Called Out of Darkness - #229

When you choose daily to turn your back on King Me and worship and serve only God – the promise Jesus gives is that you will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.

Learn more about the ministry of The Purity Coach at  http://www.thepuritycoach.com

Transcript

Jesus IS “the light of the world.” When you choose to follow Christ, when you daily choose to deny self and instead take up your cross; when you choose daily to turn your back on King Me and worship and serve only God – the promise Jesus gives in John 8:12 is that you will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.

Welcome to The Point of Purity Podcast. A powerful weekly study filled to the brim with the all the tools from Scripture you will ever need to build a lasting life of Biblical purity and godliness. I’m your host Steve Etner – author, National Speaker, Certified Professional Mentor TM and Purity Coach for The Pure Man Ministry and this is Episode #229 entitled “Called Out of Darkness.”

David begins Psalm 27 by declaring “The Lord (in other words - the Almighty, All-Powerful, Most Holy and Sovereign One who cares about me) is my light, and He is the only one I choose to follow!” That simple statement declared to the world David’s willful, intentional, purposeful decision to daily turn his back on King Me and follow the only One who can show him how to navigate through life in a way that truly glorifies his creator. What about you? Are you willing, are you able, are you ready to make that same declaration? Is The Lord the only one you choose to follow?

1 John 1:5 declares, “God IS light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.”

And Ephesians 5:8 says, “For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.” 

Again, I ask, what about you? Are you choosing daily to bold declare, just as David did, that the Lord IS your light? Let me put it to you this way: Are you claiming to be a follower of Christ? Assuming your answer to be “yes!” I now ask this: as a Christian, are you still choosing to walk in darkness? By that I mean, are you still daily choosing to live for King Me? Remember, to choose King Me over God is to choose darkness over light; to choose sin over sanctification. For the Christian, there must be no room for darkness. No spot in your life, no matter how small and insignificant, reserved for King Me. If you claim to be a Christ-follower yet continue to live for King me – you’re a liar. You are not practicing the truth.

Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5:5 that as a born-again believer, as a child of God “you are all children of light, children of the day. (You) are not of the night or of the darkness.”

And (1 Peter 2:9) Peter says, “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” Did you catch that? You have been “called out of darkness!”

Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12) Let me repeat that. John 8:12. Jesus IS “the light of the world.” When you choose to follow Christ, when you daily choose to deny self and take up your cross; when you choose every moment of every day to turn your back on King Me and worship and serve only God – the promise Jesus gives in John 8:12 is that you will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life. 

When you walk in darkness, when you allow the beast of sin to thrive in your heart - you are not following Jesus; instead, you’re letting King Me call the shots. Oh, you may be a Christian, but in that moment – as you choose to give in to your temptation, you are not a Christ-follower, you are a King Me worshipper – you’re an idolater. In a previous episode we saw in Matthew 6:24 that it’s not possible to serve two masters at the same time. Either you will love the one and hate the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other; you cannot serve both.

Philippians 2:15 says we are to always “be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom (we are to) shine as lights in the world.” So, I challenge you to think about this: when you are living for King Me, when you are choosing to walk in darkness, it is impossible for you to “shine as lights in the world.” When you are dark, you cannot be light. It just cannot be done. 

So, I have a question for you to seriously consider here. As a Christian, you are to “let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16) Here’s my question: How are you doing with that?

You see, even “just a little” sin “just this once” has an impact on your Christian walk. That choice has a powerful influence on your ability (or inability as it were) to shine for Christ. This is why God’s word warns (Galatians 5:9) that “A little leaven leavens the whole lump.” A little sin is still sin. 

The only way to get your shine on, the only way to let your light shine before others is for you to be in the light yourself; daily walking in the light as He is in the light. In other words, turn your back on King Me, turn away from the darkness of your sinful choices and focus daily, focus completely, focus entirely, focus unreservedly upon God. Always God.

Now listen closely as I quote to you Psalm 34:5. “Those who look to him are radiant, their faces are never covered with shame.” Let me repeat that. Psalm 34:5. “Those who look to him are radiant, their faces are never covered with shame.” I once heard it said that as you keep looking AT Christ, you will keep looking LIKE Christ. I like that.

Remember, only God is light. In Him there is no darkness. To let His light shine through you, you must be in continuous fellowship with the Light – God Himself. “Those who look to him are radiant.” You cannot radiate God’s glory when you are worshiping King Me. When you are choosing to stay in the dark, you have no light from which draw from to radiate. You must be constantly and consistently “looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of (your) faith.” (Hebrews 12:2) You must be looking to He who is “the light of the world” (John 8:12).

Think about the moon for a moment. The reason you are able to look up into the night sky and see the moon is not because that lifeless hunk of space rock has the ability to shine on its own. It is impossible for the moon to generate its own light. To be seen by others, it must first “see” (if you will) the sun. It has to be “looking” directly at the sun. The moon radiates the light it receives from the sun. A full moon means there is nothing standing between the moon and the sun. Nothing is blocking the ability of the moon to reflect the light it sees.

However, when you see only part of the moon, it is because the world is coming between the moon and the sun, casting a “shadow” against the moon thereby hindering its ability to fully reflect the sun. The more of the world that is in the way, the less of the moon you will see. In the same way, as we saw a moment ago, “Those who look to him (those who look to the Son – S.O.N.-, those who place their full attention and focus upon God alone) are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed.” (Psalm 34:5) The more of the world you allow into your heart, the less of God will be seen in your life.

Now let me draw your attention to an interesting text of Scripture found in Exodus 34:29-35. Here’s what it says:  “So (Moses) was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights. He neither ate bread nor drank water. ... When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. ... And Moses put a veil over his face. Whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, he would remove the veil, until he came out. And when he came out ... the people of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face was shining.”

I submit that Moses was a living example of the truth of Psalm 34:5. “Those who look to him are radiant.” The time that Moses invested with God, the time he devoted to being in the light of God’s presence was reflected in the way he looked, the way he talked, and the way he behaved. He shone. He radiated God’s glory, “because he was talking with God.”

2 Corinthians 3:18 says that “we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord.”

“Those who look to him are radiant.” When you walk in God’s light, when you invest time with your Heavenly Father daily, when you choose to turn your back on the darkness of King Me and devote yourself to living in constant communion in the light of God’s presence, you will radiate His glory. Others will see a drastic change in your behavior, your attitude, your words, your actions, in short – your life, all because your fellowship with God brought about a change in your heart. 

One of the reasons you have failed to defeat King Me up to this point is simply because you have tried to change your behavior without first changing your heart. It’s like pinning paper wings on a worm expecting to have a butterfly. 

As the prophet Samuel was in the process of interviewing Jesse’s eldest son (Eliab) in his search for the next king of Israel, God said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him.” In other words, God isn’t impressed by external behavior. God isn’t won over by the things you say and do. Why? God went on to explain to Samuel that “the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)

Mark 7:21-23 tells us that it’s “from within, out of the heart of man, (that) come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” 

God says in Jeremiah 17:9-10 “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? (He then answers His own question by saying) ‘I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds’.”

This is why throughout this podcast I continue to drive home the point: to change your behavior, you must first change your heart. Behavior modification may work as a temporary gap-fix, but it won’t last. Not until you get to the core of the problem (your worship disorder)  – who is sitting on the throne of your heart. 

As I mentioned in a previous episode, the issue you are struggling with is NOT lust. It is NOT alcohol or drugs, or greed, pride, gluttony, control, or any of a number of sinful activities you are choosing to engage in. Each of those are the by-products of the real issue. 

The real issue is a worship disorder. Who is sitting on the throne of your heart? Whom are you worshiping? King Me or Jesus? The answer to that question is the answer as to why you are still struggling and cannot get free. 

God’s Word commands you to, “above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” (Proverbs 4:23) As a man “thinketh in his heart, so is he.” (Proverbs 23:7) What goes on in your heart is daily revealed in everything you say and everything you do. This is why God says, “My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways.” (Proverbs 23:26) It is also why David prays, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10)

Scripture makes it crystal clear (Ephesians 4:22-24) that you are “to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and (you are daily) to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” Why? Why must I daily do this? Because God wants you to “be conformed to the image of his Son” (Romans 8:29) so that His light shines brightly upon you and through you.

Remember my friend – The Lord, (Jehovah), the almighty, all-powerful, most holy, sovereign creator of the universe cares about you ... and He    IS    your light. So walk in the light as He is in the light!

OK, I’m going to hit the pause button here until next week’s episode. In the meantime, if you would like to learn more about today’s study, or if you’re interested in learning more about The Pure Man Ministry (what we do to help men across the globe find freedom and victory over sexual sin), be sure to visit our website to see the multitude of resources we’ve made available to you – you can find our website at ThePurityCoach.com     

One of those resources I would like to highlight for you here is my book entitled “Removing the ‘I’ from L.I.F.E. – the Dethroning of King Me” available on Amazon.com. Let’s face it, life gets messed up when King Me is sitting on the throne of your heart. You know I’m right. To become the man or woman who is living a life that consistently honors God in all you say and do, you must first remove the “I” from your life. It’s not about you. It never was. It never will be.     

In this interactive Bible Study, “Removing the ‘I’ from L.I.F.E.” examines such questions as: Why do I keep doing the things I don’t want to do? Why can’t I gain victory over the stupid issues in my life? Why can’t I be consistent in living a life that glorifies God? How on earth do I live a life that is fully surrendered to God? The answers to these questions, and many more, are found in Scripture, and my book “Removing the ‘I’ from L.I.F.E.” helps you unpack them and understand how to apply them to your life.     

So, if real change – lasting change – is going to happen, you need a different leader sitting behind the big desk in the oval office of your heart. Whomever is reigning in your heart will be calling the shots in your life. You must choose to remove the “I” from L.I.F.E. and allow God to take your place – His rightful place.      So head on over to Amazon.com and purchase your copy of “Removing the ‘I’ from L.I.F.E. – the Dethroning of King Me” or just look up my name, Steve Etner, and purchase your copy of any of my books today.

And if you have not yet subscribed to this podcast, let me encourage you to do so today so you won’t miss any of our upcoming episodes! So, until next time this is Steve Etner – author, National Speaker, Certified Professional Mentor TM and Purity Coach for The Pure Man Ministry – reminding you that if you are going to glorify God in your everyday living, He must first be glorified in your every moment thinking