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When I used to be slightly girl, I used to be scared of the dark. I clutched my teddy bear and tried to discover figures in my room. My mind sometimes played tricks on me. Sometimes I became afraid that something bad would occur at the hours of darkness. I slept with an evening light on for a few years once I was young. Darkness, when no light is present, is usually a very scary thing. When my room went dark, my mind deceived me into pondering things were worse than they were. But once the sunshine permeated the darkness, the reality of reality set in, and my mind was not deceived.
What Does the Bible Say About Darkness and Hiding?
Darkness has existed since before the Fall. In Genesis, God created each darkness and lightweight. He designated light for the day and darkness for the night. As humans, we’re created to perform our work throughout the day and rest at night. All activities and productivity stop at night. But once sin entered the world, darkness took on an entire latest meaning. Light symbolized good, and darkness symbolized evil. Satan is related to darkness, and Jesus is related to good. But even in Genesis, darkness took the shape of a serpent and hovered over Eden. When Adam and Eve ate from the apple, darkness became an element of their lives as well. This is why they hid:
Then the person and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking within the garden within the cool of the day, they usually hid from the Lord God among the many trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the person, “Where are you? He answered, “I heard you within the garden, and I used to be afraid because I used to be naked; so I hid.” And he said, “Who told you that you simply were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you to not eat from?” The man said, “The woman you place here with me — she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” – Genesis 3:8-12
Interestingly, Adam and Eve had the liberty to walk in Eden as they selected whether to live inside the boundaries the Lord had set for them. But once they broke the boundaries, they not walked — they hid! When we live in darkness and sin has entangled us, we live in hiding. Jesus doesn’t want this for us. He wants us to walk within the spirit, living out the gospel of grace, knowing that Jesus paid the worth for each sin we now have — or will — commit.
Walking in the sunshine means living with honesty before God and others, relatively than hiding in sin, fear, or self-deception. This article explores how darkness often disguises itself, why confession matters, and the way Christian community and accountability will help believers move from sin management into real freedom.
What Does it Mean to Walk within the Light?
To walk in the sunshine means to live openly before God, refusing to cover sin, excuse darkness, or pretend we’re healthier than we actually are. It doesn’t mean perfection. It means truthfulness, repentance, confession, and a growing willingness to let the grace of Jesus reach the places we’d relatively keep hidden.
Why Is Confession Important for Christians?
Despite our good intentions, all of us are sinners, which implies there are occasions after we walk in darkness and deceive ourselves into pondering we’re doing higher in our lives than we actually are. 1 John 1:5 says, “This is the message we now have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there isn’t any darkness in any respect.” It is essential to grow to be an element of a community of believers so we are able to live like Jesus with no darkness in our lives.
When we grow to be deceived, we are able to seek counsel from those that know us well enough to indicate our sins and permit us the space to admit them so we are able to return to walking in the sunshine. If Jesus doesn’t allow any darkness to permeate his being, then we shouldn’t either.
Why Is Hidden Sin Hard to Recognize?
But darkness isn’t at all times easy to identify. Satan masquerades as an angel of sunshine. It is simple to rebuke or avoid events or those that are blatantly evil. But there are some Christians who seem godly but allow sins which are more widely accepted to destroy themselves, their churches, and their reputations. Sins like pride, gossip, and gluttony are pervasive in church environments and may just do as much damage as seemingly worse sins like adultery. Because most churches accept some sins and reject others, darkness is harder to discover than ever. Every Christian is accountable to their churches to live the godliest lives possible. But what about those that profess Christ yet whose behavior and actions are lower than Christlike?
Why Do Christians Need Discernment?
Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the start of data, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” The word for idiot here describes someone who lacks an ethical foundation. When we live clinging to the Lord and his wisdom, he begins to provide us his wisdom. We know that Jesus knows what’s within the thoughts of man. He had this gift because he lived in tandem with God the Father. God gave him the wisdom and gift of prophecy to know what was in people’s hearts and discern people’s intentions. This is vital if we would like to create a culture of living in the sunshine. We often worship with those that appear spiritual on the skin but inside carry with them sin and other soul wounds that, when not addressed, can wreak havoc on a congregation.
Leaders should be above reproach, meaning they need to be above the road of sin. They must hold accountable those that will help them walk in the sunshine of Jesus, not within the darkness and hiding like Adam and Eve. 1 John 1:7 continues, “But if we walk in the sunshine, as he’s in the sunshine, we now have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.” Although we are going to never be sinless on this life, it is vital to create a culture of confession so we are able to live in the sunshine as best as we are able to.
To walk in the sunshine means to walk consistent with Jesus. Jesus wants us to walk in freedom. This takes transparency and vulnerability with others. Although this could be tricky to navigate regarding whom to be transparent with and what level of our lives to share, there must be some level of deep conversation to live in the sunshine.
This means confessing sins to mature believers and repenting of destructive behaviors. The current model of accountability is such that one person confesses the identical repetitive sin each week, and the opposite consoles him and prays. This is sin management, not living in freedom. This isn’t the life Jesus meant for us to live.
Why Does Accountability Matter within the Christian Life?
Sin management still allows darkness to rule our lives. Walking fully in the sunshine means freedom from the bondage sin could cause. This means confessing to the person to whom the sin hurts essentially the most. If the sin is sexual and the person is married, confess it to the spouse. Witness their hurt firsthand. Allow the spouse to create firm boundaries to stop the behavior. Seek skilled counseling, if crucial, to get to the underlying root of why the sin is a struggle in the primary place.
In other instances, allow elders or other trusted leaders to maintain you accountable. Create a consequence if the sin continues, like stepping down from ministry or termination of leadership abilities. Do what it takes to rid your lifetime of the darkness that leads you away from walking fully in the sunshine, as Jesus is fully light.
How Can Christians Come into the Light?
Coming into the sunshine often begins with one honest step. It may appear to be naming sin without minimizing it, telling the reality to a trusted believer, looking for help before patterns grow stronger, or inviting others to ask harder questions. Real freedom doesn’t grow in secrecy. It grows where grace, truth, repentance, and accountability work together.
No matter how dark things could appear, light can spread through the darkness and illuminate our lives. No matter what level of darkness is present in our lives, Jesus gives us the hope to live in freedom. When we let others know our sins and confess to God and others, we keep our souls clean, ridding ourselves of any sin that will hinder us from living fully in the sunshine.
Frequently Asked Questions About Darkness and Dark Times
- What does the Bible mean by darkness?
In Scripture, darkness often represents sin, deception, hiding, and separation from the reality of God. It can describe each the brokenness of the world and the hidden patterns in our own hearts that keep us from walking openly with Christ. - Why is spiritual darkness hard to acknowledge?
Spiritual darkness is difficult to acknowledge because sin is commonly deceptive. Not all darkness looks obviously evil at first. Sometimes it shows up through pride, gossip, secrecy, self-justification, or patterns which have grow to be so normal we not query them. - How do Christians come out of darkness?
Christians come out of darkness by bringing hidden things into the sunshine through confession, repentance, truth, and accountability. Jesus doesn’t call believers to cover in shame, but to walk truthfully with Him and with trusted others. - What does it mean to walk in the sunshine as an alternative of darkness?
To walk in the sunshine means to live truthfully before God, refusing secrecy and self-deception. It means selecting repentance over hiding, confession over image management, and freedom in Christ over the bondage that darkness creates.
For Further Reading
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Source: https://www.christianity.com/wiki/christian-life/how-can-christians-overcome-the-darkness-of-life.html
