Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Sermon preached on Ephesians 5:6-14 by Rev. W. Reid Hankins during the Morning Worship Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 06/14/2026 in Petaluma, CA.
Sermon Manuscript
Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div.
Today’s passage clearly deals with the theme of light versus darkness. These terms describe the spiritual condition of people. Ever since mankind fell dead in sin in Adam, the world has been in a state of darkness. Mankind has experienced a spiritual blindness, and the effects of such are easily seen. Yet, since the fall, God has been working to redeem a people out this darkness and bring them into his marvelous light. Genesis shows how quickly two sides started to form. Cain and his godless seed were clearly in the dark. Yet light was beginning to shine in Seth and his godly descendants. But, the darkness spread, even polluting the godly line with its deceptions. Fast forward to today, God’s redemptive work has become all the more clearly seen as his light is shining through Christ and his church. Yet, the conflict between this present darkness and the light of Christ continues. Today’s passage illumines this topic for us, helping us to compare and contrast the light from the dark. May we each be of the light and no longer in the dark.
To that end, we will study this passage in three points. Verse 8 becomes a helpful outline to approach this whole passage. It says, “For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.” So then, our first point will consider how, at one time we were darkness. Second, we’ll consider how we are now light in the Lord. Third, we’ll consider the command to walk as children of light. This verse not only gives us a wonderful outline, but shows how applicable this passage is. While we Christians have come into the light, we are called to live accordingly. Let us dig in.
We start, then, in our first point, considering how we used to be darkness. Such darkness describes how humanity has been spiritually blind, not able to see the light of God and know him or the goodness and truth that is in him. Because of this, we are naturally in a state of total depravity with total inability to solve it on our own. While it is true that ultimately, everyone has some knowledge of God deep inside them, the darkness of natural man has so covered up that knowledge that they have effectively become spiritually ignorant to the things of God.
Let us see this passage passages describes the ramifications of this darkness. Verse 11 explains that this darkness results in unfruitful works. That language of unfruitful is very descriptive in context. Verse 9 describes how light has fruit that comes from it. But verse 11 won’t even call, what comes from darkness, fruit. Light brings forth good fruit, darkness brings forth evil not-fruit. Specifically, verse 11 says it brings forth these unfruitful works. If we go back to verse 6, we can see some specific examples of such evil works. There, Paul talks about “these things” that incur God’s wrath. That’s referring to the three things we studied last week, the sexual immorality, the impurities, and the covetousness. These are examples of the works of darkness and those who are identified by such things are in the darkness. Sins like sexual immorality are a “fruit” of the darkness, a fruit which is no fruit, but an evil expression of the darkness. Now, understand those three things, while they are broad categories, they are only examples. Any evil violation of God’s law is a fruitless work of the darkness. To embrace them is to be deceived.
Indeed, the lie of suck darkness can be further seen in verse 12. The passage goes on there to explain that these evil works of darkness are often shameful things done in secret. It says they are so shameful, we would be ashamed to even talk about them. Now, this is an important aspect of the ramifications of darkness. Not only are people in a state of darkness by their spiritual blindness, but even their wicked actions are done in darkness. I am referring to how it says here that their most shameful deeds are done in secret. This is how most people sin. They don’t advertise their sin. They try to keep their sin hidden. They want their evils to remain in the darkness so others don’t know about them. Now, yes, sometimes the darkness gets so dark in a society that even shameful deeds start getting celebrated. But that just shows how dark the whole society has become. Let us be very clear hear that sin done in the darkness is still sin. People in such darkness don’t want to agree with that. Maybe you’ve heard someone say, “the church should stay out of people’s bedrooms.” The premise is that what consenting adults do in the privacy of their own homes is none of the business of the church. Yet, that is darkness talking. Sin wants to keep the light out. God clearly has something to say about what happens in the privacy of people’s homes. Doing things in private doesn’t make it right. Rather, often people do something in private because it isn’t right.
So then, with that brief description of darkness, let us recognize that verse 8, speaking to us Christians, says that we too at one time were darkness. Wow. It doesn’t just say we were in a state of darkness, but that we were darkness. The darkness identified us! Like verse 6, we too at one point were under God’s wrath as sons of disobedience living in this darkness. Look at verse 14 at this reference likely inspired from Isaiah. It says, “Awake, O sleeper!” It says, “Arise from the dead.” That is the call made to any who is still darkness. It describes them as spiritually asleep, and even spiritually dead. Let us appreciate how dark and dead our former estate was without the light of Christ.
This leads us then to our second point. Let us next consider how we have become light in the Lord. What a wonderful complement in verse 8 to how we used to be darkness. Now we become light. Not just that we come into the light. We become light! Notice how verse 8 explains the change. We become light, “in the Lord”. Here, we have that union with Christ language return to Ephesians. This is all what we already learned back in Ephesians 2. Remember, there we were taught that we used to be dead in our sin and under God’s wrath, but God made us alive together with Christ! How then do we come into the light? It’s by our union with Christ that we come into the light and are even made light. This same truth is said there in that reference in verse 14. The sleeper awakes and the dead are raised by Christ who then shines his light on us. True, verse 14 commands us to wake up and rise up. But, I understand these commands as performative. Like how Jesus commanded the dead Lazarus to come out of the tomb, and he came out, so too, our Lord commands us to wake up and rise up and, by his powerful word and Spirit, we obey! So then, Christ wakes us and raises us and shines his light on us, turning that which at one time was darkness into what is now light. Praise be to God!
This radical change describes our regeneration. To be born again, is to have Christ awaken you and enlighten you. I love how the Bible speaks with different imagery about this wonderful work of God. It’s what Jesus told Nicodemus when he came to him in John 3. No one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again, from above, by the Holy Spirit. Otherwise, we are spiritually blind. We do not see the things of God. We do not recognize the Lord or our need for him. We are stumbling around, justifying our sin, thinking ourselves in the right. But when the Holy Spirit shines the light of Christ into our hearts, our minds our enlightened in the knowledge of Christ. We suddenly have spiritual eyesight. We see God as the sovereign Master over all creation. We see our sin and our need for a savior. We recognize that Jesus is that savior. That light transforms us as we receive Christ and come into a right relationship with the Lord.
Now when we talk about such enlightenment and being awakened to the truth, we might hear in that terminology similar language used by other cultural movements. For example, in the 17th Century, the period known as Age of Enlightenment began. While some positive things came out of that movement, essentially it was claiming that humans can bring themselves into the light by reason and science. But Paul doesn’t say, “Now you are light by autonomous human reasoning.” In fact, the godlessness that undergirded the Enlightenment shows how much humanity was still in the dark. Likewise, in the mid 1900s, the term “woke” began to describe people who had become awake to real issues of racism and other social inequalities. That “woke” cultural movement shares the language here of a sleeper waking up. But Paul doesn’t say here, “Awake, O Sleeper… and social consciousness will shine on you.” He says, “Awake… and Christ, will shine on you.” The problems in human society must ultimately be seen and addressed from the light Christ brings. To use an example more close to home, consider the Great Awakenings in America. These were specifically movements among Christianity associated with periods of revival. Some of the revival that came from those movements was surely real light from Christ awaking dead souls unto salvation. But not all of what came from the Great Awakenings was in line with what is good, right, and true. My point in mentioning these various movements, is to say that there are a lot of claims out there of being enlightened or awakened. But we must discern if they are truly light or not. With any cultural movement, even one that comes in the name of Christianity, we must discern if they match up with what we find here. This is to say, that we want to be enlightened with the true light, and we want to be awakened to what is good, right, and true, as found in Jesus Christ.
Indeed, this is what we all here have experienced, if you are a born-again Christian. And yet, if you are here today, and have not yet come into the light, I want to call you to Christ right now. This very sermon is the light of Christ shining brightly forth through his Word! And so, Christ gives you those words from verse 14. Awake, O sleeper! Arise from the dead! Don’t run from the light, but turn to Christ. May his light shine upon you in its full brightness. May it expose your sin and your need for his salvation. May it draw you to faith in his name, that even today you would be converted. Today, you can be transformed from darkness to light. Today, you can go from being a son of disobedience to a son of God. Look upon Jesus, call upon his name, and you will be saved. May we all be light, today!
This then leads us to our third point. To us who are now light in the Lord, we are commanded to “walk in the light”. Do you see how the indicative leads us to the imperative? We are to walk in light of what we’ve become! Let’s spend some time considering what it looks like to walk as children of light.
First, verse 11 commands us to take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness. Our old self did such things, now we are called to put off the deeds of darkness. In its place, we are to put on the that which comes from the light. Verse 9 gives us three words to describe the fruit of light. It says it is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth. Let me point out that this is another case where it says “fruit” not “fruits”. In other words, when we hear what is good, right, and true, we should not try to separate them and treat them each as separate fruits. Rather, that which comes from the light must be all three at the same time. For example, something that might seem good but is not right and true, is not of the light. Eve in the garden saw that the fruit of the forbidden tree was good for food, but it was not right for her to eat it. In the end, she found that Satan’s darkness was a lie and no light was in him.
So then, let me define those three things, the good, the right, and the true. Begin with the “good”. This is such a broad word and thus can be used in various senses. Morally, that which is good is not evil. Qualitatively, that which is good is not bad. Relationally, that which is good is benevolent. Good is beneficial. Good’s purpose glorifies God. That which is good pleases God. Good reflects God’s character. That which is good is commendable. That which is not good is condemnable. And so, goodness is beautiful and lovely. The evil and the bad, in contrast, are ugly. So that’s a little about what is good. The light is good.
Next, consider what is “right”. This is a judicial word to describe what conforms to God’s law. Something is righteous if it does not transgress God’s law but keeps it. So, for something to be right means it is just and upright according to God’s standards. The darkness does not see God’s standards, and so those who are darkness either have no standards or make their own. But that’s not right, it’s wrong. The light is right.
Lastly, consider what is “true”. That which is true is not false. It is not a lie. It does not look to deceive. It says what things really are. It properly represents reality. This especially includes truth about God and the true religion. The light acknowledges the one true God and identifies him truly. That’s even what theology is, to speak of God in truth. This truth also evaluates ourselves and the world around us properly. It sees what needs to be put off in our life. It sees what needs to be put on in our life. It tells us what is good and right for us, not lying to us with deceitful desires. As Paul said last chapter, we learn the truth in Jesus, which is teaching us to be conformed to God’s image in truth. Likewise, he said we help each other grow as we speak the truth to one another in love.
So then, the fruit of light is that which is good, right, and true. For us to walk as children of light, it means we are walking in those things which are good and right and true. Verse 10 then goes on to extend this idea. It says that we try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. How can we discern that? Well, again, use those three items. God is pleased by that which is good, right, and true. We can use those categories to reflect on anything to see if it is pleasing to God. Let’s consider some examples. Examine how you treat others. Can you say your treatment of them is good, right, and true? Examine what you do in your home when no one else is around. Is it good, right, and true? Examine the thoughts that come into your mind. Are they good, right, and true? You think no one else knows your thoughts, but remember that God knows them. May we look to please God because we are children of the light.
Now on this last point while we are thinking about walking as children of light, I want us to recognize the warning this passage is giving us. Look at verse 6. It says, “Let no one deceive you.” In other words, part of why this passage is calling us to walk as children of the light is because there are children of darkness trying to turn you away from the light. Instead of speaking truth, they are lying to you. To walk in the light means we need to not believe their darkness. Likewise, verse 7 goes on to say, “Don’t partner with them.” The word here for partner means don’t share or participate along with them in their deeds of darkness. In other words, the world with their darkened minds will you try to get you to join in with them in their sin. They won’t understand why you won’t, indeed they can’t. They may persecute when you reject their temptations. Paul warns us about such people.
But then Paul takes it one step further down starting in verse 11. He doesn’t just warn us about these people, he says we should expose their darkness, verse 11. The word for expose carries the idea of calling someone to repent. You are shining light on their darkness so that they will see it for the evil that it is. What they should do then is to embrace the light and turn from it. This is what verses 13 and 14 goes on to say. Paul says that when we expose their dark deeds to the light, it all becomes visible. But then it goes on to say that what is made visible then becomes light! Now, that is a profound statement. But I think it is speaking in grand spiritual terms and how Jesus can you use us in the process of bringing people to the light. We are involved in spiritual warfare, against the spiritual forces of evil, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness. When we have opportunity to lovingly confront someone on the darkness that has gripped them, God very well may use that to convict them of their sin. As we shine Christ’s light on them, through the powerful Word of God, that may become the moment such new birth happens for them. You might witness darkness turning to light!
So then, as children of light, let us indeed walk in the light. Let us look to live lives that please God in goodness, righteousness, and truth. Let us even look to see how we can shine this light on others. We have been made to be the light of the world to shine the light of Jesus. As we endeavor to so shine, let us remember why and how we shine. It is because Jesus has and continues to shine in our hearts. May we abide in his light, and may his light abide in us. Let us delight to display his light in how we live and in how we tell others about him. Praise be to God!
Amen.
Copyright © 2025 Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div.
All Rights Reserved.
