The young couple had been attending worship services for months. They appreciated the sermons and the welcoming attitude of the congregation. They felt at home and inquired about becoming members. Everything was very positive until suddenly without explanation they stopped coming. The pastor reached out to them to ask if something was wrong. The couple’s response was straightforward: “We realized that if we were to become members, we would have to change, and we weren’t ready to do that.” They recognized a truth about Christianity which many do not know or choose to ignore. Following Christ is more than sitting in the pew and saying the right words. It’s a dramatic change in attitude and lifestyle. The Apostle John urges believers to “walk in the light.”
To have fellowship with God means living in His light. Yet there are many who call themselves Christians who go on living in the darkness of unrepentant, sinful lifestyles. “God made me this way,” they argue. “He wants me to be happy. It’s my life.” But light and darkness cannot coexist. “For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and deabauchery. . . hatred, discord, jealously, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy. . . I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:17, 19-21 NIV)
At one time we were all lost in the darkness of sin and death, but God has called us out of darkness into the brilliant sunshine of His light in Christ. We have received Jesus’ righteousness and are saints in God’s eyes.
Are you walking in that light of Christ, or harboring hatred and grudges as payback toward those who have hurt you? Do you ignore the Word in order to blend in with the world? Are you holding onto some pet sin? That’s not walking in the light.
Christians sin, but they don’t continue to walk in the darkness as though it doesn’t matter. “How can we who died to sin still live in it?” (Romans 6:2) Love for the Lord Who first loved us moves us to turn from sin in sorrow, and look to the cross and empty tomb for the peace of forgiveness. “The blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.”
(verse 7)
It’s healthful to regularly ask, “Am I walking in the light?” Do my words and actions reflect a new heart in which the Spirit dwells?” Every act of Gospel-motivated kindness, service, and worship says, “Yes, you are walking in the light.” Let us walk in the light and cherish our fellowship with God and one another.
“This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1 John 1:5-7)
is a retired pastor and former president of the CLC. He lives in Phoenix, Arizona.