '"12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”'

Jesus, the light of the world, guarantees that whoever follows him will never walk in darkness again, that they will have the light of life! If you are a Christian this is great news that you have responded to, and if you aren’t a Christian, this is great news that is ready for you!

But, to those of us who have accepted this truth, how are we showing that we are light?

AS LIGHT WE GAIN...

After accepting the truth of Christ we come from being darkness to being light through the Lord. With this new identity of light we are supposed to show something for it. If you’ve read Galatians 5:22-23 recently you’ll know that Paul loves talking about physical evidence that comes from those who follow Christ. He calls them “fruits.”