August 14, 2010
Building Strong Friendships in Christ
Sons of Light Today
“for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness;”
1 Thessalonians 5:5
If you do not recall a day in your life when you received eternal life as a free gift from Jesus, then this article will not make sense to you. Please click the eternal life button now and learn more about finding peace with God and being born again today.
Yesterday, I talked about night fishing. Over time, I have learned how much fun it is to fish at night, but only if you have the right equipment. Without the right equipment, you generally cannot see how to tie on your lure, hook a live bait, cast your rod, retrieve your lure, or do so many other routine tasks that are a part of fishing. My eyes work o.k. in the daylight, because I was created to see in sunlight. The darker it gets, the less I see. Some creatures have shiny cells in the back of their eyes. Cats, dogs and other creatures appear to have eyes that sort of glow in different colors when you shine light in their eyes after dark. They were created to hunt and see at night, but not me. I need to pack a flashlight, spare batteries, and also spare lights in case one breaks or I lose it. So much of night fishing involves careful preparation. Because I know my limitations on seeing after dark, I have to get ready to fish after dark.
In 1 Thessalonians 5:5, Paul makes a wonderful declaration about every person forgiven by faith in Jesus. Paul said were are all “sons of light and sons of day.” Did you catch the way that God now sees you? Because God has “rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Colossians 1:13), we have become sons of light and sons of day. Paul emphasizes what we are in Christ. In this case, Paul emphasizes we are sons of light, and sons of day, to make a spiritual point. By our very spiritual nature, we have become God’s children, and remember that in God there is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5).
God loves to remind His children that who they are shapes what they do. People act according to their spiritual nature. Believers act like sons of light and sons of day because God abides in them. Likewise, unbelievers are not sons of light and sons of day, and evil dominates their lives. We need to keep in mind who we are so we will act like who we are in Christ.
So, we learn some more about building strong friendships in Christ.
● Strong bonds of friendship form when we love each other in Christ as children of the light.
● Strong bonds of friendship grow when we live according the declarations of God in the Bible. In this case, we grow closer as friends in Christ when we stand upon God’s declaration that we are children of the light and children of the day.
● We harm our bonds of friendship when we ignore or forget the fact that each believer in Christ will always be a child of the light and a child of the day.
Application for Today
Today, I want to remember that I and all my friends in Christ are children of the light and children of the day. God will always see us that way in Christ. Do you see yourself today as a child of the light and a child of the day?