Walk in the Light

Walk in the Light

“If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and 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 Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that 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 that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.”

‭‭I John‬ ‭1‬:‭6‬-‭10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

There are two different views on what John is referring to here regarding what it is to “walk in the light” vs “walk in darkness”.

The first view holds that light and darkness define sin in our lives and therefore to walk in darkness is to walk in sin. The idea is that there is a difference between the occasional sin, and walking in sin as a manner of life. And while to a certain extent we can agree that this is true, John never makes that his point. In fact, if this view is true then the next question is, how much sin equates to “occasional sin”, and how much before it starts to be considered “walking in sin” as a manner of life? But no answer to this question is ever given in any of John’s writings and even begins to create conflicts with other New Testament passages.

The second view is that light and darkness are not related to sin but rather to our transparency toward sin. When we take this view the rest of the passage becomes clear.

If we summarize:

He’s says in verse 6, “if you say you have fellowship with Jesus and are walking in hidden unconfessed sin (darkness) you’re lying about your fellowship with Him. But if we walk in openness and transparency, as Jesus did, the blood of Jesus cleanses. If we say we don’t have any sin to confess, we’re deceiving ourselves, and the Truth (Jesus, the Holy Spirit) is not in us. But if we confess our sins (one to another) He is faithful to forgive us and cleanse us. If we say we have not sinned, we’re calling Him a liar (because all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God).

I believe this view to be what John is referring to based on the following passages.

“And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.”

‭‭John‬ ‭3‬:‭19‬-‭20‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

In this passage John is referring to Jesus as the light, but the most compelling evidence is the last phrase. “They who walk in darkness do not come to the light lest their deeds be exposed”. That which takes place in darkness is hidden. That which takes place in the light is exposed. Those who walk in darkness do not come to the light SO THAT, their deeds won’t be exposed.

In other words, in this passage John is saying that those who come to Jesus (the light) walk in a manner of being exposed. And in 1 John 1:6, John is saying that if you say you have fellowship with Jesus (the light), while walking in hidden unconfessed sin (darkness) you’re deceiving yourself and lying to others.

Now this leads to another question. So does that mean I can simply walk in willful sin as long as I confess it? To which John responds in 1 John 2:3-4:

“Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”

‭‭I John‬ ‭2‬:‭3‬-‭4‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Notice that in each passage John frames our walking in light, obeying Him, as EVIDENCES of truly knowing Jesus and being in fellowship with Him. And conversely he says that walking in darkness, turning away from the light and walking in willful disobedience are also EVIDENCES that we do not in fact know Him. Regardless of what we tell ourselves or others.

So how does confession work?

Confession works as a cleansing agent that prevents us from becoming self righteous. By exposing our deeds we lose the ability look on others with any sort of righteousness of our own, because we too acknowledge we have sinned. Additionally, confession draws encouragement and accountability from other brothers and sisters in Christ. By getting my shortcomings out into the light my fellow Christ followers can make sure I don’t fall back into sin and can throw me a lifeline when I do (Galatians 6:1-2).

Is confession supported elsewhere?

Yes, in fact the Old Testament sacrificial system was based on our bringing our sacrifice for sin publicly to the priest. And while the sacrifice of bulls and goats could never remove sin, the public acknowledgement that I am a sinner in need of a sacrifice is the outward expression of repentance that pointed in faith toward the ultimate sacrifice, Jesus. Repentance and faith. The foundations of New Testament salvation taught through the Old Testament sacrificial system.

Do we see confession being commanded in scripture? Yes.

“He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭28‬:‭13‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

To cover one’s sins is to conceal them (to walk in darkness). But the one who confesses them (bringing them into the light) and forsakes them (repentance) will have mercy. This is not a new doctrine. Confession has always been a component of true repentance.

“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”

‭‭James‬ ‭5‬:‭16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

James commands confession to take place. He even associates their lack of confession with the fact that some have become sick. He tells them that a brother who has fallen  into sin is greatly aided when he confesses that sin and is prayed for by a brother walking uprightly.

So does this mean that we must go to a priest? No.

James never says to go to a priest, or a pastor, or an elder. He simply says confess your sins to one another.

This also means that fellowship is not optional. For confession to take place we must be in fellowship with others who are also walking with Christ. Fellowship is not simply attendance. You can attend church and not actually fellowship in any meaningful way. But it’s also not absent of attendance. You simply cannot do true biblical fellowship, confessing, encouraging, holding each other accountable, without attending each other’s company on a regular basis.

This interpretation of light vs darkness seems to fit within the overall message of scripture and makes the most sense as to why John follows up his points of light and darkness in verses 6 and 7 with supporting points of confession and acknowledgment of sin in verses 8 & 9. It further supports the command of fellowship and accountability and denies us the opportunity for self righteousness or hypocrisy.