1 John 1:6-10 - Talking and Walking

Today, Saturday July 03 Talking and Walking 1 John 1:6-10 “If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.  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.  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” Our talk should be backed up by our walk! The life that is real also has an enemy, and we read about it in this section. This enemy is sin. Nine times in these verses John mentions sin, so the subject is obviously not unimportant. John illustrates his theme by using the contrast between light and darkness: God is light; sin is darkness. But there is another contrast here too—the contrast between saying and doing. Four times John writes, "If we say" or "He that says" (1 John 1:6, 8, 10; 2:4):  It is clear that our Christian life is to amount to more than mere "talk"; we must also "walk," or live, what we say we believe. If we are in fellowship with God (if we are "walking in the light"), our lives will back up what our lips are saying. But if we are living in sin ("walking in darkness"), then our lives will contradict what our lips are "saying”, making us hypocrites. The New Testament calls the Christian life a "walk." This walk begins with a step of faith when we trust Christ as our Savior. But salvation is not the end—it's only the beginning—of spiritual life. "Walking" involves progress, and Christians are supposed to advance in the spiritual life. Just as a child must learn to walk and must overcome many difficulties in doing so, a Christian must learn to "walk in the light."  And the fundamental difficulty involved here is this matter of sin. Sin is not simply outward disobedience; sin is also inner rebellion or desire. For example, we are warned about the desires of the flesh and of the eyes and about the pride of life (1 John 2:16), all of which are sinful. Sin is also transgression of the Law (1 John 3:4), or literally, "lawlessness." Sin is refusal to submit to the Law of God. Lawlessness, or independence of the Law, is the very essence of sin. If we as a believer decides to live an independent life, how can we possibly walk in fellowship with God? All of us, therefore, must deal with our sins if we are to enjoy the life that is real. John goes on to tell us three things we can do with our sins: We can try to cover our sins (1 John 1:5-6, 8; 2:4), or we can confess our sins (1 John 1:7, 9), and we can conquer our sins (1 John 2:1-3, 5-6)! It’s a choice we must make today! God bless!