Romans 13:12-13 The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy.
Believers now walk in the light of Christ who has come into the world, shining in the darkness (John 1:9; 12:46). Since we walk in the light, as he is in the light, darkness should not be part of our lives anymore. We must reject the darkness and all of its traps. “Darkness” here represents the way of the flesh, sin, and all the enticements of our old life. Paul already wrote in chs. 6-8 about how these do not need to control us any more. We have left the old life through the grace of God. But we now have a responsibility to walk in the light. Some deeds seem to be done especially at night or in the darkness so that they can be hidden from others. There is ever the temptation to do secret sins that no one else can see. They are hidden in the darkness and are part of the darkness of the world. Paul lists some here, which are also part of the “acts of the flesh” of Galatians 5:19-21: orgies, drunkenness, sexual immorality, sensuality, quarreling, and jealousy. The list could be extended. These attributes describe sexual sins of lust, talking sins of quarreling which is related to fits of rage and uncontrolled anger, and inner attitudes like jealousy. The answer to this is to walk in obedience, “properly,” in the right way and in the right direction. Our faith in Christ ought to lead to a different way of living. This is a message consistent throughout the New Testament. We called from darkness into the light.
For older posts, click here.