The Armor of Light
A Sermon on Romans 13:11-14
Scripture
11And 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. 12The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us …
Sermon Description
Being suddenly awakened in the middle of the night by bright lights can be an incredibly alarming and disconcerting experience. In this sermon on Romans 13:11–14 titled “The Armor of Light,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones explains the similarities between this kind of event and conversion for those who become Christians and trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of their sins. They are called to wake up out of spiritual sleep. What does Paul mean when he tells to awake and arise? Overall, it is a general call to spiritual discipline. Time and time again, Scripture warns against living in a purely theoretical way. The Christian life is to be one that is extremely practical. Christians are to take the knowledge of their conversion and the knowledge of what it means to be saved and apply those truths as they seek to live their lives. Dr. Lloyd-Jones reminds that it is because the Christian has been washed that they need to keep themselves clean. In constant practice, Christians are to put off the old man and put on the new man. Since they have been saved from being slaves to sin, why would they still live as they did before they were saved? Listen as Dr. Lloyd-Jones encourages Christians to live a life worthy of the gospel of Christ.
Sermon Breakdown
- The apostle Paul makes a general appeal to awake out of sleep. This means we must discipline ourselves, talk to ourselves, examine ourselves, and constantly remind ourselves of the truths of Scripture.
- We must read Scripture, read books that help us understand Scripture, and read biographies of godly men and women. This helps search and examine us.
- We must put off the works of darkness once and for all. These works are the creations of man, not the fruit of the Spirit. They do not belong to us as new creations in Christ.
- We must put on the armor of light, which is given to us by God. This armor is appropriate for us as children of light. It ensures we will not be ashamed when in God's light.
- The armor of light refers to the spiritual weapons and armor God gives us to fight spiritual battles. Life is a constant warfare for the Christian, so we must be ready to fight.
- To put on the armor of light means to add to your faith virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity (2 Peter 1:5-7).
The Book of Romans
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.