2026-08-30 Live as Children of Light

(Eph 5:1-14)

Last Sunday we looked at not to grieve the Holy Spirit. After the church, Rebecca shared that God miraculously healed her back pain, but still left a bit feeling for her to continue seeking His Word and praying. The Holy Spirit doesn’t only want to heal our bodies; He wants to transform us from the inside out so that our lives produce lasting fruit. Today, Ephesians 5 calls us to become imitators of God. Let’s read Ephesians 5:1–14, Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children 2 and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. 3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. 4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7 Therefore do not be partners with them. 8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) 10 and find out what pleases the Lord. 11 Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. 12 It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. 13 But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. 14 This is why it is said: “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

1, Become imitators of God. (Eph 5:1-2)

NIV says, follow God’s example, as dearly loved children. But other versions say, “be imitators of God”. To imitate means to copy someone’s example. Pual is giving us a family picture. Children naturally imitate their parents. They watch Mum and Dad’s words and actions and begin to copy them. In the same way, we’re called to imitate God, our heavenly Father. But how can we imitate God whom we can’t see? V.2 gives us the answer, “Walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Three things here tell us what God’s love looks like. 

A. He gave Himself for us. God’s love is not an emotion but demonstrated on the Cross. Jesus didn’t just say, “I love you.” He demonstrated His love through the cross. 

B. God’s love is sacrificial. Love has a cost. We often love people for a reason. But Jesus loved us not because we were beautiful, rich, successful, or capable. Romans 5:8 says, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” We were lost, trapped in sin and captives to the power of darkness, yet Jesus loved us and shed His blood to redeem us. So imitating God costs us something. It may cost our pride when we apologise, our right to get even when we forgive, or our time and comfort when we serve someone in need. God’s love is sacrificial. 

C. God’s love seeks to please the Father. V.2 says Christ gave Himself “as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” A fragrant offering means an offering pleasing to God. Christ loved us, but he obeyed the Father’s will, even to the point of death on the cross for us. Before the Cross He prayed, “Not my will, but yours be done.” So love doesn’t mean pleasing people, or giving people everything they want. True love seeks to please God. Therefore, imitating God means following Jesus—to love sacrificially, forgive at a cost, serve humbly, and live to please the Father. This is the love we are called to imitate.

2. Close the doorways to darkness (Eph. 5:3–7)

Then Paul says in V.3, “But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed.” Why does Paul suddenly move from love to these sins? Because God’s love is self-giving, but freshly love or these sins are often self-gratifying, “What makes me feel good? What can I get?” Pual says there must not be “even a hint” of these things among God’s people. Why is he so serious? Because God’s Kingdom is Light. These things belong to darkness. v.5 says those who persist in sexual immorality, impurity, greed, idolatry will have no inheritance in God’s Kingdom (v.5). That’s serious. We receive our inheritance by grace through faith. And true faith is accompanied by action. 

In Eph. 4:27 Paul says, don’t let your anger stay overnight. “Do not give the devil a foothold.” The devil is the king of the kingdom of darkness. A foothold is like putting your foot in a doorway, so the door can’t shut. Eph 4 says, unresolved anger can become such a foothold. The enemy comes in to steal, kill and destroy. In my ministry, I’ve seen people come with headaches, back pain, neck pain, and other pains, and after humbly repenting, receiving Christ’s forgiveness, choosing to forgive, and shutting the door to the enemy, their pain has gone.

Sexual sin can open another doorway to demonic influence. 1 Cor. 6:16 says, “Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.” God designed sexual intimacy for marriage, where this one-flesh bond fulfils His purpose. But sexual intimacy outside marriage violates God’s boundaries, and can give the enemy foothold, bringing bondage and destruction into people’s lives.

God unfolded this truth to me through a dream. One night, I saw a young man involved sexually with a divorced woman. I was desperately interceding and crying for him, “Lord, don't let him suffer financial curses. Turn this curse into discipline. Give him a chance to turn away from this sexual sin.” As I cried, 1 Cor. 6:16 appeared clearly before me: “The two will become one flesh.” I woke up in tears. The dream was so real. I confessed, “Lord, I don't have such a deep love for this young man. It must be You. You love him so much. You don't want to see him destroyed by sin.” Three days later, this young man came to see me and admitted that what I had seen was true. He said, “I know this relationship is wrong. I want to stop, but I can't. Since entering this relationship, I’ve also been experiencing serious financial difficulties, just as she has, although she has a high salary.” Sex is never merely physical. Sex outside marriage can have consequences much deeper than we imagine, affecting us spiritually, emotionally, relationally and finically. Twice I led this young man in prayer to confess, repent, forgive where needed, and renounce the sin. Praise God, he was set free. Even a hint of sin can give the enemy a foothold. But repent, renounce, close the door, turn to the truth, and Jesus can set us free.

Then Paul mentions greed, and V.5 calls a greedy person “an idolater.” Idolatry is another doorway. 1 Cor 10:14 calls us to flee from idolatry. An idol is not only a statue. Money, success, relationships, our own desires, and even social media can become idols. Anything you’re unwilling to give up for Jesus can become an idol in your life. 1 Cor 10:21 says, you can’t drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too. This means we cannot belong to Jesus while seeking spiritual power, protection, healing, or blessing from other spiritual sources. I

n Asia, we often see people offering food or burning incense to idols, or dead ancestors, to seek protection and blessing. In other cultures, people may turn to curanderismo, spiritual healers, fortune-telling, tarot, astrology, amulets, rituals, New Age spirituality, Yoga, or even occult games, like playing with gods or goshts. Deut. 18 warns against divination, sorcery, mediums, and consulting the dead. All these practices open doors to the enemy, because they belong to the kingdom of darkness. Instead of blessing, they bring bondage, fear, shame, mental torment, nightmares, insomnia, and broken relationships. I’ve even ministered to teenagers who saw dark spirits or felt choked by dark shadows at night. They had never done these things themselves, but their ancestors had opened doors to the enemy, and now they suffered demonic torments. Yet after they repented these things, received Jesus’ forgiveness, and chose to forgive, they were set free. Unforgiveness opens the door to the enemy. As Christians, what spiritual legacy do we want to pass down to the next generation? Jesus says, “Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.” (Matt. 4:10)

3, Live as children of light. (Eph 5:8-14)

V.8, “you were once darkness. Now, you’re light in the Lord”  It doesn’t say, “You once lived in darkness.” It says we were darkness. Whether we thought we were right or not, what we reflected was darkness. But now our identity has changed, and we’re called to live out who we are--light in the Lord. There are two kingdoms, the Kingdom of Light and the kingdom of darkness. God’s Kingdom reigns forever. They have different kings, Jesus is the King of kings, and different principles, characters, and cultures. But no culture is the standard, only Jesus is.  Col. 1:13 says God “has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves.”  Once we lived according to the principles of this world, everything was transactional: “What can I get?” “If I love you, what can I get from you?”

But Jesus rescued us from that kingdom. Now we belong to the Kingdom of Light, so we’ve gotta learn a completely different way of living. “Become imitators of God.” V.10 says, “Find out what pleases the Lord.” As Children of God, we’re not to follow, “What does my family teach me? What does my culture or this world teach me?” Living as children of light means bringing the traditions, values, and beliefs we have inherited under the lordship of Jesus and saying, “Does this please the Lord? There is only one God; apart from Him, I have no good thing! Lord, help me live out the principles of Your Kingdom, so that I may thrive, trample down the enemy, and carry Your presence to bless others.” 

Be imitators of God. Walk in His love, close every door to darkness, and live as children of light. 

Prayer:

Lord, You are holy. You’re so holy. You are light, and in You there is no darkness at all. Thank You, Jesus, for loving us and giving Yourself for us on the Cross. Your love is in Your holiness. 

No sinner can stand before You, the one true and holy God, yet thank You for standing in our place and shedding Your own blood for the forgiveness of our sins, cleansing us from all unrighteousness, and rescuing us from the dominion of darkness into Your Kingdom of light. We honour You! We belong to You.

Today we wanna ask the Holy Spirit to search our hearts… If you like, you can follow my prayer:

‘Lord Jesus, forgive me and my ancestors for opening doors to the enemy through sexual immorality, impurity, greed, idolatry, seeking protection, blessing, healing, or guidance from dead ancestors, fortune-telling, mediums, spiritual healers, curanderismo, tarot cards, astrology, horoscopes, amulets, charms, spells, divination, witchcraft, sorcery, séances, spiritism, New Age spirituality, Yoga, occult rituals, or games involving gods or ghosts, worshipping idols, or making offerings to idols…

Today, I confess that these things belong to the kingdom of darkness. I renounce every agreement with any culture, value, or tradition that is not aligned with Your light and the principles of Your Kingdom. I receive Your forgiveness, and I forgive myself and everyone in my family who opened doors to the enemy, for they did not know what they were doing. You have mercy on them, and I pass that mercy on to them.

In the name of Jesus, I close every door we opened to the enemy. Let the blood of Jesus cleanse me now. I break every bondage and command every dark power to leave my life and my family. Let every work of darkness lose its hold over us.

Holy Spirit, fill every corner of my heart that was once occupied by darkness. Transform me from the inside out and teach me to become more like You in Your love to love others...’

Father, thank You for calling us to imitate You, to walk in sacrificial love, to find out what pleases You, and to live as children of light, so that our lives may produce the fruit of goodness, righteousness, and truth. May we carry Your presence and pass down a godly legacy—a legacy of faith, holiness, love, freedom, and obedience to You. May our lives bring glory to You and blessing to others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Small Group Discussion Questions:

1, What does it mean to imitate God in our everyday lives? Jesus loved us sacrificially. What is one way you can show sacrificial love to someone this week? 

2, Is there anything from your culture, family, or traditions that you are wondering whether it pleases God?

3, Was there anything in today’s message that you realised you may need to repent of or turn away from?

4, What does “close the door to the enemy” mean to you? Is there an area where you would like prayer?

5, What is one thing you want to change this week so that you can live more as a child of light?