Our Beliefs : Sermons : Sermon Archive - 2008 : February 24, 2008

Theme: Live As Children of Light

Church year occasion: Lent 3

When I was growing up, Saturdays were days when all the kids in the neighborhood would get together and go exploring or play tag or whatever. I'm sure our moms didn't mind that too much because it would keep us out of their hair. The unfortunate part was that our mothers would always call us home for supper right when we were in the middle of a good game, and by the time we were done eating and doing the dishes, the sun would have gone down and we couldn't see anything. But does a little thing like darkness keep kids from playing outside? Kids can be pretty imaginative, especially if it means more play time. That must have been how someone came up with the game flashlight tag. Instead of playing tag by having to touch someone with your hand or by hitting them with a ball, you would have to find them in the dark with a flashlight and then call out their name. Then whoever got caught got a flashlight, too, and you kept trying to find everyone until everyone was found.

It's always kind of fun for those of us who are past their childhood years to look back with fondness on those days when we were kids and we did things that kids did, without a care in the world. But this morning the Holy Spirit wants us to look at the times that we are living in right now as the good days and live them accordingly -- as children of light, knowing what we were, and knowing what we are now as Christians.

The Apostle starts today with these words: "For you were once darkness." Paul was speaking mainly to those who had come to know Christ and believe in him as their Savior later in life as adults, whereas most of us probably don't remember a time when we weren't Christians. But we were once darkness as well because we were born sinful and received faith when we were baptized. But notice how Paul describes that kind of life before knowing Christ a couple verses later: "Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them." What we did and what we were, he says, is characterized by fruitlessness. That kind of imagery is found all over the Bible. You can recognize a believer in Christ by what that person does, which is compared to a tree and its fruit. If a believer were an apple tree, you would see it bearing apples. But if that tree was dead or rotten in its core, then you wouldn't see any fruit on it -- it would be fruitless. That describes an unbeliever, which is what we were -- living in the darkness of unbelief.

Jesus usually took the metaphor a little farther. A tree that doesn't bear any fruit is basically worthless. If you owned an apple orchard and one tree didn't produce any fruit, you would cut it down and plant another one so it wasn't using up the soil. And that's basically Paul's point -- an unbeliever is fruitless, and so also worthless, with regard to producing good fruit. That kind of tree will be cut down and thrown into the fire, a picture of eternal punishment for sin in hell for unbelievers. And that is what we used to be -- fruitless, worthless, on our way to hell because we were in the darkness of sin.

But notice that Paul even takes it one step further. He doesn't say that we were living in darkness, but that we actually were darkness itself. You have heard of a bad apple, right? It is usually used to describe someone who influences people to do bad things and brings everyone down, just like a bad apple could spread worms or disease to many good apples if they are all left together. Paul's point is that we weren't just bad trees and not bothering anyone, but we were actually active in being a bad influence on others. The parallel is this: We weren't just neutral in our unbelief; but we were God's enemies, actively being evil and influencing others to do the same because we were darkness itself. Now, an unbeliever can look like they're doing good things, like being a good neighbor or being a good citizen or going out of their way to help others, but the Bible tells us that "without faith it is impossible to please God." The only good that God is looking for is someone who is living for Christ and influencing others to live for Christ. Since an unbeliever can't do that, they can't please God in any way.

But before Paul goes on, he describes our former lives of darkness without Christ in another way. He says, "For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret." Shame also characterized our lives. Shame is like a person who is going out on a date with someone else and right when you are pulling in to their driveway to drop them off for the night, seeing a police car behind you with its lights blaring. Not only are you embarrassed in front of your date, but their parents as well. Shame is exactly what we feel when our lives of sin are exposed by the pure white light of God's holy law. Nothing is hidden before that light. It exposes everything. And when we see how terrible our sins are, we are ashamed of them. We are ashamed of them in this life, but we deserve to be ashamed of them forever away from God's presence.

Fruitless and shameful -- those words describe what a life without Christ is like. It is like living in complete darkness and living without hope. But when the light of Christ shines into our hearts, it changes everything. Then we become children of light through faith, still knowing that we were darkness, but also knowing that now we are light in the Lord.

Paul says in verse 8, "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light." Why is it good for us to know what we used to be as opposed to what we are now? Why is it good for Paul to remind us what we were -- children of darkness who could only offer God fruitless, shameful lives -- and what we are now -- children of light? Because it shows the contrast and how our lives should be different, and because it reminds us above all how that change took place. The Holy Spirit changed us by shining the light of the gospel of Jesus into our hearts.

I recently heard of a story of a Christian mission team that went to Ghana. They were planning on using a video to share the message of Jesus, but the light coming in through the windows washed out the video. So they asked if anyone in the congregation could translate for them. One man stepped forward, and as he was translating the message of Jesus, more and more people came to hear him speak. The mission team found out later that the man was a notorious gangster and had only recently come to see Jesus as his Savior. But you can imagine the impact of that former gangster telling about his love for his Savior and how it had changed his life. We can think of the Apostle Paul in the same vein. When the light of Jesus entered his heart, it changed his life completely.

Do you know what spelunking is? It's exploring caves. If you have ever been in a cave, far from the entrance, you know how bright light can be when you are used to absolute darkness. It blinds your eyes it is so bright. Well that's exactly what happened when Christ broke through our dark hearts of sin and entered with his saving grace. During Lent we remember what Christ did so that he could shine in our hearts; he went to the cross to shed his own holy blood so that the shame and fruitlessness and worthlessness of our past lives would be gone forever. In John's gospel Jesus describes himself as the Light of the world. Jesus didn't keep that perfect light of his holiness and righteousness to himself, though; he gave it to every single sinner who lived in darkness so that we would not only have the light of life, but that we would be light ourselves. In Matthew Jesus says that we are now the salt of the earth and the light of the world through faith in Christ.

With Christ living in our hearts, it is like the sun has been turned on as we wandered about in the darkest of caves. Suddenly, there is no more darkness. Suddenly, we aren't wandering around any more, but everything is clear. Light by its very nature doesn't just shine out in darkness, but it dispels darkness altogether. Light makes everything visible. Paul said the same thing: "Everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said: "Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."

You used to be a spiritually blind, dead-in-sin, enemy of God. But now the light of life has shined into your soul. Yes, it exposed your life for what it was -- worthless and shameful -- but it also led you to throw all of that darkness away and embrace the Light of salvation, Jesus Christ. Now you can shine that light on others as well. Expose their sins by showing how fruitless and shameful their lives are without Jesus, lead them to repent of those sins and throw them on Jesus and trust him to wash them away, and then tell them that their sins are forgiven just as yours are. In doing so, you will have won them over to the light of God's grace and changed their lives forever. It's just like playing a game of flashlight tag. Once you tag someone with the light of God's love, exposing their sins and also their Savior, then they can win others over to the light as well.

A very practical aspect of this might be someone you know and love who doesn't know Christ. What's better -- to let them go on in the darkness of unbelief and hope that someone will get through to them before they suffer eternal damnation, or to expose them to what their sin has earned for them, right now in this life, and lead them to their Savior so they can live forever with you in heaven? Where do we get the strength and courage to do that? Paul tells us: "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord." Finding out what pleases the Lord really means to prove your faith is genuine by living as a Christian. Live as children of light, not as children of darkness. Live in the goodness and righteousness and truth of God's forgiveness. Live as children of the light now as you win others for Christ because you know that you will be in God's light for all eternity.

Flashlight tag is just a game. It is something that some kid made up to pass the time when no light was to be found and kids still wanted to have fun. Using the light of Christ to win people for eternity is no game, and living as children of light is no game either, but it certainly can be fun. In fact, what else could we do as children of light? Amen.