Sin Cannot Live In The Light

By Andrea Lucaado

We are masters at compartmentalizing our lives. We have a public persona—the side of us we allow strangers and co-workers to see. Then, we have a more personal layer to us, the side of us we only let those we trust see, the more vulnerable parts, the real stories. Beyond this, we also often have a private side, the side of us we don’t want anyone to see because we are ashamed. This private persona is often where our sin resides, hidden from others. We keep it as much in the dark as possible.

It’s this side of us that is the most tempting to hide and keep private. And it is this side of us that if kept private is the most devastating to us emotionally, spiritually, and sometimes even physically.

This is the paradoxical lie the enemy wants us to believe: Don’t bring your sin and shame into the light; keep it in the dark where it belongs, but that is the opposite of what the gospel tells us about light and its purpose and power.

Paul says in Ephesians, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light…everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light.” (Ephesians 5: 8,13 NIV).

Did you catch that? “…everything that is illuminated becomes a light.” Another version of this verse says, “But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light.” (Ephesians 5:13 NKJV).

To make something manifest is to make it known, to speak it out loud. We often call this confession. Therefore, when we confess our private sin that we’ve kept in darkness, it becomes light. The dark spell it has over us is cast off.

Of course, it’s counterintuitive to confess our sin, because we fear exposing it would bring shame upon us. What would people think? What would God think? But in Christ, we are no longer dead to sin. As Romans 6:18 says, “You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.” Because of this truth, bringing our sin into the light actually causes our sin to lose its power over us. What was once dark is replaced with light.

James says, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” (James 5:16). Sometimes bringing sin into the light means confessing it to God, sometimes it means confessing it to others. Either way, confession is the way forward to healing.

Don’t believe the enemy’s lie. Sin thrives in darkness, but it dies in the light. Bring everything before God, knowing you have a great High Priest advocating on your behalf. In Christ, we don’t have to live compartmentalized lives, hiding from certain people, keeping sin in secret. In Christ, we are now children of the light. Let’s live like it.

If you would like to learn more about how Jesus brought light to this earth and to your life, we would encourage you to read our Introduction to the Christian Life Study.