(REFLECTIONS ON 1 John 1:5-10 )

Logos into life, the Word into flesh, Jesus Christ as heard, seen and touched by the hands of the disciples, and now being told for generations and generations that through Him we may have a relationship with God, and in God, have life.

This takes us from the beginning, God, to Jesus Christ in the world, but what then is the message?

5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 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, purifies us from all sin.

God is light, Jesus is light, we are to be the light in the darkness. Yes, this we know, but what we know to do, do we do? Are we really living in fellowship with God, in this relationship that has been made possible through Jesus Christ, or do we actually still walk in the darkness?

1 John challenges us, challenges our faith, wants us to be real with each other and with God. We don’t want our faith to just be a list of faith statements, but a true and real relationship with God bringing us out of the darkness and into the light.

God is light, so fellowship with God needs to be in the light. Let us not pretend, let us not avoid the problem, let us not avoid the true answer to this question. Yes, we struggle to be in the light. Yes, many times the darkness entices us, tempts us in our weakness. Let us be truthful with God and with each other, and admit our struggle to walk in the light.

Tricking ourselves, convincing ourselves of anything otherwise, does not make the darkness disappear, but rather makes us walk in the false light, not the true light. What do we do then? How do we not walk in the false light, but walk in the true light?

To walk in the true light, we need to first acknowledge and confess our inability to walk in the true light on our own. We need to once again acknowledge our dependence on God, and let God’s light be our light, and not try to be the light ourselves.

8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

Let us first confess our sins, make a commitment to turn in the other direction, which is the true definition of repentance. This confession doesn’t only happen once, but perhaps on a daily basis. Let us not claim to be without sin, because then we deceive ourselves and the real truth is not in us. What is in us then is the false light and not the true light.

Let us walk in the true light, and as that light tell us that we have sinned, may we confess our sins, because He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. Let us walk in the true light, together, in community, in faith.

Pastor Michael Lu
Enduring Word Bible Commentary: 1 John 1