Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.
The epistle reading this morning is Ephesians chapter 5, verses 8–14. “At one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, ‘Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.'” Paul wrote the book of Ephesians to a congregation that needed a fresh perspective on who they were as a congregation. He said to them: at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light, for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true, and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Christians are called to be different, and to be known for something different than the world, and Paul puts it in three words: the good, the right, and the truth. That’s what Christians are supposed to be about. The question for each and every one of us, individually and collectively, is: does your thinking and believing and living as a Christian demonstrate that you are committed to the good, the right, and the truth? For this is what Christians are to be about. All that is good, all that is right, and all that is true — the fruit of the light, children of the light.
But the world is not very good at defining words these days, especially words like “good” and “right” and “truth,” and so the devil fills the void. That is the condition of the world in which we live today, that Paul was writing to. He talks about a world in which everyone defines for themselves what is good and what is right and what is true. Our society, the world in which we live, says that what is good and right and true is for each individual to determine for themselves, and that no one can be told what is good and what is right and what is true — that would be judgmental, that would be bigotry. But the world is still willing to judge. Indeed, they judge with the wrong standards. So instead of the good, the right, and the true, the world is filled with what Paul calls the unfruitful works of darkness. And when Paul says “at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord,” he is saying to the people of Ephesus, and to us, that you used to be defined by the darkness, and now you have been defined by the light that is in Jesus Christ. The darkness is not just the absence of light; the darkness is the world of sin, of rebellion against God, of doing what is wrong and evil and false. The light is the Word of God, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which creates faith and produces the fruit of the light.
Now the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true. Let’s consider those three words. First, the good. What is good? The world says what is good is what feels good, what makes me happy, what advances my cause. But the Bible says that which is good is what God has declared to be good. In Genesis, when God made the world, he saw that it was good. Good is defined by the Creator, not by the creature. Good is that which God approves of, that which God blesses, that which flows from God’s own nature. And what is right? The world says what is right is what the majority thinks, or what the law permits, or what my group demands. But the Bible says that which is right is what accords with God’s Law, with his commandments. Right is righteousness — doing what God commands, living according to his will. And what is true? The world says truth is relative, that everyone has their own truth, that truth changes with the times. But the Bible says truth is what God has revealed. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” Truth is not a matter of opinion. Truth is the Word of God, which endures forever.
Christians are to walk as children of light. That means we are to be about the good, the right, and the true — not as the world defines them, but as God defines them in his Word. This is not optional. This is the fruit of the light. When the light of Christ shines in us, it produces good works, right living, and true confession. And we are to “try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.” That is, we are to test everything by the Word of God. We are to examine our lives, our choices, our words, our deeds, and ask: is this pleasing to the Lord? Does this accord with his Word? This is the life of the Christian — a life of discernment, a life of testing all things by Scripture, a life of walking in the light.
But Paul also says, “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.” Christians are not to participate in the sins of the world. We are not to join in with the darkness. Instead, we are to expose the darkness by the light. The light exposes what is hidden. When the light of God’s Word shines, it reveals sin for what it is. And this is why the world hates the light — because the light exposes their deeds. But we, as children of light, are called to shine the light, to speak the truth, to call sin what it is, and to proclaim the Gospel of forgiveness in Jesus Christ.
And then Paul quotes what appears to be an early Christian hymn: “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” This is a call to wake up from the sleep of sin, from the death of unbelief, and to rise to new life in Christ. Christ shines on us — in our Baptism, in his Word, in his Supper — and we become children of light. We who were once darkness are now light in the Lord. This is the great exchange: Christ took our darkness, our sin, our death, upon himself on the cross, and he gives us his light, his righteousness, his life.
So walk as children of light. Be about the good, the right, and the true. Discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but expose them. And awake, O sleeper, arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you. Amen.
May the peace that surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.