NIGHT AND DAY

September 21 

The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand.  Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Romans 13:12 

Verse 11 talked about being nearer to our salvation than when we believed.  In light of that, the concept of “night” here symbolizes our time in this dark sinful world.  That time in this dark world is far spent or about over. The “day is at hand” means that we are about to enter into the eternal day of heaven. Knowing that, we should have a response, a reaction, a course of action.  What should that be?  Paul says “let us” do two things. By the way, “let us” is not allowing us, it is actually requiring us to do these things. First, we are required to “lay aside the deeds of darkness.”  Stop living like the sinful world around us. You know what that means. Paul is writing to the Romans under the general assumption that they are living like the world around them.  He just as well could have written this to the modern church.  Secondly, we must “put on the armor of light.”  You can find the Christian’s armor described in Ephesians 6, but to put it simply here, “We must live in a Christ-like way, because we are about to enter day, and for how we lived, what will we say?” What one dark worldly thing in your life are you going to “lay aside” in obedience to Christ, and what will you replace that with that would be what Christ wants you to do? Do it for the Lord, because we are about to enter His eternal glorious day. 

Tom Johnson