Walking in the Light. 1 John 1:1-10

Notes

II. Fellowship with God and with One Another. Verses 5-7.

Notes

III. Consciousness and Confession of Sin. Verses 8-10.

Notes

1. Verses 1-4.—Christ is the Word (John 1:1) and the Life (John 14:6), and hence He is the Word of Life. The life was manifested in flesh (Rom. 8:3), and can be known to us only as an experience (John 1:12). When our eyes have been anointed (Rev. 3:18; 2 Kings 6:17), and our ears wakened (Isa. 50:4) so that we can hear aright (Mark 4:24), then we must testify (Acts 4:20), and our words will have effect (Acts 4:33). Fellowship with Christ is the experience of every Christian (1 Cor. 1:9), and this extends to His sufferings (Phil. 3:10; 1:29), as well as to the joy (1 Peter 4:13).

2. Verses 5-7.—God is light and dwells in light (1 Tim. 6:16), and as He was in Christ (2 Cor. 5:19), so Christ in His life (John 1:4) was the true light (verse 9), and His followers become light (Eph. 5:8; Matt. 5:14) if they walk in the light (John 8:12), and are to shine (Isa. 60:1); but this is done by the life (Matt. 5:16). "What is light?—It is piety, goodness, truth, mercy, love; it is the revealing of the truth in the character and life." We can not have fellowship with light and darkness at the same time (2 Cor. 6:14).

3. Verses 8, 10.—God has said that we are sinners (Rom. 3:23), and so we make Him a liar by saying that we are not sinners. But while there is no good thing in us (Rom. 7:18), and we are poor and miserable (Rev. 3:17), we can boast of the Lord (Ps. 34:2; 1 Cor. 1:31), in whom there is no unrighteousness (Ps. 92:15), and who is made righteousness unto us (1 Cor. 1:30). "He was condemned for our sins in which He had no share, that we might be justified by His righteousness in which we had no share." The only way by which we may be "made free from sin" is to confess that we are full of sin.

"Are you in Christ?—Not if you do not acknowledge yourselves erring, helpless, condemned sinners; not if you are exalting and glorifying self. If there is any good in you, it is wholly attributable to the mercy of a compassionate Saviour." "There can be no self-exaltation, no boastful claim to freedom from sin, on the part of those who walk in the shadow of Calvary's cross." "And the claim to be without sin is, in itself, evidence that he who makes this claim is far from holy."

4. ⟦Verse 9.?⟧—There are some notable examples of confession on record for our instruction. Daniel (Dan. 9:3-20), Ezra (Ezra 9:5; 10:1), and David (Ps. 51:1-4) are familiar cases. "True confession is always of a specific character, and acknowledges particular sin." "Confession will not be acceptable to God without sincere repentance and reformation." "Whatever the character of your sin, confess it. If it is against God only, confess only to Him. If you have wronged or offended others, confess also to them, and the blessing of the Lord will rest upon you." "Sins that are not confessed will never be forgiven."

"Our past sins will sometimes come to mind and cast a shadow over our faith, so that we can see nothing but merited punishment in store for us. But at such times, while we feel sorry for sins, we should look to Jesus, and believe that He has pardoned our transgressions." "If you believe the promise—believe that you are forgiven and cleansed—God supplies the fact: you are made whole, just as Christ gave the paralytic power to walk when the man believed that he was healed. It is so if you believe it." But "it is not faith that claims the favor of heaven without complying with the conditions upon which mercy is to be granted. It is presumption." "We are to believe that God accepts us when we fulfil His conditions, simply because He has said that He would."