Sons of Light

We're coming to the end of John's account of Jesus' public ministry. The next section, starting with chapter 13, is Jesus' private conversation with His disciples. So, what we have here are some of Jesus' last words to the crowds. And those words include an appeal to the people. Listen to what Jesus said.

The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.

One of the first things to notice here is that Jesus once again talks about light and darkness. This is a theme that shows up in John quite a bit. Here are some examples.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 

And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.

I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.

So, we have light and darkness. The one is good and the other evil, and they are in conflict. And the light is centered on Jesus. He is the light. And so, He calls to the people to come to Him, to believe in the light. And He makes a promise to all who do come. They will become sons of light.

Now, this phrase, 'son of light', is a Hebrew way of talking. To be a son of something means that you take on the characteristics of that something. So, in the Old Testament you have the phrase 'a son of Belial'. 'Belial' means 'worthless'. A son of Belial is someone who is himself worthless. Jesus referred to Judas as 'a son of destruction'. Think about what is happening to him right now. James and John were labeled 'sons of thunder'. That reflected Jesus' opinion of their personalities, at least at that time.

Jesus promises to make all who come to Him sons of light. They will take on the characteristics of light. They will not be overtaken by the darkness. And Jesus is quite clear about the problems of being in darkness instead of light.

The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going.

Those who do not come to Jesus will be utterly lost in the darkness. They won't know where they are or how to get to where they want to go. So, they grope along in the darkness, stumbling over they don't know what. This describes every person you know who isn't a Christian. They try to make their lives work, but from time to time the truth peeks out. It isn't working. How could it? Remember that when you interact with them. They are people who are walking in darkness. Jesus says so.

But those who are His disciples shine with light. They see the path before them and follow it to the intended, glorious destination. They are like Jesus who is the light. And that describes you. You are sons of light. I can say that because you are disciples of Jesus. You believe in the light. You believe in Jesus. You are sons of light. You have the characteristics of light.

And that gets me to what I want to focus on. So, you are sons of light. Does that make a difference, or is it just more church words? I actually think that it affects how you live in a big way. Let me tell you how.

First, there's this. Since you are sons of light, you are not overtaken by the darkness. That is, you are not walking through life aimlessly, groping about, not sure which way is up. At the very least, as you think about that, you have every reason to be optimistic. If you were like your friends who do not follow Jesus, then you should be concerned. Who knows what's out there? You can't see because it's so dark. And life is just a bunch of questions with no answers. But you are not in the dark. You are sons of light. You have the light of life. To be sure, there are plenty of things that you don't know about life. Being in the light does not mean that everything is known. But it does mean that enough is known. And when more needs to be known you will be told.

Your unbelieving neighbors look to the future in fear. They should. All that awaits them is just more darkness, more groping, more stumbling. But you should not fear. When you need the darkness pushed back a little more, it will be. When you need to know what to do next, you'll be told. You are sons of light. So, instead of fear there is confidence. Jesus, the light, will guide you through this life.

Here's another difference. Consider the question, 'Who are you?' How do you answer that question? Some will say, 'Oh, I'm just a …' and then fill in the blank. It doesn't matter how the blank is filled in because, whatever it is, the person responding in this way is viewing himself as some insignificant nothing. 'I'm just a …' Instead of saying something like that, try this. 'I'm a bit of light, a reflection of Jesus, as yet imperfect but not for long.' Understanding that you are a son of light will affect your sense of yourself. While I understand what people are aiming at when they describe themselves as 'a sinner saved by grace', the emphasis shouldn't be on the 'sinner' part. You do sin, but, more importantly, you are a son of light. Your sense of yourself can be oh so positive. I hope that you can see how this fits with Jesus' mission here, something from last week's sermon. His making you sons of light fits with His goal of restoring humanity to its original beauty. That's why Jesus has made you sons of light. This is who you are. Believe it and be positive about yourself.

John wrote some things in his first letter that also answer our question about the difference that this makes. 

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.

Things happen when you walk in the light, when you live like who you really are, a son of light. John mentions two here. Here's one of them.

… the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

Even though you believe this part of the Gospel, even though you live as a son of light and walk in the light, there is still some sin, some darkness, in your life. But John teaches that as we live as sons of light the bits of darkness that remain will be cleansed away. There is progress. As you live like a son of light, you will be able to live even more as a son of light. The remnant darkness is being removed. More light takes its place. I think that that gives great encouragement. You can be so very optimistic about your future. You can live, more and more, as a son of light. You can become like Jesus.

Walking in the light as sons of light also creates fellowship.

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another.

Now, sadly, 'fellowship' is another church word. It has lost its original meaning. So, let's translate it. One good way to understand 'fellowship' is to tie it to Paul's image of the Church as the Body of Christ. Fellowship is all about understanding that I am a hand and you are an arm. We need each other. So, we work to get to know each other better so that we can function together better. That’s what fellowship is about. To say that differently, fellowship is about deep and intimate friendships between Christians because of what they share in Jesus. And it is these friendships that make or break a church. How can a body function well if its parts are scattered, unconnected, all over the place? The route to a faithful church, a thriving church, is through fellowship. But fellowship, real Christian fellowship, only happens if the parts of the Body are really connected, walking in the light, living as sons of light. The health of Faith Reformed is tied to your believing that you are sons of light and living that way. One result of that are the sincere friendships that develop.

But developing these friendships within the Church, the fellowship of the saints, this is not an end in itself. Listen to Jesus as He talks some more about light. This is from His Sermon on the Mount.

You are the light of the world.

Here, again, is the theme of light and darkness. Now, be careful. Jesus didn't say that each of you is a light in the world. His language is clear.

You (plural; all of you together) are the light (singular; the one light) of the world.

He's saying that His disciples together have a function that they are to pursue together. You, all of you, are, together, a light that shines in the darkness of this world. This is to be a quality of the Church. We are to shine the light into the darkness of this world. And it's clear that the world needs this light. The darkness is getting worse. It's getting darker. The Church of our day needs to step up and shine. But understand what the key to that is. It's all of you believing that you are sons of light and then, working at living that way. So, we pursue the fellowship of the saints here at Faith Reformed - friendships - in order that we together might shine brightly in our dark world.

Do you see what I've done? I started with Jesus' promise to all who believe in Him. All who come to Jesus are sons of light. And that means that you are sons of light. That is a fact of the Gospel. Because it is a fact, it is true of each of you, individually. Each of you is a reflection of Jesus. And that is something to believe and to relish. It is a reason to be very hopeful - very optimistic. This fact of the Gospel also affects us together, as a Church. As we live as sons of light we will have fellowship with each other. Friendships will develop and blossom and deepen. There will be some serious bonds holding us together. As a result, we will be able to shine brightly as the light of the world, the Church. There's the sermon in a paragraph.

So, what do you do? Three things.

First, believe the Gospel. In particular, believe the part of the Gospel that says everyone who comes to Jesus becomes a son of light. Believe that you are a son of light. One result of this belief is that you will live like a son of light. A person's life always reveals what he believes. This doesn't mean that you won't sin any more. But when you do you will realize that you are no longer stuck with that bit of darkness. Because you believe the Gospel you will repent of that sin and leave it in your past. You are a son of light and are becoming more so. And as that happens your sense of yourself will change. You will view yourself differently, better. You will understand your significance in God's kingdom. You are a son of light.

Second, pursue the fellowship of the saints. Or to say that in plain English, make friends here at Faith Reformed. If fellowship is a part of walking in the light like John says, then friendships, deep friendships with the other people here, are a part of the normal Christian life. So, as an act of believing this part of the Gospel, develop friendships here.

Third, pray. Pray for yourself. You have some work to do when it comes to believing that you are a son of light. Pray that the Spirit would help you to do better at believing this part of the Gospel. Then pray for the others here. They also have work to do in this area. The particulars might be different but the area that needs work is basically the same: believing that we are sons of light. Then pray for all of us together. Pray for Faith Reformed. Pray that we would shine with the light more and more brightly.