Fellowship with God: Saved Sinners

1 John 1:5-2:2 Fellowship with God (Saved Sinners) Introduction: As John has clearly laid out for us the true nature of Jesus Christ and his purpose in coming - to give us fellowship with God (eternal life). He now moves on to talk about those who have fellowship with God and those who do not. In this next section vs.1:5-2:2 John uses the word sin, sins, or sinned nine times. Sin: is anything (whether in thoughts, actions or attitudes) that does not express or conform to the holy character of God as expressed in his moral law. Today it is not very popular to talk about sin especially in biblical terms. Definitely not in the culture and not in the church. We have taken the great offense out of sin. No longer is it an offense, worthy of death and judgment, to a holy and righteous God, but now it has simply become a mere blot on our character, a personality dysfunction that we can train ourselves out of and overcome. Sin really becomes about me not living up to my potential rather than having anything to do with a barrier between my fellowship with a Holy God. Christianity is the only religion that I know of that really takes sin seriously. A materialist philosophy would tell us that sin is the result of electro-chemical imbalances leading to biological dysfunction. The solution to evil and sin is medical and chemical improvement of the human body. In Evolutionism sin is essentially anything that hinders the progress of the human race. In Psychology, sin is caused by low self esteem that results in suppression of one’s true feelings. There answer, is love and acceptance of oneself. In humanism, sin is simply attitudes or actions that hurt other people. The answer is better education and social conditioning, to help people act out of the good of their nature. In environmentalism, sin is the result of not acting on the truth that the earth is our mother and not living as though all living things were equal in value. Finally in Pantheism, sin is being out of balance with our immediate environment and living out of harmony with the rest of the earth. Now the secessionist’ who John was confronting had their own wrong ideas about sin. They were claiming not that they were sinless in their nature but that since receiving this secret knowledge they had cease to sin, therefore they claimed they no longer had any guilt before God. To them sin was not something that needed to be paid for or covered, it was something that you were freed from by your higher knowledge. They believed that since they had received this knowledge and it had affected their soul (spirit) they could now do whatever they wanted with their bodies (whatever sinful acts) and it did not affect their spirit or soul or break their fellowship with God. John, the Apostle, the eyewitness, weighs in. 1. God is Light a. “This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” i. John says that this is the message that they received from Jesus. He does not quote Jesus, but seems to be summarizing the teaching of Christ. ii. The message: God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all. Notice, John does not say that God is the light, but that God is light. John will also tell us that God is love, and that God is spirit. Therefore John is telling us something about the very nature of God. 1. Scripture talks about light in a few different ways. It is spoken of in reference to holiness or moral purity (Isaiah 5:20; the NT constantly uses this metaphor). It is spoken of in terms of revelation (Your word is a light to my feet...Psalm 119:105). It is spoken of in terms of salvation (the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light...Isaiah 9:1-2). So when the scripture uses this metaphor it really depends on the context. Here John is talking about light in contrast to darkness and he quickly moves from this to contrasting lies with truth, to talking about sin. 2. I think that is is very safe to say that John is talking about God being light in reference to his moral purity. 3. God is light - He is the source and essence of holiness and righteousness, goodness and truth; in Him there is nothing that is unholy or unrighteous, evil or false. a. James uses similar language to John when he says, that God is “the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change” James 1:17 b. John Stott says, “God is light: it is his nature to reveal himself, as it is the property of light to shine; and the revelation is of perfect purity and unutterable majesty.” “The miserable errors of the heretics were due to their ignorance of God’s ethical self-revelation as light.” c. I think we can always trace a wrong view of sin back to a wrong view about the nature of God. Therefore John reminds us that God is absolutely holy in his being. 2. Darkness has No Fellowship/Communion with Light. a. John now moves to tackle some of the statements that the secessionist were making. i. Vs.6 “If we say we have fellowship with Him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.” 1. What John is saying is that a lifestyle of darkness/sin is absolutely contrary to the very nature of God. God is light. 2. Now a note needs to be made that John is talking about someone who walks in darkness. Scripture always uses this term to describe a lifestyle. So he is talking about someone who is continually walking in unrepentant sin. 3. Therefore those who claim to have fellowship/communion with God, while living an unrepentant lifestyle of sin, are liars. They practice sin/evil and not the truth. ii. Vs.8 “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” iii. Vs.10 “If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” iv. These two statements can be lumped together. 1. To say we have no sin, or that we have not sinned is to be self deceived, to deny God’s revelation and to make God a liar. 2. The denial that they have sinned makes God a liar precisely because it completely rejects both the biblical truth that all men are sinners before God and his provision of Christ’s atoning sacrifice for their sins.” a. Scripture speaks over and over again about the sinfulness of all of Mankind. Paul says, “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”. b. Other scriptures -(1 Kings 8:48; Psalm 14:3; Job 4:17; 15:14-16; Proverbs 20:9; Ecclesiastes7:20; Isaiah 53:6; 64:6) 3. It’s very common for people to claim fellowship/relationship with God who do not see the necessity of Christ cross to cleanse and forgive them or the need to lead a consistently holy life. a. “For these false teachers, being right with God (having fellowship) is found by way of “knowledge”. Therefore sin is not the major problem but rather ignorance or lack of knowledge” -D. A. Carson i. Interestingly, “New agers say human nature is neither good nor bad but open to continuous transformation; salvation is enlightenment, “the realization of our at-one-ment with God” - Fritz Ridenour (So What’s the Difference?) 4. Fellowship with God is not gained by denying our sin or trying to hide it from him. 3. So Who has Fellowship with God? a. Vs.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 cleanses us from all sin” i. Earlier John used the term walk in darkness to signify a lifestyle of sin/deceit/lies; now he uses the term walk in the light, to signify a lifestyle of openness and transparency. ii. John says, “Cleanses us from all sin” This is a PRESENT ACTIVE INDICATIVE. Meaning that it is not focusing on a onetime cleansing, but an ongoing cleansing. 1. It is only the life that is lived in the light of God’s holiness/purity that has fellowship with God. a. John again says a similar thing in his gospel. “But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” - John 3:21 b. Back to vs.7. Notice that John doesn’t say that those who walk in the light have fellowship with God, that is implied but what he emphasizes is fellowship with God’s church. 2. The irony of this is that God’s light will expose everything, even that which is hidden in darkness - those who refuse to come to the light, so their deeds aren’t exposed. a. Hebrews 4:12-13 “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” b. It’s no wonder John says that they are deceived, they think that they are safe from the searching light of God. c. It is only those who walk in the light, that have fellowship/communion with God’s people, i.e. God himself. It is they who have their sins continually cleansed. b. Vs.9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. i. Again it is not the denial of sin that brings fellowship with God but the confession of sin, the admittance of sin. As we confess our sins, then and only then is God faithful and just to forgive us, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1. Faithful and Just. a. God is faithful is a reference to what God has already promised. Especially the promise of the New Covenant i. “For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” Jeremiah 31:34 b. The reference to God’s justice is a little more obscure. i. What John is referring to is that God is just to forgive our sins, not because God is a push over and easy on sin, but because his son paid the full penalty for sin. ii. Paul says the same thing. “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” Romans 3:23-26 c. Vs. 1&2 “But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. i. John’s purpose in these verses is not to give us who confess our sins and walk in the light, a cheap grace, or a light view of sin. ii. John actually begins by saying, “I’m writing these things to you so that you may not sin”. But John knows that in reality the Christian will continue to wrestle with sin and will be defeated at times and so he says, “But if anyone does sin...” iii. How is the Christian to view sin? 1. Two wrong ways of viewing sin: a. To play down the seriousness of sin. i. Saying things like this: I can always repent afterwards. ii. Everyone sins. iii. I’ve done it before and God forgave me. iv. If we no longer feel guilt, that is a scary place to be in. v. Or if we are thinking that because we are christians we shouldn’t feel bad or guilty... After all Jesus died for our sins. vi. Too great a lenience of sin almost encourages sin in the Christian by stressing God's provision for the sinner. b. To be too severe toward sin. To despair or refuse ourselves forgiveness and restoration. i. Saying things like: God will never forgive me or take me back. ii. I’ve committed this same sin too many times. iii. I can’t even forgive myself; why should God forgive me? iv. Conviction is from the Spirit, and involves mourning, guilt, even times of depression. But condemnation comes from the devil, and this is full of despair and hopelessness. iv. The Christian view of sin is to be nothing less than this: My sin however great or small deserves God’s righteous judgment of death and hell; Yet, God has sent his son Jesus, and he has fully paid my debt, by his perfect life that was crucified for my sin. He now stands in God’s presence as my righteous representative. As the father looks on him he remembers that the righteous demands for sin were fully laid on Christ, and I am acquitted, Justified in his presence. 1. That’s why I love the song “Before the Throne of God Above” so much.. Before the throne of God above I have a strong and perfect plea; a great High priest who’s name is love, who ever lives and pleads for me... Conclusion: Are you claiming to have a relationship with God while habitually sinning? Are you justifying your sin? Are you denying that your sin is actually a sin before God? Are you playing down the seriousness of sin in your life? There is no assurance for you but only warning. Repent you are in darkness and you have no fellowship with God. Fellowship with God is not achieved through denial of sin or the playing down of the seriousness of sin. Fellowship with God is only found through walking in God’s exposing holy light, confessing our sins, and trusting in God to be faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us of all unrighteousness because our advocate, his son, Jesus Christ, the righteous, has satisfied God’s wrath toward our sins. Is confession and repentance a regular action in your walk with God? Martin Luther said, “Our Lord and Master Jesus willed that the whole life of believers should be repentance.” “Authentic Christian living involves honest and ongoing acknowledgment of one’s sins.” -Colin Kruse The Christian life is to be marked by repentance and continual confession of sin. Are you trusting in Jesus the righteous one’s act of propitiation to justify you? Do you strive to live a life of holiness? If these things are a part of your Christian life you can be assured that you have fellowship with God and eternal life.