“A Light For A Dark World.”
Eph.
5:8-14
The author Edith Wharton wrote, “There are
two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects
it.” Her observation about light takes
us back to the day when candles were used for illumination. When people used such candles they would
surround the light source with reflectors to disperse the light throughout the
darkened room. Without the candle the
reflectors remained dark and useless, but when the candle’s source light shined
upon them they performed a noble and useful function.
In today’s epistle the apostle speaks to
us in the same way about how God spreads His saving light in the world. Christ is the candle and we are the mirrors.
I.
Christ Is The Source Of Light.
(v.14)
A. We live in a world that has been darkened by
sin, and is desperately in need of a saving and sanctifying light.
1. As much as we may try to make excuses for all
the social ills, close our eyes to the calloused culture of death and violence,
or deny the base, crude and insatiable lusts which have seized control of our
society, the divine truth is that our world is marked by shameful disobedience to
God.
2. We may manage to keep our sinful thoughts and
ways well hidden from others, but without Christ we are as black and useless as
mirrors without a candle. St. Paul
reminds of this, saying, “at one time you
were darkness” (v.8a) You see, it’s
not just the world out there that needs the saving and sanctifying light of
God, its all of us right here. By nature
we are nothing but darkness and death.
More often than we would like to admit, we have been like the people
described in our Old Testament reading - people who have been blind and deaf to
everything God has shown us and said to us, people who go on with our lives
while paying no attention to the way of the Lord. (Nt. Is.
42:19-20)
Because we and the whole sin-darkened
world needed Gods saving and sanctifying light God sent His Son to shine on us.
B. Jesus is the light we all need to bring us
out of the darkness of death and into the light of eternal life. Just as He brought the blind man out of his darkness
through His Word our Savior does the same for us.
In the first chapter of John’s Gospel Christ
is identified as the source and giver of light and life. His holy and sacrificial life, so filled with
the revelation of God’s grace and truth, is what gives light to everyone.
By his death on the cross he removed the
shroud of sin and death that covered all people, and pulled down the veil that
covered our faces so that we can now see the light of God’s love. Jesus fulfills the prophesy of Isaiah, “turn[ing] the darkness into light.” (Is. 42:16) In the temple at
To deliver us from our darkness and redeem
our lives for His glorious purpose God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to shine on
us and awaken us from our spiritual slumber.
Through the Gospel the Holy Spirit throws open the shades of our gloomy
rooms of sin and death and causes Christ to shine on us to give us new and
eternal lives in the kingdom of heaven.
The result is that…
II. We Are Now Light In The Lord. (vv. 8b-13)
A. Because Christ, the source of light and life,
has shined upon us we “who were once
darkness…are now light in the Lord.”
(v.8b) And just like the candle’s light is reflected
and dispersed through the mirrors surrounding it to brighten the room, Jesus has
made us to reflect and disperse His pure light to brighten the world in which
we live.
Because we are now light in the Lord we have a
responsibility as the apostle says to “live
as children of light.” (v.8c) Our Lord Jesus says, “You are the light of the world.
A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
Neither do people light and lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it
gives light to everyone in the house. In
the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good
deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” (Matt. 5:14-16)
Living as children of the light means
that we will “have nothing to do with the
fruitless deeds of darkness” (v.11), but instead bring forth “the fruit of the light.” (v.9) Our life in Christ
is new and different and should by the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in
us “consist of all goodness,
righteousness and truth.” (v.9) We cannot be content
to live any longer in darkness, because we are light in Christ. We cannot allow ourselves to conform any
longer to the pattern of this world, because that is not who we are. We have been called and recreated in Christ
through our baptism to be and to live as children of the light.
While we are not able to, and on this side
of heaven will never be able to, perfectly bear the fruits of the light of
Christ, we will by God’s grace never stop trying! As children of the light we know that we are always
being enlightened with the gifts of the Holy Spirit, so we keep on worshiping
and receiving His blessings; we keep on studying God’s Word and discovering His
will; and we keep on looking to “find out
what pleases the Lord.” (v.10) Our whole life is lived for the purpose of “declaring the praises of him who called
[us] out of darkness into his wonderful light.”
(1 Pet. 2:9) We want to be
mirrors to spread the saving and sanctifying light of Christ to all the world.
B. All we have to do is look around to see that
deep darkness still overshadows the world in which we live. We, the children of light, have been called
to expose that darkness.
We can do this, and expose everything for
what it is by the true light of God’s Word.
Paul admonishes us to: “expose [the deeds of darkness]” (v.11) , adding that, “..everything
exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is light that makes everything
visible.” (vv.13-14a) Shameful
deeds should be spoken against and disclosed for what they are, violations of
God’s commandments. Abortion cannot be
defended as a “right to choose” but must be exposed by the light of God’s Word
as the murder of the unborn. Men and
women shacking-up without benefit of marriage cannot be represented as a
practical and moral option, but must be exposed as a defilement of the marriage
bed and adultery. Lying and cheating
cannot be hidden under the cloak of smart business, but must be exposed as the
sins they are. And if we, the children
of light, will not make the deeds of darkness visible, who will? We have been made light in Christ so that we
can testify against every form of human corruption and degradation.
Our purpose is not so that we can
gratify a sick and sinful desire to uncover the weaknesses of others or claim
for ourselves moral superiority. This
would only leave us to be sucked into the black-hole of damnable
self-righteousness. The reason we expose
the fruitless deeds of darkness in our world is so that others may also be awakened
and live. Our goal is to call sinners to
repentance and then reach out to them with the Gospel. We want to shine the light of Christ on them,
so that they may know that all their deeds of darkness are forgiven. Yes, even their sins of murder, sexual
immorality, lying and stealing – any and every fruitless deed, has been nailed
to the cross and buried in Jesus’ tomb.
We have the privilege of letting the light of Christ’s resurrection
shine on others so that can wake up and live with us as children of light.
Concl.: My family in
Christ our world is in desperate need of light.
Christ is that light and we are the ones he has made holy and blessed
through faith to reflect that light for the sake of others. So, “Wake
up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” (v.14) Amen.