Romans 13:11-14 -- "And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep, for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.  The night is far spend, the day is at hand.  Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.  Let us walk honestly, as in the day, not in chamberling and wantonness, not in strife and envying.  But, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provisions for the flesh, to fulfill the lust thereof."

I wonder!  How would Paul look upon things today?  Would he be shocked; would he be please, or would he be happy or sad?  God's Word is always new, always real, and always fresh.  Paul was saying to the people, "Wake up!  Come out of darkness!"

The world has gone through such a change -- even the churches have changed.  Look around you.  The world has forsaken God.  We have said, "We don't want God in our lives, in our homes, in our schools, in our government, in our towns."  We say, "Oh well, it's the times in which we are living."  We just excuse our sin.

We are living in darkness.  You cannot live in darkness and be a Christian.  Darkness dims the light.  Therefore, you must cast off the darkness to let your Light shine through.  We must first realize the time in which we live.

What are these works of darkness, the works of flesh? (being one and the same).  Galatians 6;19 names them: "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these:  adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulation, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envying, murders, drunkenness, reveling, and such like -- they that do these things will not inherit the kingdom of God."

For someone to say that they have been delivered, but continue to do these things is wrong -- you are lying to yourself.  Your light cannot shine through, and you are still in darkness.  To cast off darkness is to live in the Fruit of the Holy Spirit.  You ask, "What is the fruit of the Spirit?" 

Galatians 5:22-24: These are the things God pours into our heart when He takes out all the junk.  They are: love, peace, joy, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance. They that are in Christ and belong to Him have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.  We live in the Spirit; let us also walk in the Spirit.

God is going to judge us according to the way we walked.  Being a child of God means saying, "Lord, here is the steering wheel, you drive."  It's the same today as in Paul's day, Folks.  It's time to wake up -- time to come out of the darkness and into the Light.

Sermon edited by Mary King