Ephesians 5:13 – The Light

“But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. “

What do we do with works of darkness? We bring in the light!

All things that are reproved are those works of darkness, those things not acceptable to the Lord. They do not hold up under scrutiny when compared to the will of God. These things that are reproved are made manifest by the light. Here Paul is backtracking to verse 11 where he has commanded the saints to reprove the works of darkness. But how do you reprove something? How do you find fault with something? How do you know that it is faulty? Paul gives the answer here: LIGHT.

Light makes manifest. If you want to see what something is really made of, then bring in the light. As before in verse 12, we are speaking in the spiritual sense, though it draws from our physical world where it’s only by light that we can see. It’s only through light that things can be made manifest, that is to say, what they really are can be seen, not simply the facade they may have. In fact, even in our physical world, one could consider light to extend far beyond that which we can see with the naked eye. Depending on the light that is used, there are things that we cannot see with the naked eye that can become visible to us.

What light is this that Paul is speaking of? We are jumping ahead, but Paul is speaking of nothing less than that Light which lighted every human who has ever come into the world – the Light which was in the beginning at which the darkness fell back defeated, unable to hold it.

There is an inverse way to look at this as well. There is no way one can possible accurately test things, much less rebuke without the light. Paul is in essence telling the believer: you need light!

“for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. “

This statement is perhaps obvious, yet overlooked. That which reveals is light. It’s the antithesis of deception. It is in this that we see what light is being compared to – truth. It’s an interchangeable term. Truth reveals what is there. A lie hides what is there. Light reveals what is there. Darkness hides what is there. In this then we can at time discern whether a source is being truthful or dishonest. Is it willing to show what is really there, or is it covering up to attempt to stop you from seeing what really happened?

There comes to mind the words of Jesus to His disciples, “You are the light of the world!”

There is a responsibility on the follower of Christ to be light. What does that entail? According to Ephesians 5:13, it is to make manifest. To show what is really there. If it is evil, get rid of it. Have nothing to do with it.

What happens when a work of darkness encounters light? The words of John 1:5 bring us the answer: The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness cannot stop it. Are there works of darkness that you have encountered? Perhaps you have committed or still are committing works of darkness? What is the remedy? Light. Bring in the light, and the darkness will be cast out, for it cannot stop the light.