But nobody likes strangers coming out of the dark uninvited. Usually folks travel at night have a reason for it, and generally it ain’t a good one.”
–Lou Bradshaw (Big Man’s Keeper)
“He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.”
–Colossians 1:13(NKJV)
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How to Live in a Pagan, Apostate, and Foolish World
Key Verse: “We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.” –1 John 5:19 (NKJV)
“The results are in: America’s stage four cancer has metastasized to the family and the church as well as to the government and the schools. We are more depraved than ever before. Animals are guarded but innocent children are slaughtered. Porn is protected and sex-trafficking is on the rise. Cardi B’s lyrics get a pass but Scriptures are banned on social media.
Words cannot express this outright lunacy. Like the bungee jumper who plunged to her death because she thought she heard “now jump,” when, in reality, her instructor said, “No jump!” America thinks that she is hearing from God, but she is not. We are drowning in a cesspool of moral filth: “The wicked freely parade and prance about while evil is praised throughout the land” (Psalm 12:8). Recently, a father was arrested for referring to his biological 14-year-old daughter as “she” after she transitioned to a male gender. “But that’s in Canada,” you say. Trust me, we are not far behind. Most on the liberal left would have no problem imprisoning anyone who disagreed with them, and that’s exactly where the Equality Act is going — unless you accept, rejoice in, and validate sin they are coming after you. Revival is our only hope.” (taken from article in Prophecy News Watch, author unknown)
Such a place we find ourselves in, how do we survive? First, we are to recognize the truth of God’s Word. We are no longer living in darkness such as we see in the article above.
“But if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” –1 John 1:7 (NASB)
Are you walking in darkness or walking in the Light? We discussed earlier that God is Light (1 John 1:5). Therefore, we are to walk in that Light. People walk in darkness because they are part of the world. Now, here is something to understand–it is vital to understand kingdoms, not sin. By repenting and accepting Jesus Christ, we now are part of the kingdom of Light. The proof of repentance is the life we live. There is the turning from the life of sin to a life of holiness.
“Men and women who walk in the light are people who are seeking God. They desire to know God better; they are concerned about the glory and honor of God; they are anxious to please God. They realize that for very many years they have been living in a realm which is antagonistic to God, and their whole idea is to be as different as they can. That is walking in the light, living to the glory and honor of God. God is their Master; they seek righteousness and are concerned about being holy.”
–D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Darkness stands for the very opposite of God. William Barclay writes about darkness:
1) Darkness stands for the Christless life. (1 John 2:8; Colossians 1:13; 1 Thessalonians 5:4-5; John 8:12; 1 Peter 2:9)
2) The dark is hostile to the light. Darkness may try to overcome light but it cannot. The dark and the light are natural enemies.
3) The darkness stands for the ignorance of life apart from Christ. If you walk in darkness you do not know where you are going. The dark stands for the essential lostness of life without Christ.
4) The darkness stands for the chaos of life without God. Without God the world is in chaos, there is neither real life, order, or sense.
5) The darkness stands for the immorality of the Christless life. This is one reason why there is such an attack against Jesus and His Word–the light shines upon the evil of man.
6) The darkness is characteristically unfruitful. The Spirit will not grow in the heart of darkness.
7) The darkness is connected with lovelessness and hate. Hatred lives and is from the dark.
8) The dark is the abode of the enemies of Christ and the final goal of those who will not accept him. There is a constant struggle against those in the darkness and in the end those not in the light will find themselves in eternal darkness (2 Peter 2:9; Jude 13).
The job of the Holy Spirit is to bring sins to light, convict, and lead to forsake them. Man must face his sin–he must not dislike the light. I’ll close with one of the most often quoted Scriptures, and perhaps one of the least understood Scriptures. The Holy Spirit had John write this and REALIZE that this is for Christians, those who walk in the light.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
–1 John 1:9 (NASB)