1 John 1:5-10: What Does It Mean to "Walk in the Light"?

"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin." 1 John 1:7

This morning we turn our attention to 1 John 1:5-10 and discuss the following question: what does it mean to "walk in the light"? I think many Christians would conclude that "walking in the light" means to live our lives in sinless perfection. But if we dive deep into John's words here, we find that this simply cannot be true. To live lives of sinless perfection is simply impossible. So what does John mean here?

In John 1:5, we find the statement that grounds the entire section: that God is light. In God, there is no darkness. What does this mean? Well, it's pretty straightforward. Throughout scripture, we find light being a metaphor for holiness, and darkness being a metaphor for sin. Thus, to say that "God is light" (at the very least, anyway) is to say that he is sinlessly perfect. He is absolutely holy in all that he says, does, and thinks. He does not make any mistakes or errors. He is perfectly righteous in every way.

But if God is perfectly holy, how should that impact the way his children walk with him? In verses 6 and 7, we find two options: either we can walk in darkness or we can walk in the light. John tells us plainly that if we "walk in darkness" (that is, have the continual pattern of our lives be one that is constantly involved in unrepentant sin), we "lie" if we claim to have fellowship with God. In other words, if we call Jesus our "best friend" but live lives of constant immorality and sin, we are nothing but liars. However, there is another way, John says. If we "walk in the light," we have fellowship with one another, and Jesus' blood cleanses us from all sin.

Here we find the first reason why "walking in the light" cannot refer to sinless perfection. Note here that John says that if we "walk in the light," Jesus' blood will cleanse us of our sin. If "walking in the light" meant sinless perfection, we would have no "sin" that Jesus would have to please. Do you follow? If not, continue reading, and it might make sense.

In the last three verses of this section, John lays out for us two ways to deal with our sin. Note here that in these verses, it is a fore-ordained conclusion that everyone reading these verses (including you and me!) have, in fact, sinned! Thus, John tells us plainly in verses 8 and 10 that if we say we have no sin (as an entity within us) or that we have not sinned (as an action outside us), we lie, and even go so far as to make God a liar! In other words, if we claim that we are perfectly sinless, we are in fact walking in darkness, not light. To hide our sins and to claim that they are not there is to, in fact, walk in opposition to the pattern God has laid out for us.

Yet, John shows us the right response in verse 9: to confess our sins, that we might be forgiven and cleansed of them, based on God's faithfulness and justice. This is the second reason we see how "walking in the light" cannot mean sinless perfection. Although John commands us here to "walk in the light," he also commands us to confess our sin and not deny it! Thus, to "walk in the light" cannot mean sinless perfection--if it did, we'd have nothing to confess.

However, let me encourage you: walking in the light does not mean that we go on sinning as much as we can, and considering ourselves just fine as long as we confess our sin at the end of the day. To take advantage of God's grace is to in fact walk in darkness. Rather, I may conclude from these verses, that walking in the light can be defined as follows:

To walk in the light is to continually walk in obedience, yet to confess our sins, and not hide them!, when we have failed to do so.

Perhaps this definition does not satisfy some of you, but I believe it to be faithful. To walk in the light, as God commands here, is to strive for perfect sinlessness (we ought to "be holy as he is holy"), yet to be open and honest, confessing our sins, when we fail to do so. The fact of the matter is that we cannot obey every command perfectly, yet that ought to be our goal. And though we ought to praise God for his power within us when we are victorious, we must go to him in open confession when we do not live up to his standard. To do this day in and day out is to, in fact, walk in the light. I pray that you would do it today with me.

So, let me put this in simplistic terms. Walking in the light does not only refer to our obedience. Though that is a huge part of it, to walk in the light commands also of our repentance after we have sinned. Let this be an encouragement to you this morning, that though you may have messed up, you can still "walk in the light" if you confess your sins to God, that he may forgive you and cleanse you from that sin!

Extra Credit: I wrote this devotional specifically on 1 John 1:9 a while back. It speaks of how when we confess our sins, God both pardons and purges us from our sins. https://mrq823.wixsite.com/thesolidrockblog/post/1-john-1-9-god-s-pardoning-and-purging