July 2026

Greetings, saints.

Our text today is found in Paul’s epistle to the saints at Ephesus, chapter 5, verse 11, where we read (quoting): “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.”

Here, the apostle gives a clear and compelling charge, and it is a charge comprising both a prohibition and a responsibility.

The prohibition is to avoid the works of darkness, and the responsibility is not only to avoid them but also to expose them, resist them, and shine the light of Christ upon them.

As we begin to walk through this verse, let us note first that this is a charge given to ordinary believers living in a world filled with temptation, compromise, and spiritual danger.

This is a charge given to you and I.

Therefore, let us consider carefully what the Lord is saying to us today through this verse.

First, let us consider what is meant by darkness. Scripture tells us at 1 John 1:5 that (quoting): “God is light”. Darkness therefore is anything and everything which is not of God. It is not merely the absence of outward religion, but the absence of God’s truth, his holiness, his righteousness, and his life. Wherever God’s will is rejected, his Word is ignored, and his glory is exchanged for the desires of the flesh, there darkness is at work.

Next, we can notice that Paul does not command us to have no fellowship with the workers of darkness, but with the works of darkness themselves. This is an important distinction. The Christian is not called to hatred, contempt, or withdrawal from all contact with unbelievers, for we are in the world as ambassadors of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20). Indeed, as Paul explains in his first epistle to the church at Corinth, to have no contact at all with the workers of darkness would necessitate our very removal from the world. (1 Corinthians 5:9-10). So rather than that, in our verse we are commanded not to share in, approve of, excuse, or participate in the deeds that belong to darkness.

Paul describes the works of darkness as unfruitful – “Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness”, he writes.

The question of the fruit of darkness is not chiefly a question of immediate pleasure, but of eternal value. Darkness may offer something pleasing for a moment, but it cannot produce anything that endures before God.

Eve sought wisdom apart from God, and she found death. Cain sought recognition on his own terms, and he found banishment. David sought satisfaction outside the will of God, and he found sorrow.

The works of darkness advertise pleasure, freedom, power, and happiness in the present moment; yet in the end it yields only emptiness, bondage, shame, and regret.

Eve, Cain, and David each sought gratification in the moment, but the truth is that the works of darkness do not end with the moment. Their consequences can reach beyond the immediate act and stretch into eternity.

Darkness is deceptive. It hides truth, conceals consequences, and blinds the heart. It is the realm where Satan works, where lies flourish, and where spiritual death reigns.

Scripture teaches consistently the absence of eternal value in the works of darkness and its presence only in what is of God. For example, from Romans 6:23 we learn that the wages of sin is death, and from Proverbs 10:2 that (quoting): “Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death.”

And we can helpfully be reminded that the works of darkness can be subtle. They are not always dramatic or scandalous. The Old Testament gives us a helpful picture in Song of Solomon 2:15 where we read (quoting): “Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines.” It is often the little foxes—the small compromises, quiet resentments, hidden pride, and worldly habits—that spoil the tender fruit of spiritual life.

As we move through today’s verse we see next that Paul does not say, “Minimise or reduce your fellowship with the works of darkness,” but “have no fellowship.”

The word fellowship speaks of participation, partnership, or shared involvement. The believer is not to join hands with darkness, not to walk alongside it, not to entertain it, and not to excuse it.

This echoes the psalmist’s declaration in Psalm 1:1 (quoting): “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly.” The blessed man refuses to walk, stand, or sit in the pathways of the works of darkness. He separates himself from them—not out of pride, but because he has chosen to devote himself to God.

Paul asks this in 2 Corinthians 6:14 (quoting): “For what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?”

The answer is “None.” Light and darkness cannot coexist. Where light enters, darkness flees.

Yet we see in the verse that it is not enough only to avoid darkness; we must reprove it. To reprove means to expose, correct, or bring to light.

How might we do this? Not by becoming harsh, judgmental, or self‑righteous. Rather, we reprove by shining the light of truth, love, and God’s righteousness clearly, so that darkness cannot remain hidden and it is seen for what it is.

Paul explains this further in Ephesians 5:13 where he writes (quoting), “But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light.” The believer’s life is meant to be a lamp that reveals what is true, what is false, what is righteous, and what is sinful.

Reproving darkness may involve:

Speaking truth when error is celebrated

Standing firm when compromise is expected

Correcting a brother or sister who is straying

Refusing participation in sinful behaviour when others approve

None of this is necessarily easy. It may require courage. It certainly requires humility, and dependence on the Holy Spirit. But it is necessary, for silence in the face of darkness is not neutrality—it is participation.

Paul grounds his charge in our verse today in our identity. Earlier in the chapter, at Ephesians 5:8, he writes (quoting), “For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light.”

When believers walk as who they are, as children of light, darkness is reproved.

We do not reprove darkness because we are better than others, but because we belong to Christ. Light is our nature now. Darkness is our past. To walk in darkness is to live contrary to who we are. To walk in light is to live in harmony with our new identity.

When believers refuse fellowship with darkness and instead shine the light of Christ, the world takes notice.

The walk of the children of light is not personal, it is evangelistic. It is a powerful testimony. It reproves darkness not by condemnation, but by contrast.

The world may mock a godly life in Christ Jesus, but it cannot ignore it. Darkness may resist light, but it cannot overcome it.

Brethren, Ephesians 5:11 is not a suggestion; it is a command. The world is dark, but the church is called to shine. The works of darkness are unfruitful, but the fruit of the Spirit is abundant. The enemy whispers compromise, but Christ calls us to courage.

Let us therefore walk as children of light. Let us have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness.

And let us, with grace, reprove them—by our words, our actions, and our unwavering devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ.

Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.

Grace to you all.

Amen.