Confessing, Not Denying
11/17/25 Bible Thought (1 John 1)
Those who claim to know God ought to live in a way that reflects that relationship.
This is the contention of the apostle John as he opens his first letter. After putting forth his own credibility as an eyewitness of Christ (1 Jn. 1:1-2) he quickly transitions the letter to a message that he heard from Christ:
“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” (1 Jn. 1:5).
That is, God is perfectly pure and morally upright. God has never erred. He is the thrice holy God (see Is. 6:3; Rev 4:8.). He has existed since before the dawn of creation and yet this streak remains unchanged—He is perfect.
That being said, if God is perfectly holy—characterized by light—how could we claim to have fellowship with Him if we walk in darkness (1 Jn. 1:6).
The apostle uses a construction in the original Greek that almost has a hypothetical feel to it:
“Now, just imagine this. Imagine that you claim to have fellowship with the God who is light, yet you’re walking in darkness. That seems a bit backwards, doesn’t it?”
The believer’s life ought to be a representation of the living God amongst those who are spiritually dead.
We are to be a light in the darkness (Matt. 5:14-16; Phil. 2:15). As we will see later in John’s writing, there will be some proof in the pudding if one has been genuinely born again! (see 1 Jn. 3:9).
For now, let us notice that the Christian’s faith ought to result in a change of their ways.
Now, this does not mean we will be perfect. John makes it clear that those who claim they have not sinned (past tense) make God a liar and those who claim that they do not have sin (present tense) are self-deceived (1 Jn. 1:8-10).
Walking in the light means we strive, by the grace of God, to walk in the newness of life that Christ has purchased for us (see Rom. 6:4). Yet, we will falter. So rather than deny our sins, we ought to confess them (1 Jn. 1:9). At the same time, that faltering should never result in us wallowing in sin and living unrepentant lives.
There is a wonderful gospel promise of cleansing and forgiveness for us when we are willing to confess our sins to Him; yet that first requires we acknowledge our sin for what it is—sin.
The good news is that there is no stain too red to be washed white by the precious blood of Jesus Christ.
As the hymnist once declared:
“There is a fountain filled with blood, drawn from Immanuel’s veins; and sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.”
Believers must live with a sober and realistic view of themselves. I am not perfect. Nor will I be perfect this side of eternity—but I am changed. I am a man changed by the grace of God. When I fall, I get back up. I strive to walk in the light.
Let us not deceive ourselves into thinking that we’ve arrived and are already perfect. Let us likewise not deceive ourselves into thinking that our sins don’t matter. The God we serve is a God of light and He does care about the way we live.
Challenge for Today:
Do I ever try to reframe my sin as something else: a flaw, a personality trait, or anything that just seems nicer than sin?
Sin must be acknowledged, confessed, and turned from—that is true repentance.