A lighthouse is bright and beautiful and it shines out on the edges of dangerous waters to warn ships of the shoreline. Did you know there are over 100 lighthouses along lake Michigan?
There is even one in Gary, called the Gary harbor breakwater lighthouse.
We live in a time of increasing darkness in the world, which is why we need God’s word more than ever, which is a light house to us, pointing us toward truth, and away from evil.
Deception is one of the enemy’s greatest weapons in spiritual warfare. If we are deceived, we won’t know true from false. Once we know truth, we will be able to see the light, become light, and resist darkness, and even help others escape from deception.
From Ephesians 4 verse 17, “With the Lord’s authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused.”
So many people in our world are hopelessly confused. They’ve been taught modernism in public school. They’ve learned nihilism, doing what feels good. They entertain themselves, listen to odd theories and ideas on YouTube and Tik-Tok. They believe false religions. They are devoted to their political ideology. They make excuses for bad behavior. Why?
Verse 18 gives us the answer: “Their minds are full of darkness.”
So fundamentally what we’re going to be talking about is the struggle between light and darkness.
Bear this in mind: It is possible to be a Christian and still be caught in some level of darkness.
It’s possible to be in a church and still be unsaved and completely in darkness.
It’s possible to be a believer and still not actively listen to God. This is a form of darkness.
Jesus talked about this dichotomy between darkness and light. Jesus even said, “I am the light of the world, anyone who believes in me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light that leads to life” (John 8:12).
If you want to see an entire gospel that deals with light vs. darkness, John’s gospel does just that. It says this:
“This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.” -John 3:19-21
So those living in darkness don’t want to come to the light because their deeds are evil, they don’t want the light to expose those evil deeds. Yet something draws us to the light, even in our sins. So when God touches our hearts, we draw near to the light, even though the darkness is in us, and Jesus forgives us our sins, we become light, so that the light will show that we’ve done things in obedience to God.
So that is the battle going on in the world right now, most people attempt to stay away from God, they fear their misdeeds being shown. Others come to the light, having been redeemed, and want others to have the light too.
The second part of verse 18 says, “…they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him.”
What causes someone to reject God, even when they perceive the light? Two things: a closed mind and a hardened heart.
The mind becomes annoyed when presented with information about God, and snaps shut.
The heart feels the tug of God’s love but refuses it and hardens itself and becomes numb.
This is how humans block God from their lives. They know deep down he exists, that he wants their lives to change, and that he will help them live purely, but people resist.
Why would someone shut their mind and harden their heart?
Verse 19 explains this: “They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.”
They have lost the ability to blush. They can’t feel shame for the bad things they do. They’ve convinced themselves those bad things are right. They live for pleasure. And they know they’d have to give up those pleasures if they came into the light. So they stay in darkness. And darkness controls them. They are deceived in their minds.
And they eagerly practice every kind of impurity. Because in the moment it feels good.
Verse 20 says, “But that isn’t what you learned about Christ.”
Deceptions can be seductive, particularly if there are false ideologies we’re believing that’ll make us popular with the world. So slowly you’ll see Christians allow those ideologies into their churches, into their minds, and slowly, the deception takes over.
You’ll see many believers “deconstruct” their faith, try to pull it apart and see how its actually false or only half true. Again, they’ve allowed deception in the door, and once we do, it begins to take over.
Verses 21-22 help us here: “Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception.”
A Christian is brought slowly from darkness into light, slowly delivered from dark spots in our thinking and emotions. Slowly but surely they are removed, they go from darkness, to gray, to light.
We make all sorts of excuses to remain in darkness: I’m not one of those Christians who are wacky”
“Nobodies perfect man!”
“I fall short everyday but his grace is enough”
“Jesus doesn’t care about what I do he just wants my heart”
“I sin everyday but Jesus has got me.”
We make these excuses to stay in darkness. I don’t have time to read my Bible. I’m too busy to pray. Jesus won’t mind if I watch this demonic movie just once.
Stop. Making. Excuses. You know what the Holy Spirit is saying to you. Let the Lord lead you into light and out of darkness. You’re going to be much happier as a result. You’re going to feel much more pure and lighter, not so heavy anymore. You’re going to have so much more joy. There are real benefits.
Set aside the religious one liners and go deeper with Jesus. Dare to believe, focus in, make the dive into deeper waters. Don’t worry, your lifeguard Jesus walks on water.
We’re given a command; “Throw off” your old sinful nature. Throw it off. Let’s pray and throw it off right now.
Prayer: Lord I take all those things, the excuses I’ve made, the sins I’ve hidden, the old ways of thinking, and I throw them off, I throw off my old sinful nature, and I choose Jesus and his purity to reign in my life. I declare Jesus is on the throne of my heart right now, in Jesus name, amen.
Throw off a second thing here: Throw off your old way of life.
I had a pattern of doing things. Watch TV, play video games all day, doom scroll on social media, go to a recovery group, watch porn, go to bed. I had politics I liked, philosophies I liked, horror movies I liked, screamo and post-punk music I liked, deranged books I liked, vulgar comedy I liked, and that whole way of life had to change completely.
But once you stop resisting it and say, “You know what, I’m going to change this stuff. I want to change this stuff!” Then it happens very smoothly. And you find Christian stuff to replace it with. There’s a great Christian movie called The Forge that deals with this process quite well.
I would rather watch 10 cheesy Christian movies than 1 secular movie. Why? Because when I listen to secular music, or watch secular movies, it drains me. Try it sometime, watch something secular, then something Christian, and see how you feel at the end of each. I always feel drained after a secular movie, always energized after a Christian movie.
Why? Because a Christian movie will radiate a certain level of God’s power. If it’s not very well done, not prayerfully done, it will be a low level. Not a lot power, but still better than a drain.
Now if it’s done well, prayerfully, Spirit led, like a show like the Chosen, or the Forge, it will radiate a high level of anointing and power.
As you pray, and seek the Spirit discernment, you’ll sense the anointing on different things. You could say that anointing is reflective of the level of light in their content.
In all that you are doing what verses 23-24 talk about: “Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. 24 Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.”
As you choose to get rid of your old ways of doing things, and embrace new ways, you are letting the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.
Prayer: Lord, we confess there are things in our lives that don’t belong. But we lack wisdom and discernment to know what they are. Please convict us, show us what needs to go, and give us the joy and courage to follow through with it, in Jesus name, amen.
So we end up putting on our new nature, our thoughts (mind) and attitudes (heart) are both changed.
The new nature is a gift from God through Jesus. It’s not something we’re creating. Notice again that we are not doing this alone. Jesus gave us a new nature, we are putting it on, like a shirt, a hoody, we put on and wear. It’s a gift.
Notice also, we are not forcing our heart and mind to become new. The Holy Spirit is leading a process in us, he is the leader in it, not us. Allow the Spirit to lead you in practices that renew your heart and mind.
The mind is renewed by seeing how the scripture applies to the world around you. As you see basic truths like, many around you walk in darkness, your mind is renewed. As you see that each person is made in God’s image, it renews your mind. You are thinking correctly, instead of wrongly.
The heart is renewed in a similar way, as we take these truths to heart, we no longer just think it, we feel it. We long for lost people to know Jesus in our heart, because we love them and want that for them.
Next, we get some examples of real ways we can walk in the light:
Verse 25: “So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body.”
I remember when I was new on campus at training college one of my session mates would ask me a question and I’d start answering and she’d laugh and say “stop lying!”
Many of you might think, well I don’t lie anymore I’m a Christian. But double check this one.
For years, I mean like eight or nine years, and still sometimes I’ll do it, I’d just lie for no reason. Someone would ask me something and I wouldn’t know what to say so I’d just lie.
That still counts as a lie. And lying is a sin. Some of us are in such a pattern of lying, even anxiously lying, that we don’t even realize we do it. But that to can be dealt with by the Spirit.
Here’s one we all need to learn: Verses 26-27: “And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.”[d] Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil.”
Are you an angry person? Some people I love have shared with me that there is an anger inside them. They don’t know why it’s there or where it came from, but it’s powerful. I can relate. Anger can take over in my heart, and I end up saying things I regret later.
It is not wise to let anger control you. People can use it to manipulate you, even to make a fool out of you.
If you feel controlled by your anger, there is hope. It doesn’t have to.
How can someone be free from anger controlling you? First of all know that all anger isn’t bad. The scriptures say, be angry, but do not sin. We should allow anger when it’s warranted.
But what about when anger controls us? We must find the root of the anger. Why am I angry? Where did it come from? Did something happen in my past? Then, we can confess the anger to God, and ask Him to take it away. We may also need to express the anger, let it out in a healthy way. Process the root of the anger, and find healing.
Next, verses 28-29: “If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. 29 Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.”
Quit stealing. Don’t lie. These are all commands from God. They are not optional, to violate them brings real consequences. We all know that.
Now, your first step might be to say well I’ll try to quit doing that. No. Don’t do that. First thing you should do is pray, tell God about it honestly, ask His forgiveness, and then do something powerful called “repent.” This is where you turn away from the thing, and turn toward God. You turn your back on the old practice. This is powerful. Then, let the Spirit help you stay free from that bad thing. Much more powerful.
Don’t use foul language. I think we can all relate to cussing and foul language. It slips out, and we realize, oh no, I shouldn’t have done that.
Why does it matter so much? Because any sin starts out small but grows larger and larger ,like a small fire grows out of control. A single cuss can grow, into a pattern of bad language, and that leads to rude behavior, that leads to speaking poorly of others, and it even leads to gossip. Sin always starts small, but grows. The tongue is a small thing, but, it can lead us astray like a small rudder on a ship can move the entire ship. For more on that see the book of James.
Next, verse 30: “And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own,[e] guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.”
Do not grieve the Holy Spirit, is a better translation. The Holy Spirit is who lives within us after we became Christians. The Holy Spirit will convict us when we do something sinful. If we do something terribly sinful, I mean something very bad, we can grieve the Holy Spirit, which is a greater offense.
We’re told to remember that the Spirit has marked us, as a seal guaranteeing we will be saved on the day of redemption. But also remember, a seal can be broken, so don’t grieve the Spirit persistently.
Next, verse 31: “Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior.”
Paul ties it all together, the battle between darkness and light. Get rid of all these remaining vestiges of darkness in your heart and mind. They are things that exist in the world, in all the endless billions of people without Jesus, who are darkened in their thinking.
Verse 32: “Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”
Instead wear that bright light Jesus has given you, allow that light of Jesus to lighten the remaining dark places in your mind and heart. And they will turn bright and beautiful. You will grow increasingly tender hearted, loving, kind, and forgiving. The ultimate act of love is forgiving others, because God has forgiven us.
In conclusion, we see darkness that affects people throughout this world. They are darkened in mind and heart. It keeps them far from God. But we carry the light, and the light shines brightly into their confused darkness. Sometimes they resist it, often they resist it, but sometimes they are at the right moment to hunger for the light in you. And the light you carry, you can help bring it to them. And then they become a light when they let Jesus, the true light transform them and live within them and they are changed.
Yet even within the church the battle continues, every believer is at some stage of the process of going from darkness to light. And sometimes we get stuck and say well I’m bright enough! No, you’re still gray, go all the way, walk through the next door, don’t resist, keep pushing toward that ultimate brightness, which is Jesus. Grow brighter and brighter. And others will come to your light and find the true light.
How does coming out of darkness work? This is true for a non-believer, it’s also true for a Christian who is coming to the light in some specific area.
1. We see the light from a distance, like an open door way. It bothers us, annoys us, we want to flee, yet it seems to call to us.
2. We wrestle back and forth inside and eventually we start to move toward the light. We grope in the darkness toward the light (Acts 17:27).
3. We stand at the threshold, we’re afraid, we want to run away because it’s new, it’s different, but at last we decide to take the leap of faith, we want something new.
4. We come into the light, we go from darkness to light and we’re amazed, the whole world lights up, our minds light up, and we’re free because we dared to believe.
5. We are now armed with the knowledge of what it took to get us from darkness to light and we use that wisdom to show others how to escape the deception and find the truth, and come into the light.
