Children Of The Light

CHILDREN OF THE LIGHT

With “Thanksgiving”, we know that every Christian is blessed –

1. Salvation and forgiveness

2. Deliverance from the darkness of sin and disbelief

3. Given hope for tomorrow and an eternity with the Lord

4. Strength for living each new day

The Bible tells us that we haven’t always had it that good.

1. We used to live in darkness

2. We didn’t really know how our sins were destroying us

3. We weren’t sure about where we spend eternity…heaven or hell?

4. We totally relied upon our own stamina and determination to get us through this life

Most of us know that living the way we used to live was not good. And yet, sometimes, we find ourselves living like we used to live. We didn’t intend it to be that way, again.

That is what is called “backsliding”. We slide back into our old habits, old conversations, old way of thinking, old friends, old hangouts, and our “old man”.

What we thought was harmless (at the time) we realized was threatening our relationship with Christ.

Text: Ephesians 5:8 – 14

Let’s consider what we know before we learn something we didn’t know.

We know –

1. Where we have come from

2. Where we are (or, are not) with Jesus Christ

3. Our salvation was and is (without a doubt) the greatest influence on our lives

Here’s what we might not be sure of –

1. What are we doing about this change that Christ has brought to our lives?

2. Are we really accountable to the Lord with how He has saved us?

The fact is this - Until you get to heaven, you will never fully understand and comprehend what Jesus did for you by saving your soul.

I am not sure that any of us can really see the condition of our soul before Christ saved us. Only the Lord knows.

When we look in our mirror, at home, all we see is this outer shell of a person. We cannot see our heart and soul for what we are.

Before we got saved, we could not see the sin that was within. Until we got saved, we only saw a person that was doing everything they thought they should to do what was right.

A good father, mother, boy, girl, etc.

But the Truth is found in verse 8.

“You were once in darkness…”

Did you know that?

Don’t answer yes unless you mean it.

You see knowing this Truth will

1. Enable you to be humble before God

2. Make you reliant on Him to never let you wonder off (“backslide”) back to where you came from.

3. Cause you to be more thankful to the Lord.

4. Cause you to “Live as Children of the Light”

Paul is writing to the church at Ephesus and wanting them to walk out their relationship with the Lord, and to be CHILDREN OF THE LIGHT.

Ideally, having Jesus as our Light has made things much more obvious.

As an example - Jesus has become our flashlight while walking down a long-lonely and dark road.

We’ve all been down that road.

With Jesus illuminating our road we can easily see all of the road hazards:

· Pot Holes – that can cause us to stumble and fall.

· Road Signs – that let us know where to turn and where not to turn next.

Christ is deeply concerned with our walk with Him. He wants us to stay on track with where He is taking us.

The Christians "walk" or lifestyle is described in chapters 4 and 5.

The Christian is to walk -

1. In unity and in community with his fellow saints.

2. In a way that is dramatically different from his walk as an unbeliever (4:17-32).

3. "walk in love" (5:1-6).

4. And now, Paul speaks of the Christian’s lifestyle, as we "walk as children of light".

We are to walk in such a way that is consistent with our relationship with our Heavenly Father.

We are to live as those who are "children of light."

Many Bible Scholars agree that, in our text, Paul was referring to Isaiah 60.

We see that text in our Responsive Reading (in our bulletin).

But actually, the connection goes back further than the Prophet, Isaiah.

The first creative act of God recorded in Genesis chapter 1 is the creation of light:

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

In the book of 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), and God’s splendor and presence (104:2; 44:3; 89:15; 90:8).