Walking in the Light: Six "If Statements" from 1 John (MSS)

Walking in the Light: Six "If Statements" from 1 John

Sermon Manuscript Text: 1 John 1:5-2:2

Introduction: Back in 1 John

Good morning, church! Today we return to the beautiful letter of 1 John—a little letter from John whose life was transformed when he met Jesus by the Sea of Galilee and became his disciple.

Church history tells us that John ministered in Ephesus strengthening Christians. Stories are told of Christians coming from all around to hear John tell stories of Jesus. How wonderful that must have been—to sit under the teaching of someone who had actually walked with Christ, who had witnessed His miracles, His death, and His resurrection.

In addition to authoring the gospel that bears his name, John wrote three letters later in his life to encourage these believers, especially in light of the fact that some had come in distorting the gospel. False teachers were infiltrating the church, spreading dangerous lies about Jesus and Christian living.

So 1 John is both encouraging and corrective. John writes with the tender heart of a pastor who loves his people deeply but will not allow them to be deceived.

Let me remind you where we've been in this series. Two weeks ago we addressed the issue of whether or not Jesus had come in the flesh. Some had been denying that—denying that God actually took on flesh. John summarily debunks that as he reminds them that he actually saw and heard Jesus. Jesus is indeed real.

Last week we skipped ahead a couple of chapters in view of our parent church commitment Sunday here where we celebrated our new babies here at PACOC. In keeping with that theme, I took us to John's teaching that we are children of God and all that means. We have a perfect father and that relationship changes who we are.

This week I want to get back on track and pick up in 1 John 1:5-2:2. Let me read that to you and then dive in.

Scripture Reading: 1 John 1:5-2:2

1 John 1:5–2:2 (NIV) — 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. 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. 1 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

Let us pray for God's blessing as we reflect on these words from John.

I. The Foundation: God is Light

John wants to remind them of the core of the message as he states "this is the message." And here it is: God is Light. That sounds simple but it is so important. We must acknowledge that God is light. On the count of three let's all say that together – one, two, three – God is Light.

The Functions of Light

Light has so many functions. It gives warmth, it gives direction, it provides life itself. Light was the first thing God called into existence because without light nothing else could live. Life is impossible without light. And we can say that about God—without God life is impossible, at least a life that has any joy or purpose.

John affirms that God is that light. In his Gospel as he introduces Jesus he affirms that Jesus is that light: "The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world" (John 1:9). Light is a word that John used frequently.

The Purity of Light

But more than the source of life, light carries with it connotations of purity. In fact John qualifies this statement when he adds—"in him there is no darkness at all." The construction of that sentence in Greek especially emphasizes this—literally it would read "darkness is not in Him, none at all." God is pure and holy and John uses this imagery not to scare us off but to remind us that this is where we want to be. Knowing God is light compels us to be in the presence of that light.

The Superiority of Light

Who wants to live in the darkness? That would be utterly foolish to choose darkness over light. I know some do—too many do—we see darkness in our world every day and those who choose darkness. Back to John's gospel: "In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it" (John 1:4-5). In the battle between light and dark, light always wins! Light is always better. Light brings life.

Imagine an obstacle course you have to complete. You see the course and right before you start the lights are turned out. I would cry out "Turn the light on!" It's better to have light than to have darkness. Your chances of success are little to none in the darkness and to put it bluntly your chances of spiritual success and eternal life are none to less than none without the light.

So this affirmation, God is Light—this message—reminds us that life is found in the author and creator of light and he calls us to live in this light.

II. Six "If Statements": Our Response to the Light

John will flesh out this idea and our response to this idea with 6 "if statements." Let's look at those:

If Statement #1: The Deception of Darkness (v. 6)

"If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth."

This may be one of the false teachings he's confronting—we can have fellowship with God but not walk in the light. In other words, our relationship with God has no bearing on how we live our life. You may say that is senseless, but is it? How many people wear the name of Christ but make little if any effort to live a life of light? Have I done that?

A while back I was introduced to a term through a book by Craig Groeschel, "The Christian Atheist: Believing in God but Living As If He Doesn't Exist." In the description it reads: "You may believe in God, attend church, and generally treat people with kindness…but are you living as if God doesn't exist? Have you surrendered to God completely, living every day depending upon the Holy Spirit?"

This hits close to home, doesn't it? It's possible to claim fellowship with God while our lives tell a completely different story.

If Statement #2: The Blessings of Light (v. 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."

And then John spells out the opposite and the corresponding benefits in if statement #2 in verse 7. How can I tell if I am walking in the light? What are the benefits? John says they are twofold.

First Benefit: Fellowship with Others

One, I have fellowship with others. I have life-giving relationships with others walking in the light. I walk with others. This may dispel another false teaching—that I can live out the Christian life by myself. You can't. Never do we find in the New Testament Christians living in purposeful isolation. We get together. We recognize that this is a group activity.

Second Benefit: Cleansing Power

The second benefit is that we feel the cleansing power of Christ's blood. John does not use here the typical word for forgiveness because I think he means more than that. The word means cleansing or purging. Forgiveness is implied, and he will be more direct with that soon, but here I think he means when we are walking in the light we experience two things.

First, as we walk in the light our sinful tendencies are purged. We actually become less sinful. Shouldn't that happen? Our affections change. Paul uses this same word in Titus 2:14: "He gave himself for us so he might pay the price to free us from all evil and to make us pure people who belong only to him—people who are always wanting to do good deeds."

Walking in the light makes us more bright. Did you ever have those glow-in-the-dark toys? You had to put them in the light to make them glow. And the brighter the light you exposed them to and the longer you exposed them to it the brighter they would be!

A second benefit from this cleansing is a removal of guilt. We no longer carry the burden of guilt in our lives. Look at these two passages from Hebrews that use the same word:

"How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God" (Hebrews 9:14).

"Otherwise, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins" (Hebrews 10:2).

Walking in the light produces believers who are more light-bearers and who live free from the guilt of our sin!

If Statement #3: The Denial of Sin's Reality (v. 8)

"If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us."

We still struggle because we know we sin, so John reminds us that we cannot deny the fact that we still sin. That is a flat-out lie. John is walking a fine line here between feeling relief from the guilt of sin and making the outlandish claim that we have somehow mastered sin. He calls us back to reality.

If Statement #5: Calling God a Liar (v. 10)

I want to skip if statement #4 for a moment and go to #5 where John reiterates this fact:

"If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us."

Same thing. If we claim sinlessness we call God a liar—not a good thing to do. God's Word clearly teaches that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

If Statement #4: The Promise of Forgiveness (v. 9)

Let's backtrack to if statement #4—and you should love this one:

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

Here's what seems too good to be true. If we confess—which means to say the same thing—we can find forgiveness. This is amazing. Even though I sin I can be forgiven and I can be pure. This however seems to violate that opening statement that God is Light and in him there is no darkness, none at all. How can this be?

If Statement #6: Our Advocate (2:1-2)

Here we go to if statement #6 and you will love this one as well:

"My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world."

Before John tells us how this can be true he wants to remind us that this is no excuse to sin. This is similar to what Paul says in Romans 6:1 after he has waxed eloquent about grace: "What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?"

III. The Solution: Jesus Christ, the Righteous One

Okay, we sin and we try not to sin but we know we do. Here's how God can be light and we can be forgiven. Five words that change our destiny:

Jesus Christ – the Righteous One

He is our advocate—our attorney. He is making a case for us before the Father. He is pleading our case. Even now when we sin Jesus is working on our behalf to ensure forgiveness. And this forgiveness extends to anyone who walks in the light.

Jesus as Our Advocate

An advocate is someone who stands beside us in court, who represents our interests, who pleads our case before the judge. Jesus is doing this for us right now before the Father. Not because we're innocent, but because our penalty has been paid.

Jesus as Our Atoning Sacrifice

But Jesus is not just our advocate—He is also our atoning sacrifice. He is both the one who pleads our case and the reason our case can be dismissed. The sacrifice has been made, the debt has been paid.

Universal Provision

And this provision extends not just to us, but to the sins of the whole world. The offer is universal, though the application requires faith and confession.

Conclusion: Too Good to Be True, But True

You are pure. You are forgiven. It sounds too good to be true but it is. It is because of Jesus.

Walking in the light is not about achieving sinless perfection—it's about living in honest relationship with God and others. It's about acknowledging our need for continuous cleansing while celebrating the incredible provision God has made through His Son.

When we walk in the light:

We experience genuine fellowship with other believers

We receive ongoing cleansing from sin

We live free from the burden of guilt

We have an advocate who never stops pleading our case

The choice is ours. Will we claim fellowship with God while walking in darkness? Will we deny our need for forgiveness? Or will we confess our sins and walk in the light of His amazing grace?

God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. Through Jesus Christ, we can walk in that light—forgiven, cleansed, and free.