People of Light
Light Verses Darkness – Part III
Scripture Reading: Ephesians 5:1-9
Key Verse: Ephesians 5:8
For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So, live as people of light!
We have been studying the 5th chapter of Ephesians, comparing light and darkness in the spiritual realm. Ephesians 5:6 warns believers:
Don’t be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey Him.
If we think about it, we often hear these excuses in our world and sometimes in the church. When things please us or satisfy a craving of the flesh, it is easy to find an excuse that helps us justify it.
When I start down that path, I hear a small inner voice reminding me that God’s strength can enable me to be victorious in all temptations. Victory over temptation is only possible by staying in step with God’s Spirit. God has taken on the job of reminding us of truth but leaves us with the responsibility to live in that truth!
I heard someone say, “if you’re questioning whether you should do something, you probably shouldn’t do it.” When we start this kind of questioning, recognize that the Holy Spirit is slowing us down and helping us to be cautious. During these moments of questioning, we are vulnerable to the devil’s excuses to commit sin, or at least do things that would not be beneficial to our lives.
The Apostle Paul speaks to these areas in 1 Corinthians 10:23:
You say, I have the right to do anything- but not everything is good for you…
Let us remind ourselves that staying in step with God’s truth leads to good things in our lives. This fights the devil’s lies that obeying God makes us miss what pleases our flesh.
We have all found ourselves trying to excuse something but have this inner nudge that God might not want it for us. The safest way to manage these moments is to err on the side of not acting. This is biblical:
But if you have doubts about whether or not you should eat something, you are sinning if you go ahead and do it. For you are not following your convictions. If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning. (Romans 14.23)
Paul is saying that something that is not sin for someone else is sin for you if you believe it is not right. If there is something that seems harmless but still causes doubt in your mind, seek wisdom from the Bible as well as a trusted spiritual counselor.
This falls under the category of:
Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. (Ephesians 5:10)
Final word on this subject: if you have doubt, don’t!
Father, give me wisdom and strength to figure out what You want me to do or not do in my life. I want my light to shine bright. In Jesus’s Name, amen.