#37: Walking in the Light

This we on Beyond the Pulpit we explore how walking in Christ's light transforms our lives through genuine fellowship, obedience, and love for other believers.

• Jesus declares "I am the light of the world" - anyone following Him will have the light of life
• Light appears at both creation (Genesis 1) and in the new heaven (Revelation 21-22)
• Walking in the light begins with true fellowship with Christ
• Christians demonstrate an imperfect but growing pattern of obedience
• Confession of sin is essential - those claiming sinlessness deceive themselves
• The paradox: as we follow Christ longer, we see both our sinfulness and God's grace more clearly
• True light-walkers love fellow believers through committed church relationships
• Anti-church sentiment reveals darkness, not light
• Membership in Christ's body means practical investment in other believers

Join us for upcoming events: Grief Share and College Midweek (Aug 28), Member Meeting (Aug 30), Book of Acts series (Sep 7), Kids Club, Student Ministry and Community Groups (Sep 10), Movie in the Village (Sep 20), and Equip Conference with Dr. Donald Whitney (Oct 24-25).

Transcript

Fall Launch Events and Opportunities

Derek Wadle 0:03

Welcome to Beyond the Pulpit, exploring the life and ministry of Walnut Creek Church downtown. Walnut Creek Church exists to glorify God by making authentic disciples of Jesus Christ who love and worship Him in all they do. Well, all right, welcome to Beyond the Pulpit. My name is Derek Wadle and I'm joined by Luke Hukee,

Luke Hukee 0:20

hey, everyone

Derek Wadle 0:21

and Dan Rude.

Dan Rude 0:21

Good morning

Derek Wadle 0:22

, and we want to let you all know about some things coming up here with fall launch. It is coming in hot. There's a lot of things that happen every year in the fall and it's a great opportunity to get reset and calibrated for the year. It's a good opportunity to invite friends and neighbors. This is usually a time of year that people are more interested in starting to go to church again as school rhythms pick up and all of that. And we have a lot going on this week alone. On Thursday, the 28th Grief Share ministry kicks off and college midweek kicks off as well, so Campus.

Derek Wadle 0:57

Fellowship. Their midweek service kicks off this Thursday night. It's always great to see how many college students come out for that. I've heard quite a few encouraging stories from move-in week just the opportunities to meet a lot of new students. It sounds like between the four campuses we're on, over a hundred new students have been connected to the ministry, so it'll be exciting to see what happens there Next Wednesday. There's something happening next Wednesday, Guys. What's that? We have a member meeting. Let's go, we do. Come on, we do so. If you're a Covenant member, you should go to our website

Dan Rude 1:29

what's for dinner.

Dan Rude 1:30

Do we know what's for dinner?

Luke Hukee 1:31

Food.

Dan Rude 1:32

I know it's food, but do we know what it is?

Derek Wadle 1:35

I've heard rumors of pulled pork.

Dan Rude 1:37

Oh okay, I've heard rumors but I that or dinner 5 pm is dinner, 5 pm dinner and then we'll start the meeting around 6.

Derek Wadle 1:48

So if you have not signed up for that, please go to the website or the Church Center app and get signed up for that and you don't have to sign up if you're not having dinner.

Luke Hukee 1:55

but the sign up is mainly for if you're going to have dinner, so we just have enough food, that's right, which we encourage you to do, yeah. It's a good time of fellowship. If you're a covenant member, you should come to the member meeting, and if you don't know what it means to be a covenant member, you're probably not a covenant member. You're probably not a covenant member, that's right.

Derek Wadle 2:12

And if you want to know more the membership class is coming up.

Luke Hukee 2:15

That's right. Sign up for the membership class.

Derek Wadle 2:16

Here we go. September 7 series in the book of Acts. There'll be more to come on that, but that's going to be a great little mini series for us. September 10th is a big night. Wednesday night community groups kick off, but so does kids club and student ministry. There's no sign up for the middle school high school student ministry, so we would invite you to bring your middle schoolers, your high schoolers, have them invite their friends come down on Wednesday nights. If you are doing Kids Club, there is a registration for that, so we do want you to sign up for that. There is no cost for Kids Club unless you need to order one of the books. If you need a new one, those are $2 a piece. A couple of events coming up Moving in the Village on September 20th. That's always a great time. It's set up for families to come. There's a kids area with games and a bounce house and all that, but we're going to be showing the live action how to Train your Dragon.

Dan Rude 3:14

That's sweet.

Derek Wadle 3:15

That's pretty exciting. We're excited for that. That's totally free, but invite your neighbors, invite your friends. That's a good thing. There's dinner, there's snacks, all of that. Another thing that's really exciting is on October 24th and 25th we'll be having our next Equip conference. It's going to be on the subject of spiritual disciplines, and we are bringing in Dr Donald Whitney to do that, who has literally written the book on spiritual disciplines for the.

Derek Wadle 3:43

Christian life, many of his books on that, and so it's going to be an incredible time. Dr Whitney, he's a great teacher. I think most of the pastors have read many of his books multiple times the Bible we've given out quite a bit.

Dan Rude 4:00

He wrote that it is a huge honor and opportunity to be able to have Dr Whitney come and speak to our church. I mean, it's like, honestly, I'm a little bit surprised that he's coming. Yeah, me too. I'm like what, how did he? Why is he saying he's going to come? I mean, it's a huge honor and opportunity for us, and so we want to maximize that as much as we can as a church.

Derek Wadle 4:23

And we will make it as reachable as possible. So for adults, the cost is only $20 for the conference and then if you want to bring your middle school or high school students, it's only $10 to bring them. So we would invite you and encourage you to bring your middle schooler and your high schooler.

Dan Rude 4:43

I don't think it's too early to learn how to grow in your spiritual disciplines.

Jesus as the Light of the World

Derek Wadle 4:45

So yeah, that's a little bit about what's going on this fall, so I invite you to go to the website, go to check out the Church Center app for all the signups, and you can do that today Awesome. This last week at church, we continued studying John, chapter 8. And in verse 12, Jesus makes a pretty radical statement. He says I am the light of the world. Anyone who follows me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life. That's a big statement and it seems to pick up on one of the themes that is all over scripture, and that's the theme of light. I mean, Dan, you've got Genesis 1 open. We see light at the very beginning, right?

Dan Rude 5:29

Genesis 1, 1,. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths and the spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Then God said okay. So this is the first time God speaks in the book of Genesis and we're told what he says. And he says he doesn't say let there be a planet or, you know, let's create a tree.

Dan Rude 5:58

The first words that are recorded it's God saying let there be light. And there was light. And so God creates light. And that's really a remarkably simple reality that God, when he created, he creates light. And when you think about light, everything exists. Really there can be no life without light. There's a process called photosynthesis. I don't know if you guys have heard of that before, but without light light from the sun, actual light there would be no life, and without light you'd just be stumbling around completely in darkness. I mean you couldn't even live. I mean you could not live without light. And so the first thing God live. I mean you could not live without light. And so the first thing God creates is light, which I think is pretty awesome, pete. You got to get that vitamin D, jared.

Luke Hukee 6:50

You got to get the vitamin.

Derek Wadle 6:51

D Pete, that's right.

Dan Rude 6:52

Jared, let's go, let's go. And then, at the very end of the Bible, we see light, referenced again in Revelation, chapter 21, 22. It says I did not see. This is John, the apostle John, writing. He says I did not see a temple in it, because the Lord, god, the almighty and the lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because the glory of God illuminates it and its lamp is the lamb. The nations will walk by its light and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Its gates will never close by day, because it will never be night there. They will bring the glory and honor of the nations into it. Nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those written in the Lamb's book of life.

Dan Rude 7:48

And then chapter 22 says then he showed me the river of the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb, down the middle of the city's main street. The tree of life was on each side of the river, bearing 12 kinds of fruit, producing its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree are for healing the nations. And then it says and there will no longer be any curse, the throne of God and of the lamb will be in the city and its servants will worship him. They will see his face and his name will be on their foreheads. Night will be no more.

Dan Rude 8:26

People will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, because the Lord, god will give them light and they will reign forever and ever. I mean it is an incredible picture of heaven no need for the stars, no need for the sun. Heaven, no need for the stars, no need for the sun, because the light of the lamb, the light of the glory of God, will light up the whole world. I mean, what a picture. It's an incredible picture here, wild to think about.

Light in Scripture: Genesis to Revelation

Derek Wadle 8:55

Yeah, it's a crazy thing about a world where there's no need for the sun or moon. There's no greater or lesser light, there's only, like the one great light. That's right. That's right. That's right. And when we're talking about light, um, in one sense we are talking about light like physical light, but we're also talking about something more than that so uh, when?

Derek Wadle 9:22

yeah, so when we talk about that, john likes this theme of light. He talks about it a lot, picks up on it a lot. Even in his subsequent letters, the letter of 1 John, he talks about life, light and life being connected. 1 John sorry. 1 verse 2, that life was revealed and we have seen it and testify and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us. What we have seen and heard, we also declare to you so that you may also have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, jesus Christ. And so this idea is that this is this life that we have with Jesus Christ. And, uh, the question that comes to mind here, then, is like how do you, how do you know that you're walking in the light of Christ? You know what? What is, I guess, at the root? Like where, where do we start with knowing that we're walking in the light of Christ?

Luke Hukee 10:26

Well, I think one you know, even to a little bit, to emphasize your point just before, that is that when Jesus says in verse 12 of John 8, you know, I am the light of the world. And he says anyone who follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life. And then you go like to 1 John here, this idea of life, what is the light of life? And then you go like to first John here um, this idea of life, what is, what is the light of life? And seems that Jesus, he's not just talking about that You'll have more clarity in life. You know, I read, you know you read some people and they talk about you'll have more clarity about how to live life more directly. That's true, but at the heart of it it seems that the light of life is explicitly you'll have salvation. Yes, you know, psalm 27 says the Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? And so he's tying together light and in salvation.

Luke Hukee 11:17

And we know john's idea of life is not just that you, you physically live, it's that you have spiritual life and that you're made, made new in christ and, most importantly, it's that you actually have a relationship, uh, with christ, with the lord and um and so when you know, john is saying the life was revealed and we've seen it, testify and declare to you the eternal life that was with the father and was revealed to us, you know, know, he's talking obviously about the Lord, jesus Christ there, who is the giver of life and, just like light, you know, we need light in order to survive plants, people, animals.

Luke Hukee 11:56

What we need is the light, christ, in order to really have true life. And that life, like, does manifest itself in ways that there's fruit that is produced. So if someone says I have the light of life or I know Christ, I have relationship with Christ, there will be a fruit that is produced, like Jesus says you know, just like a tree produces fruit, you know a tree by its fruit. You'll know whether or not somebody, or yourself, is a Christian, by the fruit of your life. And so, john, he seems to he likes to answer that question right, I think, in 1 John here.

Derek Wadle 12:34

Yeah, spends a lot of time walking through light and darkness as you go through it. And, yeah, just like you said, at the root of it, the overflow of the fruit comes from our union with Christ, which is the starting point. We know that we are united with Christ based on a number of things. And further on in chapter one Uh, further on in chapter one, uh, john says God is light and there is absolutely no darkness in him. If we say we have fellowship with him and yet we walk in the darkness, we are lying and are not practicing the truth. If we walk in the light, as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his son, cleanses us from all sin. So driving again, uh, first, the union that we have with Christ. That light represents that unity that we have with Christ because of his work on the cross. That's our starting point. It's not because of all of the things that follow that we have light, but we know that we have light because of the things that follow.

Luke Hukee 13:46

Yeah, the idea of not walking in darkness is we're walking in the light, and he says we have fellowship with him, and so that's like you said the starting point of walking in the light is fellowship with Christ.

Luke Hukee 14:01

And one of the ways that we know whether or not we have fellowship with Christ, that we're walking in the light, is that are we practicing the truth, are we actually obeying Christ? And we're not going to perfectly do that? And, thankfully, a few verses later, if we confess our sins, he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us of all unrighteousness. But then he goes back to just what Jesus is saying in verse 12 of John 8, anyone who follows me that the picture of following here is this picture of submitting to obeying, walking in obedience to Jesus or, as John says in his letter here, practicing the truth.

Walking in the Light vs. Darkness

Luke Hukee 14:39

There's an aspect are we obeying what Christ has called us, has commanded us to do, instructed us to do? And so that is a helpful question. Like, if we're walking in the light, our life is going to move more towards obedience to God, not less obedience to God. And, yeah, we'll find ourselves, I think, actually running away from sin and walking or running towards following the commands that the Lord has given us to follow. So that'd be one thing. It's just the question of are we practicing the truth? Is there a consistency of, like, actually walking in the truth of God's word, doing what he's called us to do. You know, if I claim I'm a Christian but yet I have, my life is like not at all submitted to God's word. There's a problem there. There's a problem.

Dan Rude 15:32

Yeah, there seems to be in 1 John. There seems to be a group of people who say we have fellowship with him. That's what people are. They're proclaiming we have fellowship with God, we know God, the Lord Jesus is our, is our savior and it's.

Dan Rude 15:48

It can be very difficult to discern in our own lives and in the lives of others people in the church, people outside of the church when they they say oh yeah, I'm a Christian, I have fellowship with God, I know God, I walk with God, you know he's my, he is my light and my salvation. And so John is addressing how do we know then? How is it that we know? And he says if a person says we have fellowship with him and yet walk in darkness, now, darkness, just like light, is the symbol of life. I mean it is. There is no physical life without light.

Dan Rude 16:25

And one theme in John's writings is that, you see, there's like physical water for the body, but then there's like true water for the soul that satisfies our thirst. And then there's physical food for the body, but then there's true food Jesus is true food that satisfies our hunger. And then there's physical food for the body, but then there's true food Jesus is true food that satisfies our hunger. Then there's physical water or light. Physical light for the body, but then there's true light for our souls. And and so if you were to create a column and you know, on one side you have light, you have truth, you have love, you have freedom, you have joy, you have the knowledge of God, you have righteousness. On the other side, darkness, is like literally the opposite. I mean it is void of light. It doesn't have. It's the absence of light. And so when people walk, which means the pattern, the pattern of their life.

Dan Rude 17:21

The pattern of your life is to live in darkness, which is to live in deception, it's to live in sin, it's to live Devoid of the truth.

Derek Wadle 17:32

Yeah.

Dan Rude 17:33

Apart from God's truth. If we say we walk with God but we live in the darkness, then our confession is false. That seems to be what he's getting at here in the passage. And so Christians are not perfect In fact we're very sinful people. But those who live in the light should have an imperfect pattern of obedience, growing obedience to God.

Luke Hukee 18:05

In fact, you know, verse 8 says if we say we have no sin, we're deceiving ourselves. Oh yeah, so the Christian understands no, I do, I do have sin. But they also understand there's a solution to that which is Christ, and so if we confess our sins, he's faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins. So the Christian isn't saying, okay, now, I only, I have no sin in my life, I'm perfect. The Christian actually has a clear understanding that there is sin in life.

Luke Hukee 18:33

And that part of the discipline or the walking in the truth as a Christian is actually confessing sin. It's like recognizing I have sin, confessing and turning away from it.

Dan Rude 18:49

Have you ever talked to someone who says I have no sin?

Luke Hukee 18:53

You know here's. I don't know if I've ever had anyone say they have no sin. They would say I've had people tell me they have, like I'm not as bad as so-and-so.

Dan Rude 19:01

Certainly. You know, I was at Hy-Vee Market Grill in Grimes and I was studying, doing some prep sermon prep and there's a man who I know and he came over to me and he's a nice man and he sat down and every time I see him we talk to each other and during the conversation he told me he hasn't sinned in 10 years. That's pretty good, that's great. That's great. Oh man, I almost died.

Luke Hukee 19:30

Did you open up this verse?

Dan Rude 19:33

No, I didn't, I didn't.

Luke Hukee 19:34

I wanted to live, you say we have no sin.

Dan Rude 19:37

No, he would say. No, I'm a sinner, I've sinned.

Dan Rude 19:39

I definitely sinned, but my union with God is like so good that I don't even he was I don't think I've sinned in like 10 years and and. But then he went on a excursus about how Christians are terrible, churches are terrible people. Um, they, they don't really fear God or love God. He told me that, um know, there's eight. When God destroyed the planet with the flood, only eight people survived. And so when Jesus comes back, how many people do, I think, will be saved in the end? And he goes, well, the biblical number, he goes the number, he goes the name. The number is probably closer to eight. And I was like, are you? What in the world are we talking about? And I said you're one of them. I said, wow, it's great to meet you.

Dan Rude 20:22

Wow, you're one of the billions, yeah, but I said to him I said you're not judging these people, are you? And he goes. Jesus says don't judge, let you be judged. And he goes no, I'm not judging them. I said well, what were you saying about that? You're pretending to know their motives, anyways, but I mean, I can't think of a more delusional thought than I have not sinned in 10 years.

Derek Wadle 20:51

It's crazy, I mean.

Luke Hukee 20:51

I haven't sinned in eight years, but 10 years I haven't sinned in eight minutes, but that's about it.

Dan Rude 20:55

Yeah, so Christians. That's why we say an imperfect pattern of obedience to Jesus.

Derek Wadle 21:01

Christians, that's why we say, an imperfect pattern of obedience to Jesus. Yeah, the confession and admission of our sin and seeking the grace of Christ is a big part of that. I mean, john just goes on and on in his letter. It's like in chapter 2, we look at verse 3. It's like we know that we know him if we keep his commands and so this isn't just like a grudging obedience, like sometimes I don't know if this has ever happened to you guys, but sometimes I'll ask my kids to do things and they'll be like all right, fine, I've never done that they don't sin.

Confessing Sin and Growing in Obedience

Derek Wadle 21:42

They're not yet at the age of accountability that's right but it's just like often times that's our attitude towards obedience, but really it's like we want to grow in this love of walking in the light, by obeying God and his instructions for our life, and when we realize that these instructions are for our good, because they help us live the way we were designed to live, yeah, it becomes so much more freeing and we see it as light and life.

Luke Hukee 22:14

Well, you know, and to that point, even like real quick, you know, verse four says we're writing these things that our joy may be complete and really walking in a light. That's where we find joy, and so obedience to God is not a burden to our life, but it's something that really is a great joy, just like when you think about walking in a light. I mean, I don't know about you guys, but I turn lights on all the time so I can see. I think part of it's my eyes are just getting worse, but it's like it's so helpful to have light and you can see so much more clearly and, spiritually speaking, we see clearly like we actually see and know God, and there is a clarity about ourselves. I'm like I don't look at my life, you know, like we were talking about and think, man, I'm just over sin, I don't have any problems anymore. It's like I'm more aware of my sin than I think I maybe not ever have been.

Luke Hukee 23:10

But like. The pattern is like I'm more aware of the sin in my life. Totally Not perfectly Like, it's not like I don't have any blind spots, but like even in my heart. I'm like I can quote do the right thing externally, but I know in my soul I'm more aware of like if I'm doing it for the right reasons, out of faith and trust and love for God or love for others, or just simply because there's some exterior motive. You know it makes me look good or whatever it might be. And so I think there's the pattern or the reality of like being a Christian, if you are walking in the light, there's a, there's a clear. You have more clarity about how much you need Christ in your life and yet there's a greater desire I want to obey Christ.

Luke Hukee 23:52

I want to obey him, I want to practice the truth. That's right, and so anyway.

Dan Rude 23:57

Yeah, it's like the longer, yeah, the longer I follow Christ, the more convinced I am I deserve hell.

Luke Hukee 24:02

Yes.

Dan Rude 24:03

And the longer I follow Christ, the more convinced I am I'm going to go to heaven. Yeah, so it's not. This is far better. Yeah, and I'm convinced I'm going to go to heaven, not because I'm convinced of my goodness, but I'm just growing more convinced of God's grace, the saving nature of Jesus, that he saved sinners. That's why he came.

Loving Fellow Believers as Light-Walkers

Dan Rude 24:22

And so there's that picture of oh man, that tension we feel where it's like man, I'm more convinced I deserve hell and I think I'm more convinced that I will spend eternity with the Lord because of the grace of God. And that's part of what frees us to not lie about our sin or hide our sin, but to come into the light and confess our sins to God and to one another. That's what I think, part of the reason why verse 9 says if we confess our sins, he's faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all righteousness. We come into the light because of the grace of God. Okay, so how do we know we're walking in the light? One is there should be an imperfect pattern of obedience, joyful obedience to Jesus, it seems like. Another characteristic is that we would love our brothers and sisters.

Dan Rude 25:09

In verse 10, no, in verse 9, it says chapter 2, verse 9,.

Dan Rude 25:17

the one who says he's in the light but hates his brother or sister is in the darkness. Until now, the one who loves his brother or sister remains in the light and there's no cause for stumbling in him. And so a fruit of living in the light is that we have a love for other Christians, and I think one mistake people make, common mistake is they read Love your Brother or Sister. They think of this as generic love for all people. That is not what John's talking about.

Dan Rude 25:47

See the world, go ask the world. I've done this thought experiment a lot and I think it lines up with the scriptures. Go ask, just go interview a random person in New York city. Yep, just say and say, hey, should we love people? What's that person going to say, yes, yes, okay. Now ask them a different question. Should you enter into a covenant with a local church where you use your time, your money, your energy, your relational capital and you invest them in the local church for the glory of Christ? What are they going to say? No, no chance that does more harm than good.

Derek Wadle 26:26

Yeah, they'll say you, you're an oppressive Pew actually just released a yeah.

Luke Hukee 26:28

Religion actually does more, harm the religion. It's terrible.

Dan Rude 26:31

Yeah, it's terrible. So it's terrible, yeah it's terrible. So the world will say you should love. But so John is not saying to love people generically. What he's saying is that one of the fruits of living in the light is that we begin to think about the people of God, the way God thinks about his people, and we love them Like we just love them. We love our brothers and sisters.

Derek Wadle 26:52

That's one of the joys of member meetings. Amen To come full circle.

Luke Hukee 26:56

There we go Pork, trident pork, trident pork.

Derek Wadle 27:01

Which is a New Testament glory.

Luke Hukee 27:05

I'm glad Peter had that. That's right, that's right.

Dan Rude 27:08

One of the glorious benefits of the gospel.

Derek Wadle 27:10

Pork consumption, but then also we're together with those brothers and sisters that we have committed and covenanted together with to love them, and so when we're at these member meetings, it is a glorious thing to just look around and be like these are my brothers and sisters. These are the people whom I will love, with just a different type of love than anybody else, because we are committed to each other for the glory of Christ, for the sake of building one another up for correcting each other when we need to, for encouraging and supporting one another, bearing each other's burdens.

Luke Hukee 27:49

Yeah and so like. If you're, you know, back to your little situation at the Hy-Vee. You know, when somebody is so anti the church Totally, that does not Jive very well. It's like, so that flies in the face of what John is saying. It's the fruit of darkness.

Derek Wadle 28:06

It is.

Luke Hukee 28:06

So when people which we've experienced this over the years when people are claiming to be Christians and they say they don't need the church, you're actually walking in the darkness, because the reality is to be a Christian is to be in fellowship with God and with other believers. You are part of the body of Christ and if you are a Christian, you'll practically live out that reality in a local church where your priority is other brothers and sisters, other believers who are walking with Christ, and that you're willingly laying your life down for those people. And so John is like directly. You know there's obviously people he's writing against who are saying well, we love God, we have fellowship with God, yet they want nothing to do with the body of Christ. And so that's the antithesis of what it would look like to be walking in the light. To walk in the light is no, I love my brother and sister and I would do whatever I need to do to meet needs in their life. You