Walk In the Light!!
1 John 1:7 But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.
John is very precise in telling us how to walk in the light and he continues with much more instruction about living in that light! Our living in the light is a natural lifestyle that is found in God, because God is the light. God's presence in our lives results in light shining from us and that light draws others with light to each other and that is called fellowship. That fellowship is a unifying fellowship that strengthens the individual and the group. On the other hand, if someone cannot be a part of that fellowship they might not have the light and that indicator should wake them up to the fact that the light is not in their life. John writes "but" if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other. And of course, the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. All of this truth that John is writing helps use realize our "condition" and is a wake up call for all believers.
As John writes in the following verses we read in verse 8 says 8 If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. To live in the light is to live in truth. Living in the light will also result in a constant realization of our sins and give us a life that is lived in the forgiveness that only God can give. The result is an ongoing cleansing that brings us closer to God, from our end, and continues to mature us in our faith. We can see already the constant communication and realization of the precious forgiveness of God and it causes us to look at the blood of Jesus in a whole new way. The very forgiveness of God and the resulting cleansing is so much more vivid to us and heightens our approach to life. We begin to see things like God sees them and His Word becomes more meaningful and an appetite for spending time with God will be much more than just a habit, but a necessity. We will advance from a state of trying to start the day with God directing our steps to a day that cannot function properly without the replenishing His Word provides. WOW!!
So, if you are wanting to handle some of the daily sin issues that have long controlled your life, then the light will expose them so you can get them right with God. This is called "Living in the Light!" This is the light we need to be walking toward and also living in because God IS the light. All of this is about perspective, and God wants our perspective to line up with his perspective and then we will become more and more like Him as we live in His righteousness. There is a closing warning from John that is very serious for those who cannot admit their sin because they have built up a wall for certain sins they won't admit to. In verse 10 he says 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts. Augustine wrote "Sin comes when we take a perfectly natural desire or longing or ambition and try desperately to fulfill it without God. Not only is it sin, it is a perverse distortion of the image of the Creator in us. All these good things, and all our security, are rightly found only and completely in him."
The Pilgrimage Continues......
David Warren