In some ways, to be a church is to sing. Our hymns are part of the confession we make. They constitute a witness to the world in which we live. The people of God sing. We do not think much about it. Yet, it is a crucial part of our life together. Some churches have full-on bands that are set up on a stage with atmospheric lighting, not much different from a concert. Some have an organist playing that big instrument designed to carry the congregation’s voice. Some reject the use of any instruments at all, yet they still sing. Of course, not all the children of God are great singers (I am certainly not). Some would never sing out loud unless they are alone in the car, but in the church, they learn to lift their voice to sing hymns that direct our thoughts and praise.
Singing is a fundamental part of worship, so it makes sense that the earliest believers in the resurrection of our Lord began to sing. Not only did they sing the ancient Psalms, which we still do to this day, but they, like us, began to craft their own hymns, their own expressions of their faith for their day and time. And in our Epistle lesson today from Saint Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, we are presented with a single line of an ancient hymn of the Church. Most scholars agree that it was a baptismal hymn, a hymn which was sung as one came up from the water of holy baptism and was received into the fellowship of the Church. Try, if you can, to imagine it. Imagine the water dripping down their face as they hear the congregation singing, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
The image in this ancient song is that of being suddenly awakened. It is like being roused from a dream, a dream that felt so true and profound that you thought it was real. Yet, through the waters of baptism, there is an awakening. It is the gift of faith, and it changes everything. The world, with its patterns and expectations, is replaced by a new way of seeing. The realities of sin and the assurance of eternal salvation replace the quest for temporal security and identity through leverage and power. The call to love overcomes the expectation to get ahead by any means possible. “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” The light of Christ shines upon you, and the light exposes the darkness for what it really is.
The light of Christ, the light of the Word of God, allows us to view the world as God sees it. And when we first wake up, it can be a terrifying reality. The temptation is to roll over and go back to sleep, to embrace that comfortable dream we have grown accustomed to. Saint Paul says we are to, “Walk as children of the light,” and “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret.” To be awake, to be in the light, is no small thing. Changing how you see the world changes how you live in it, and it will be harder than you think.
We are used to hearing about Baptism as a washing away of sin. We are familiar with saying, as Paul does elsewhere, that in your Baptism you are crucified with your Lord, that in those waters you die and rise to a new life. To be baptized is to put on Christ Himself. But here you are given another way of thinking about your baptism. It is a waking up, a living of a new life. It is to dwell in the light of Christ. Baptism, that simple act of washing with water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, is a mighty and powerful act. God uses this lowly and small thing, this ritual of the Church, to give a gift which is beyond measure. It is not just where you dwell but who you are. Therefore, Paul says, “For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.”
But the reality of the light, the reality of being awake in the Lord, is that the light does not just shine on the evil deeds of others. To be light means to have your own deeds, your own desires, your own thoughts exposed. For though you are awakened by the gift of faith, the darkness still calls. It still seeks to get ahold of you, to lure you back to sleep. The light shows that even your best efforts are tainted with sin, even your quest to be righteous and wise will be tainted with selfishness and pride. You continue to find it easier to stand in judgment over your brothers and sisters rather than to serve them in love. To be in the light of Christ is to see the need for a continual life of repentance and forgiveness.
When the Catechism addresses Baptism, it says, “That the Old Adam in us should, by daily contrition and repentance, be drowned and die with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.” Daily die and daily arise. The gift of your Baptism, the awakening from sleep, is a daily reality for you. It is a daily struggle but also a daily promise. Your whole life is a life of repentance and forgiveness in Christ. Every time you repent of your sins, every time your dark deeds are dragged again into the light and exposed, you are returning to those waters. When you confess that you have sinned in thoughts, words, and deeds, you speak as one who is awake, one who is light in Christ. You live as children of light.
To walk, then, as children of the light is to be where the light is, to return to the promises of your baptism, to trust in the gifts of God. It is to gather around His Word, to receive His instruction and guidance, and it is to treasure the gift of forgiveness and proclaim it boldly to others. To walk in the light is to confess your sins and receive the holy absolution of God. To walk in the light is to live as the Baptized children of the Most High, to be kind and compassionate, to love and build up one another. This is how we make our stand. This is how we endure until the return of our Lord. This is what it means to be awake.
You are given a new life, a new way of living in this world. In the light, there is hope and assurance, for salvation is yours. You are made His own in the waters of Holy Baptism. What a gift! What a joy! If there was ever a reason to sing, this is it. “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” All glory be to God, amen.
