Walking In Darkness
“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” (Ephesians 5:11-12).
Here is a simple command of scripture. “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness.” Now, for some of us it may seem that this is command simply not to commit sin. But, really, it’s a bit more than that. Darkness is more than just sinning. It is a way of living that takes no thought of God into account. It is to dwell in ungodliness and not care about the consequences. John discusses, Walk[ing] in darkness” (I John 1:6). Peter says we are called, “Out of darkness into his marvelous light” (I Peter 2:9). Elsewhere Paul calls us, “Children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness” (I Thessalonians 5:5). Paul also says in Colossians 1:13 that God, “Has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved son.” Notice how living in the light and the darkness are spoken of as kingdoms and domains.
What does it mean to walk in darkness? It means to conduct our lives without any thought toward God. It is to let sin have its complete reign over you. God is not the king for those who walk in darkness; Satan is. We may think that we are in control of our own lives. But the spiritual reality is that when we live in sin we are submitting ourselves to Satan’s ways, not God’s.
What kingdom do you walk in? It’s one thing to commit a sin and repent for it. In such cases, as we all experience, we continue to walk in the light because repentance is the difference between light and darkness. But for the person who continually sins, who doesn’t care about what he is doing, he is living in darkness. Only Jesus can take us from darkness to light. Just as in the beginning the world was in darkness and God created the light, so too, those who live in darkness can be brought out of that way of living into the light of God’s love.
Memory Verse
“He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:13-14).
Application
Are you struggling with a sin that you need to address? Walking in sin is to walk in darkness. What must you do to abandon a life of sin and walk in the light?