WALKING IN THE LIGHT – 1 John 1:5-10

Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on August 26, 2018 under 2018 |

Bethany Bible Church Sunday message; August 26, 2018 from 1 John 1:5-10

Theme: As believers, we must walk in the light—where God is.

(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 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 (1 John 1:5-10).

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I have been reading a great classic lately. It’s considered the first great American biography; and was a book that has inspired many generations with a sense of patriotism. It’s Mason Weems’, Life of Washington.

This biography by ‘Parson Weems’, as he came to be called, was the primary source of an event in the life of George Washington that used to be known by every child in America—added to the fifth edition of his book. Some historians today consider the story of the famed ‘cherry tree’ incident to be a myth. But having read the story for myself in its larger context, I find it doesn’t come across as mythical at all. And it, in fact, seems to me to be one of the most beautiful stories of fatherly love I have ever read.

George Washington’s father—a man named Agustin Washington—was a very good and godly man who deeply loved all of his children. But it seemed that he had a particularly wonderful relationship of love with his little son George. The stories of that love came down through the years to Parson Weems through an elderly woman who was a relative of George. As a little girl, she had spent much time with the Washington family. She was present to also be taught some of the lessons that George’s father had taught him. And she reported that among the things that he taught George early on was a love of telling the truth and the harm of telling lies.

This elderly woman told Weems that George once asked his father very seriously, “Pa … do I ever tell lies?”

“No, George,” his father said, “I thank God you do not, my son; and I rejoice in the hope you never will. At least, you shall never, from me, have cause to be guilty of so shameful a thing.” And George’s father then used a very interesting way of impacting him with the importance of telling the truth. He explained to George;

“Many parents, indeed, even compel their children to this vile practice, by barbarously beating them for every little fault: hence, on the next offence [sic], the little terrified creature slips out a lie! just to escape the rod. But as to yourself George, you know I have always told you, and now tell you again, that, whenever by accident, you do any thing wrong, which must often be the case, as you are but a poor little boy yet, without experience or knowledge, you must never tell a falsehood to conceal it; but come bravely up, my son, like a little man, and tell me of it: and, instead of beating you, George, I will but the more honour and love you for it, my dear.”

What a wise father! And it’s then—in this context—that Parson Weems relates the famous story that was first told to him by this elderly woman;

“When George,” said she, “was about six years old, he was made the wealthy master of a hatchet! of which, like most little boys, he was immoderately fond, and was constantly going about chopping everything that came in his way. One day, in the garden, where he often amused himself hacking his mother’s pea-sticks, he unluckily tried the edge of his hatchet on the body of a beautiful young English cherry-tree, which he barked so terribly, that I don’t believe the tree ever got the better of it. The next morning the old gentleman, finding out what had befallen his tree, which, by the by, was a great favourite, came into the house; and with much warmth asked for the mischievous author, declaring at the same time, that he would not have taken five guineas1 for his tree. Nobody could tell him any thing about it. Presently George and his hatchet made their appearance. “George,” said his father, “do you know who killed that beautiful little cherry tree yonder in the garden?” This was a tough question; and George staggered under it for a moment; but quickly recovered himself: and looking at his father, with the sweet face of youth brightened with the inexpressible charm of all-conquering truth, he bravely cried out, “I can’t tell a lie, Pa; you know I can’t tell a lie. I did cut it with my hatchet.”—Run to my arms, you dearest boy, cried his father in transports, run to my arms; glad am I, George, that you killed my tree; for you have paid me for it a thousand fold. Such an act of heroism in my son is more worth than a thousand trees, though blossomed with silver, and their fruits of purest gold.”2

I have never heard the full story as it was originally told; have you? It’s a truly wonderful story—one in which a good father taught his son to tell the truth to him in the context of his love; assuring him that the safest place to run to, when confessing the truth, was right into the welcoming arms of his father. How could that not have made a lasting impression on George Washington?

I couldn’t help but think of that story as I began preparing to preach from this morning’s passage from 1 John 1. I felt that it gives us a picture of our heavenly Father’s heart toward us when it comes to confessing our sins to Him. As this passage shows us, the very best place to go—in repentance—is right to the heavenly Father so that we can tell Him the truth; knowing that He loves us and welcome us. We never need to be afraid of coming to Him. We can safely come to Him with our sins and failures and allow His light to shine fully upon us—faults and all; because He truly loves us and has given all that is needed to make us holy in His sight.

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This morning’s passage is a passage written for believers. You can see this clearly by looking at the passage that precedes it. The apostle John wrote about the eye-witness experience that he and the other apostles had with Jesus Christ—living with Him for three-and-a-half years; walking with Him; learning from Him; and even beholding Him in His resurrection. John wrote;

… that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full (vv. 3-4).

That “our fellowship is with the Father …” That’s John’s affirmation. So; what he wrote in this morning’s passage was meant for those of us—together—who have fellowship with the Father through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. He wrote these words so that his fellow believers would have full joy in Christ. In fact, if you were to look near the end of John’s letter—at 1 John 5:13—you’ll find that he told us why it was that he wrote the things he wrote in this letter:

These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God (5:13).

It’s “to you who believe in the name of the Son of God”. The words in 1 John 1:5-10—words about telling the truth to God—are meant for believers; and are intended to counsel us in our fellowship with our Father and to facilitate our fullest possible joy in Him.

You see, dear brothers and sisters; we can have a relationship with God through faith in Jesus—and truly be His children by faith—and yet, not have the joy of that relationship that we should be having. We can allow things in our lives that displease Him, and not come to terms with those things, and end up holding ourselves back from Him in fear; and thus be robbed of the joy of our salvation. The apostle John was writing in order to help us to get those hindrances out of the way, and to be in fully joyful fellowship with the Father. He teaches us that the Father loves us and is ready to forgive us if we will simply come to Him and tell the truth about our failures and sins and acts of disobedience. He is the perfectly loving father that Agustin Washington was only an imitator of toward his son George. Our Father will never ‘barbarously beat’ us for coming to Him and confessing the truth. He will only find love from Him when we do so.

I believe that what this passage encourages to our hearts is that, as believers—in order to have the fullest joy in our fellowship with the Father—we must walk in the light where He is.

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Now; let’s begin by looking at verse 5 and at the great declaration about the character of God that John gives us. He tells us;

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declares to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all (v. 5).

This verse became very important to me early on in my Christian life. When I was a teenager—around age 16 or so—I used to do a little calligraphy. And somewhere along the way after I had first discovered this verse, I got a piece of illustration board and made a poster of it and put it up on my bedroom door. I would see it every night before I would go to sleep, and every morning again when I woke up. I can still picture it in my mind. I didn’t do a very good job; I’ll admit. But I was absolutely fascinated by that verse; and wanted to think much about it. You see … I had come to faith in Jesus from a life of great spiritual darkness; and so, after believing on Jesus, I relished the wonderful truth this was telling me—that God my heavenly Father is light, and that in Him is no darkness at all!

What does that mean that God is ‘light’? I believe that the ‘light’ being spoken of in this verse is a metaphor for God’s majestic holiness and moral purity. There is, in Him, no moral darkness whatsoever. He is absolutely pure and majestic and perfect in His righteousness. The apostle Paul described Him in this way in 1 Timothy 6:15-16;

… He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power (1 Timothy 6:15-16).

God is so holy and pure in His sinless glory that He dwells, as Paul put it, in “unapproachable light”. Men and women who are still in their sins cannot come near Him. But in mercy, He has sent His Son Jesus Christ to be “the light of men”. We poor sinners can now have fellowship with the God who dwells in unapproachable light through faith in His Son Jesus Christ—who reveals the Father to us, and who cleanses us of our sins with the blood of His cross. As John put it in John 3:16-17—perhaps quoting the words of the Lord Jesus Himself;

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved” (John 3:16-17).

But even after we have placed our faith in Jesus, it can still be a frightening thing to draw near to God’s holiness and expose ourselves to His light. Have you ever considered carefully what is told us immediately after those very-well-known verses in John 3? John goes on to say;