Sermon - Rev. Judith Perry
From 2 Timothy: He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time. (The second letter to Timothy (I:9))
Just look around here this morning, See the light! We are all here this morning singing, praying, listening because as Paul says, we are walking as children of light.
In the gospel reading Jesus says that He is the light of the world. Further on in the gospel we read:
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” John 8:12
In the vision in Revelation it reads: “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
The Morning Star, the planet Venus, that we see just before dawn.
And from today’s readings: from John: As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."
And from the letter to the Ephesians: For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Walk as children of light. So, we are marching in the light of God.
Just look around here this morning, See the light!
Light and darkness are one of the most powerful pairs of symbols in almost any language and culture. We have sayings that employ these symbols.
There are “dark days” indeed; we are “kept in the dark”. Like John of the Cross, we suffer “dark nights of the soul”.
Sometimes something hidden is “brought to light”, or a light is shone on it, or maybe after a time of doubt and confusion you have one of those moments where suddenly “the lights go on” for you.
For Buddhists, the moment of conversion is called “enlightenment”, and in our Christian tradition, especially in the Eastern churches, it has been called “illumination”.
These symbols seem to need no explanation because they are somehow written into our human psyche from birth. In childhood, many of us were afraid of the dark. I’ve never heard of a child being afraid of the light.
But there are politicians who are afraid of the light, afraid of certain files being completely opened. And I’ve been told, maybe hearsay, that Tim Houston is in the Panama papers, remember them?
The fact that we can move back and forth so easily between the literal meaning of the word light and the metaphorical meaning, almost without noticing, shows how naturally these symbols work for us.
Let’s look at the letter to the church in Ephesus, which may or may not have been written by Paul. He writes to tell them, and us, to wake up to the light.
He writes to a community learning how to live as Christ’s people in a world full of competing lights and shadows. His words are both pastoral and provocative:
“For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light…”
“…Sleeper, awake! Rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
This is not a gentle suggestion. It is a summons: a call to spiritual awakening.
He doesn’t say we were in darkness—he says we were darkness. And now we are light. Identity first, behaviour second. Who we are in Christ shapes how we live in Christ.
Really then being in the Christ light is our identity, not always our performance.
He isn’t urging the Ephesians to try harder to be good. He is reminding them of a transformation already accomplished.
Light is not something we produce. Light is something we participate in.
This is grace at work. We shine because Christ shines on and in us.
And that’s liberating. It means the Christian life is not a moral performance but is a radiant light within us all.
The light shines through us, in what was elsewhere called the fruits of the Spirit including goodness, righteousness and truth.
These are not abstract virtues. They are relational. They show up in how we treat neighbours, strangers, and even ourselves.
Goodness is generosity of spirit.
Righteousness is right relationship.
Truth is integrity—living without masks.
Light bears fruit that blesses others
Exposing the works of darkness is the part we often avoid because “exposing” sounds harsh. But his vision is not about shaming people. It’s about revealing what harms us so that healing can begin.
Light exposes not to condemn, but to transform.
Think of a wound that must be uncovered before it can be cleaned.
Think of a room that must be lit before it can be dusted.
The church’s calling is not to be a spotlight of judgment but a lantern of clarity.
Then the passage ends with: "Sleeper, awake! Rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you." Some biblical scholars think that he is quoting an early baptismal hymn, but it also sounds like Easter and resurrection.
Perhaps it is a resurrection summons to people who are alive but not fully awake.
We know what it is to sleepwalk through life:
The cry is tender and urgent:
Wake up.
Rise up.
Christ will shine on you.
This is not a command to achieve enlightenment. It is an invitation to receive illumination.
So what about us today? What does it mean?
In a world saturated with artificial light—screens, noise, busyness, we are called back to the Light that actually gives life.
To live as children of light today might mean:
Light is not loud.
Light is persistent.
Light is patient.
Light reveals.
Light heals.
The church is at its best not when it tries to be impressive, but when it is luminous. Not when it shouts, but when it shines. Not when it polices darkness, but when it cultivates light.
Our calling is to be a community where people wake up to grace, rise from despair, and discover that Christ’s light is not a spotlight of scrutiny but a sunrise of hope.
Christ is that bright morning star before the dawn.
You are light in Christ. Not because you earned it. Not because you always feel it. But because Christ has made it so.
So walk in that light. Bear its fruit. Let it expose what needs healing.
And hear the ancient hymn echoing across the centuries:
“Sleeper, awake! Rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
And the light of Christ shines in you and through you.