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Ephesians 5:8-14
As we look into the next part of Ephesians, we must reconsider what it is that Paul has been saying in the
second half of his letter up to this point. After having laid out for his readers the high calling of God for
men to become a son of God Paul has been making the point that believers should now walk worthy of
that calling (Eph 4:1). How do believers do that? By being renewed in the spirit of their minds (Eph 4:23).
Those who have believed into Jesus have put off the old man (Eph 4:22) that was their existence in
Adam, as a son of disobedience. They have put on the new man (Eph 4:24), Christ; they are a new creation
in Him (2 Cor 5:17).
So now, they are to conduct themselves in accordance with that; to walk through their course on this earth
as the glorified sons of God that they are. Its a matter of their minds being renewed rejuvenated with
Gods thinking; having His perspective on things a heavenly perspective.
Paul then laid out just what such a walk would look like; the practical outworking of the life of Christ
within the individual believer; the walk of love.
We have seen that this is how Christ walked He walked in love (Eph 5:2) and Paul defined that in terms
of the burnt offering the whole life completely offered up to the Father, in obedience to His will.
Thats how we walk in love, as well. Out of the sacrifice of Christ came the forever-living body, for the
believer. We offer that body back to the Lord, a living sacrifice (Rm 12:1) consecrating our body to the
Lord, allowing Him to have all the say as to what is done in this body because it is His. This one-time
offering is our reasonable service our right act of worship to the One who gave Himself for us.
Last time, we saw that Paul contrasted this act of worship with an act of idolatry. Instead of offering the
body to the Lord as a living sacrifice, the fornicator misuses his body to satiate his sinful lusts and desires.
He selfishly practices all uncleanness at the expense of others in the ultimate act of false worship of
himself. He sins against his own body (1 Cor 6:18), against what the Lord purposed for mans body to be
for the Lord (1 Cor 6:13), to reflect the Lord through obedience to His will.
As previously mentioned, fornication was a way of life for the pagan Gentiles of the day and Pauls
readers of this letter were mostly former pagan Gentiles. But Paul deliberately chose this sin to set a sharp
contrast to the consecrated walk with the Lord to which Christ Ones are called.
This would drive home to Pauls readers that those who continue to practice such sins as a way of life have
no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God (Eph 5:5) that is, they are not sons of God; they are not
believers. Therefore, the Christ Ones are not to be partakers with them.
We have the sense here that Paul is not speaking of unbelievers outside the assemblies, but of those on the
inside, who profess to believe, but continue to practice a sinful lifestyle (1 Cor 4:9-12). These unbelievers
would present the greatest danger to the true believers within the assemblies, as they continue to practice
their sin while trying to rationalize doing so perhaps by involving others in it.
Paul says, do not be partakers with them the word means joint or fellow partakers, meaning to
participate in sin together. Paul will next develop his contrast further, showing that the difference between
a professing believer and a genuine Christ One is like night and day.
Well read through this section of the letter together, first.

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[Ephesians 5:8-14]
Paul continues to contrast the difference between unbelievers and believers. What metaphor does Paul use
here, to describe this contrast? Darkness and light. This metaphor will allow Paul to show several key
aspects of the interaction between believers and unbelievers, particularly those unbelievers within the
assemblies, who profess to believe. Well explore each of these one by one in this passage.
Where do darkness and light come from? They come from God; they were part of His creation, on the first
day. Turn to Genesis chapter 1.
[Genesis 1:1-5]
v. 1 God created the entire physical universe on the first day of creation; the heavens and the earth. Over
the next six days, God formed and filled the universe with what He had already brought into existence
from nothing at all.
v. 2-5 The very first thing with which God filled the universe that He created was with light. Then God
divided the light from the darkness; He separated them, creating a difference between them an absolute
distinction.
Darkness is the absence of light. True, complete darkness can only exist in a place where there is no light
at all. As soon as there is the least bit of light, it is no longer dark.
Light dispels darkness. Think of turning on a light switch in a dark room. What happens to the darkness?
It disappears; its gone. So looking at creation, at the natural realm, we can see that light and darkness are
mutually exclusive, as designed by God.
The natural realm reflects the supernatural realm. God designed the natural realm to be a means of
revealing Himself to His creation of mankind (Rm 1:19-20).
In the NT, the apostle John wrote that God is light (1 Jn 1:5). Was John saying that God is physical light;
the light that He created, the first day? Of course not. So what, then, did John mean, in saying God is
light? John meant that God is like light; it gives us a picture of Him.
First of all, we have to consider Johns whole statement: God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. The
picture is that God is holy; He is set apart from all that is unholy. To the natural man, God is
unapproachable (1 Tim 6:16) like the sun in its overwhelming intensity blinding light, consuming heat.
And God is pure (1 Jn 3:3); there is no mixture in Him; He is distinct from anything that is not of Him.
And God is good, and only does good (Ps 119:68); there is no evil in Him. And God is righteous, perfectly
fair and just; there is no unrighteousness in Him. There is no variation or shadow of turning in Him (James
1:17); He is without flaw, perfect and complete in Himself; God is light.
Turn to the gospel of John, chapter 1. John introduced Jesus in his gospel as the true Light that had come
into the world.

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[John 1:1-18]
v. 1-2 The tense of the verb was here reflects continuous action; in the beginning was, and always was
the Word; and the Word was, and always was with God (the Father); and the Word was, and always was
God. He was, and always was in the beginning with God (the Father). John is showing that the Word, Jesus
Christ, is an eternal being, equal to the Father, God Himself; God the Son.
v. 3 He is the Creator.
v. 4 God the Son brought eternal Life down from heaven to earth for mankind; Jesus was the Seed-grain,
through whom would be reproduced glorified sons of God (Jn 12:24). God is light. In His incarnation,
Jesus became the Light of the world. Those who follow Him no longer walk in darkness, but have the light
of Life (Jn 8:12); Life everlasting.
v. 5 the word comprehend here actually means to admit or receive. The idea is that the darkness did not
take in the light. The darkness here represents the creation in Adam. That is a condemned creation; it
cannot be reformed; it is fundamentally flawed with rebellion, self-will.
The creation in Adam is collectively darkness, and will not admit the light; darkness is by its nature devoid
of light; darkness and light are mutually exclusive. But light can shine out into the darkness. How can the
light do that? Through the light of truth; the gospel. Then individual men can follow the light out of the
darkness and into the light of Life everlasting, in Christ.
v. 6 speaking of John the Baptist.
v. 7-9 Verse 9 is better translated, that was the true Light which, coming into the world, gives light to
every man, meaning every man that receives the Light Christ.
v. 10-13 These are the Fathers born children born from above, born of the Spirit, through believing into
Jesus, the One whom He sent.
v. 14 the Word became flesh Jesus and tabernacled among us like the tabernacle of glory, in the midst
of the wilderness of men, Jesus came in a tent His flesh body and dwelt among men. In doing so, the
Light came into the world, and men could behold that glorious Light, which was also a reflection of His
Fathers glory the glory that they shared before the world was (Jn 17:5).
v. 15-18 No one has seen God at any time. God is light. Can you see pure light? No; no one has ever seen
light; they see what the light reveals. But God the Son, in taking on a body of flesh, could be seen; and
through that body of flesh, the Word declared the Father. Through His perfect obedience to the will of the
Father, Jesus led the Father forth to be seen, so that man could come to know God; so that man could be
enlightened with the light of truth.
You cannot see pure light; but can you see a rainbow? Yes. What is a rainbow? Its light that can be seen;
light made visible.
What makes the light visible? Refraction is the technical name; its a bending of the light, through the
medium of water the droplets of rain in a cloud. Light passes through the water droplets, causing the
various wavelengths of light to bend, producing the colors of the rainbow.

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How many colors can be seen in a rainbow, that are in pure sunlight? Seven. In Scripture, seven is the
number of perfection or completion.
In His incarnation, Jesus took on a body of flesh, which acted like the water droplet, enabling the invisible
God to be made visible, in all of His many-colored perfections; His manifold wisdom and grace. Jesus is
the image of the invisible God (Col 1:15); the true Light which gives light to every man.
Jesus said that as long as He was in the world, He was the Light of the world (Jn 9:5). But He also warned
that the night was coming, when no one can work (Jn 9:4).
As the end of His earthly ministry approached, Jesus spoke again of the light.
Turn to John chapter 12. This took place during the last week of Jesus life. He was speaking to a mixed
group on the porch of the temple of His hour having come; the hour in which He would be glorified in
death.
[John 12:35-36]
v. 35-36 The death of Jesus would put an end to His personal testimony to His Father. Jesus was
encouraging the multitudes listening to Him this day to believe what it was they were hearing from Him
the truth lest they be overtaken by deception, in their unbelief. If they believed in the light of truth, they
would become sons of light; as born children of God, their lives as sons would reflect the character of their
Father light.
Having completed His testimony to the world of men, Jesus gathered His disciples in the upper room and
enlightened them further concerning His return to the Father, and their subsequent ministry on earth.
But Jesus would not leave them orphans; He would come to them in the person of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit
of truth who would abide with them forever. The light would no longer be alongside them, but in them, as
the collective Body of Christ (Jn 14:16-18).
Then His hour came. To His enemies, and the one behind them, Jesus declared, this is your hour, and the
power of darkness (Lk 22:53). And then, three hours of darkness (Mt 27:45), as Jesus hung on the cross,
and Father and Son reconciled the sins of the world together. Then finally, Jesus declared It is finished!
(Jn 19:30) the work of redemption was complete.
Three days later, Jesus rose from the dead, in glory. Jesus gave His Body of believers the Holy Spirit, to
enlighten them collectively, and upon ascending back into heaven, He poured out the Holy Spirit onto His
Body on earth, anointing them with power for their ministry to reconcile men to God.
The members of the Body of Christ, the true church, would now be Gods light-bearers, shining forth the
light of truth to the ends of the earth.
Turn to Second Corinthians chapter 4. This is how Paul viewed his own ministry, as a light-bearer, bearing
the light of the gospel into the world of men.
[Second Corinthians 4:1-7]
v. 1 Paul is speaking of himself and his fellow workers who labor in bring the gospel into the world,
particularly to the Gentiles.

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v. 2 Paul is alluding here to false teachers, who twist the Scriptures to suit their motives. Paul and his
fellow workers speak the true gospel.
v. 3-4 the veiling of the gospel refers back to chapter 3, where Paul indicated that a veil of unbelief lies on
the hearts of the Jews in particular, who have refused to believe that their Scriptures find their fulfillment in
Christ. Because they have veiled their hearts, the light of truth cannot penetrate and they remain in the
dark.
Here, Paul is saying the gospel is veiled to those who are perishing; not by Paul and his fellow workers, but
by the individuals themselves, who refuse to take in the light of the gospel in their unbelief.
Who is behind their blindness? The god of this age Satan. Satan has blinded the minds of men through
religion, so that they cannot see the truth of the gospel that salvation is by simple faith in Christ alone.
v. 5 Paul is again alluding to false teachers, who preach themselves, desiring to have a following for
themselves with men. Paul and his fellow workers view themselves as bondslaves of Christ, laboring to
bring the gospel to men for the benefit of men.
v. 6-7 God said, Let there be light; and there was light (Gen 1:3). The first disciples received the light of
the knowledge of the glory of God from Jesus Christ Himself, who made the unseen God seen to them.
That was certainly Pauls testimony as well, to whom the Lord had appeared on the road to Damascus. As
Paul later said, he could not see for the glory of that light (Acts 22:11).
Having believed in the light, they became sons of light themselves, carrying the treasure of the gospel of
Christ in their inglorious earthen vessels out into the world that the glorious salvation of God could all the
better be seen.
Lets return now to Ephesians.
I want to reread verses 5-8.
v. 5-7 Remember that Paul is speaking of those within the assemblies who profess to believe, but still
practice sin as a way of life; they are still sons of disobedience. Paul is appealing to those who genuinely
believe not to be influenced by their rationalizations concerning their sin, nor their pressure to participate in
what would have been formerly their conduct, as well.
v. 8 Now lets look at this statement in light of the Scriptures we have just considered. What did we learn
about darkness and light? Darkness is the absence of light. And light dispels darkness. Light and darkness
are mutually exclusive, as designed by God. There is either darkness, or there is light; you cant have both.
Notice that Paul says, speaking to the true believers, not that you were once in darkness, but that you were
once darkness; the darkness was in them; it was them. And Paul does not say now you are in the light; he
says now you are light in the Lord; the light is in them; it is them.
Although it is also certainly true that they were also in darkness, and are now in light, this is not the point
Paul wishes to make here. The idea is that if Paul stated that they were merely in darkness, or in light, they
might think they could go back and forth, from the darkness to the light, from light to darkness.

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But by his phrasing, Paul makes it clear that this is not an option, for genuine believers. Formerly, though
natural birth, they were sons of Adam; sons of disobedience. They were darkness; the darkness was in
them.
But through their union with Christ, in His death, burial and resurrection, believers have been irreversibly
changed metamorphosed and now, they are light itself, in the Lord. Through supernatural birth, they
have been born again, born of the Spirit, as children of God; and since God is light, they are children of
light; in them can be no darkness at all.
Once again, Paul is encouraging the true brethren to be what they are: they are children of light, and they
should so conduct themselves, reflecting their heavenly Fathers character. Paul then cites three particular
qualities of character in the following parenthetical statement. It is not meant to be an all-inclusive list.
v. 9 In this verse, the most reliable manuscripts do not have the word Spirit, but light; Paul is speaking
about the fruit of Light, which also is more fitting in this context, as Paul has been speaking of the believers
as children of Light.
The idea of fruit here is what is produced from the life that is within. Notice in this verse the little word in
the fruit is not goodness, righteousness, and truth, its in these qualities; the fruit is borne out of these
qualities. These are qualities of character.
Those who truly believe have been born again of incorruptible seed the Word of God, who lives and
abides forever (1 Pet 1:23). Having been born of the Seed-grain, Christ, He is now their source of Life,
which will one day reproduce a forever-living body; a body of glory.
But the believer can walk in that forever-living body, here and now. How? By faith. By faith, the believer
is made new in the spirit of his mind, and has the mind of Christ His goodness, His righteous character,
His integrity.
The fruit of Light what is produced in the believers life comes out of these qualities of character. Like
fruit, they grow naturally and spontaneously from the Life that is within Christs Life.
Its not conformance to a set of rules, or figuring out how to live godly, or what would Jesus do. Its just a
matter of being who you are; being, in Christ; abiding in the Vine (Jn 15:5). And you do that by faith,
through submitting to the will of God which is Pauls next point.
v. 10 Remember that verse 9 was a parenthetical statement, so verse 8 connects directly to verse 10: Walk
as children of light, finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.
The term finding out in the Greek means putting to the proof. The idea is one of testing, to see what is
acceptable to God; what is pleasing to Him; what His will is.
So what exactly is Paul saying here? Is he saying to use a trial-and-error method to determine Gods will?
No; that would be trying to figure it out.
God doesnt want us to try to figure out His will; He wants to show us His will. And through His Spirit, He
does exactly that when we are willing to depend on Him, and seek out His will.

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And the Spirit will reveal to us if we have a will in the matter our own will. And the Spirit will help us to
discern the difference between what is Gods will, and what is our own so that, if we truly desire, we
can truly do the will of God.
In Romans 12:2, Paul writes, And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing
of your minds, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
When we are willing to have our thinking transformed, and to have Gods mind on the matter, and not our
own, His will can be done in our lives. Thats the choice of every believer; to do our own will, or to do the
will of God.
Having shown his readers what it is to walk as children of Light, so that the fruit of Light is borne in their
lives, Paul will now exhort them again concerning their relationship with the unbelieving, in the
assemblies.
v. 11-13 Light and darkness are mutually exclusive. Children of Light produce the fruit of Light. Pauls
point is that it is unnatural for a child of Light to produce unfruitful works of darkness, a reference to sin.
Remember that darkness in this passage alludes to those who are still sons of disobedience; sons of
Adam. They are darkness; the darkness is in them; and in them, it produces unfruitful works sin.
Children of Light are to have no fellowship with these works of darkness; that is, they are not to participate
in them. But does that mean that they are not to have fellowship with the unbelievers themselves, in the
assemblies? Paul does not say that here; but the answer is self-evident.
Turn to Second Corinthians chapter 6. Paul was addressing a similar issue with this assembly of the
association of believers with unbelievers.
[Second Corinthians 6:14-18]
v. 14-15 Belial, meaning wickedness, is here used as a title for Satan.
v. 16a What is the answer to all of these questions? None; these are mutually exclusive.
v. 16b-18 Like light and darkness; believers and unbelievers are mutually exclusive. Now, this does not
mean that there is no interaction between believers and unbelievers, but there cannot be true fellowship
between them.
Turn now to First John chapter 1. John had begun his gospel with the Word made flesh the Son of God in
His incarnation as Jesus. John begins his first letter with the Word of Life eternal life the glorified
Christ who rose from the dead in a forever-living body.
[First John 1:1-7]
v. 1-2 John is saying that he and the other first disciples were eye-witnesses to the risen Christ.
v. 3-4 This is the fellowship that believers have; fellowship with the Father and the Son. How does the
believer participate in that fellowship with the Father and the Son? Through the Holy Spirit. John is
inviting others to join them, by believing that their joy may be full.

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v. 5-6 We cannot have fellowship with God if we walk in darkness, practicing sin as a way of life. That
would be a lie. If we walk in darkness, the reality is that we have no power over sin; that we dont have
Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus; that we have never truly believed. Walking in darkness, we cannot fellowship
with God, who walks in the light; these are mutually exclusive realms.
v. 7 It is because the blood of Christ has cleansed the believer from all sin past, present and future that
the believer can walk in the light with God in fellowship with Him, in fellowship with other Christ Ones.
We are Light in the Lord.
But it is essential to know there is still an element of choice here, of responsibility the believer has to
choose to walk in the light, by choosing to have Gods thinking for his own thinking by choosing to
submit to Gods will. Can two walk together, unless they be agreed (Amos 3:3)? No. We must be in
agreement with God, in order to walk with Him in the light.
[Return to Ephesians]
So it is actually impossible for believers to have true fellowship with unbelievers. But Pauls point here is
more pragmatic than that. Believers are not to get caught up in the sinful lifestyles of those who merely
profess to believe, in the assemblies.
Instead of participating in their unfruitful works, what are the believers to do (v. 11)? They are to expose
the unfruitful works of darkness. How are they to do that? By dragging the sinners out into the streets, and
putting them in stocks? By publicly denouncing them and their works?
Thats not what Paul says, is it? Paul says it is shameful to even speak about what the unbelievers in the
assembly are doing; thats gossiping; theres no profit in that.
So what does Paul mean, when he says to expose the unfruitful works of darkness? Believers are light in
the Lord. What does light do? It makes manifest; it makes things seen. Light reveals what darkness
conceals. The meaning is that the believer, by a life so essentially different from those around him, rather
than by reproof in speech, will expose sin for what it is. It is a passive process, comparable to the light
shining in the darkness.
Turn to John chapter 3. Jesus had been speaking to Nicodemus about believing into the Son of God Jesus
Himself in order to be made safe from the condemnation to come, and receive everlasting Life.
[John 3:16-21]
v. 16-18 He who does not believe is condemned already, because the whole creation in Adam is
condemned. Men must get out of Adam and into Christ, in order to be saved. Apart joining themselves to
Christ by faith, men will remain in their sins, and be subject to the wrath of God.
v. 19-20 Jesus is the Light that has come into the world, to enlighten men to God. Light, by its nature,
exposes. Likewise, Jesus reveals the true intents of mens hearts; they are exposed in the light of His
righteousness.
Most men love darkness rather than the light. They desire to continue in their sin, and so they shun the
light; they reject it.

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But the individual who does the truth who is willing to acknowledge that he is a sinner, and needs Jesus
to save him he is willing to come to the Light, and receive His Life. He has done the one good work
believing.
[Return to Ephesians]
The idea at the end of verse 13 is that everything having been revealed is light. If the believers in the
assemblies walk as children of light, those who merely profess to believe will be left with two choices.
They could try to avoid the light, shunning the exposure of their works. This would likely entail leaving
the assembly in which case, they would no longer be living as hypocrites a good thing.
Alternatively, they could come out of their darkness into the light and be made children of light
themselves an even better thing.
You can see that either of these would be beneficial to both believers and unbelievers in the assemblies; it
would serve to purify the assemblies, and ensure that unbelievers were not deceived concerning
themselves.
Pauls last statement addresses these unbelievers specifically.
v. 14 Now, this is a cryptic little verse, which gives commentators much fodder for discussion. Lets
consider what can be known about it, first.
This is definitely a quotation in the Greek, and by context, it was familiar to both Paul and his readers.
But it is not a quotation of Scripture. It has a precise rhythm, in the Greek; and thats about all thats
known. Possibly, it may have been part of an early Christian hymn but no one knows.
Whats more important is what it says, and Pauls purpose for using it here. Paul uses this quote as a means
of issuing an invitation for salvation to the unsaved, within the assemblies to which he is writing.
Basically, this is a set of three metaphors that relate to Life everlasting. There are those who are asleep
natural men who need to awaken to the spiritual realities.
They can also be described as dead men in their bodies of flesh who need to arise to new Life, as
glorified sons of God.
Finally, they are darkness, and need the light of Life in Christ.
Asleep, dead, dark; they need to wake up, live, and be made light in the Lord.
In using this quote, Paul is encouraging individuals who merely profess to believe in the assemblies not to
shun the light, but to come to it, and be made children of light, themselves in Christ.