1 John 1:7-8: Walking in Light

1 John 1:7-8.. "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. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us."

When is the last time you walked in the darkness? Perhaps you got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom only to find yourself stubbing your toe on your bedframe. Whatever instance you last walked in darkness, I'm pretty sure we can all agree on one thing: It's way easier to walk in the light than in the darkness. Wouldn't you agree? Let us find out this morning how this principle applies in a spiritual aspect as well.

In 1 John 1:7-8, John tells that if we truly desire to have fellowship with God (that is, truly be saved) we must be walking in the light. Now before we go to far here, let us look at what walking in the light refers to. The context here makes clear that walking in light has a direct relation to confession of sin. Directly after admonishing us to walk in light, John encourages us to not deceive ourselves by saying that we have no sin, but rather confess our sin that God may be faithful and just to forgive us. Although walking in light certainly carries with it an exhortation to walk in perfect obedience, it first and foremost exhorts honest confession. For we cannot fight sin until it is confessed, which this passage certainly makes clear. Therefore, the first step to walking in light is confession.

To use a wonderful cross reference, Ephesians 5:11-13 says this: "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. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible." Notice that the direct contrast here: "Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them." Either you are hiding and committing sin, or you are confessing and overcoming it. There is no middle ground. Notice futher what Paul says: "when anything is exposed by light, it becomes visible." Did you know that when you show light on something, you can see it? Like, Duh! But that's exactly Paul's point: that you cannot fight sin unless you first expose it. Once again, we see that the first step to walking in light is exposing our sin, that is, confessing it.

So, when is the last time you confessed your sin to God? The Bible tells us quite clearly that if we aren't doing this, we aren't Christians (1 John 1:6). I encourage you this morning to stop walking around in the darkness. You will stub your toe on your bedframe, and it will hurt (trust me, I know from experience--both physically and spiritually). Confess your sins to God. Stop trying to hide your transgressions. Feel the overwhelming mercy that God offers you when you confess your sin and call upon his name. Walking in the light is much better than walking in the darkness.

[For the Fully Committed: Share this blog post with a unbelieving friend today if you dare. I'll do it with you. For if we walk in the light without trying to get others to walk in the light, why not just walk in the darkness?]