1 John 2:1-6

You know, it's it's it's interesting, and I always love it when we have a service that that sort of seems as choreographed as this one may seem, just because of all of the themes that have come together. And it's interesting, especially for those of us who are aware of what we do as a church sort of reading systematically through the scriptures. We're reading systematically through the Gospel of John, and we just happened to be right there in John three today as we're looking at first John one, five through ten and this light and darkness theme. It's amazing how how God uses all of those aspects even when we just commit to doing things in a systematic way, and even through our commitment to reading through Exodus and systematically reading through Exodus. And here we see this picture of the law, and they're the Sabbath law, and and this this punishment of death for those who violate the Sabbath law. It brings the reality of the law to bear. It crushes any semblance of legalism. And that's why, you know, that's why it's important because so many times you can go to church for ten fifteen years and never read through Exodus. But it's important for us to see the law, to see how black and white the law is, to see how serious God is about those who violate the law, because it's only there that we understand appropriately and more fully the grace of God that saves, and we understand how foolish it is for us to try to attach any legalistic tendencies. To the grace of God. It makes no sense whatsoever. For us to try to keep the law in a way that would appease God when we understand the significance of the law and the punishment required. For those who don't keep it. The other thing that is amazing as we look at the law is, again, as we've talked about it before, the active obedience of Christ. We talked about this before, We'll talk about it again because it's significant for the day, the active and passive obedience of Christ in our redemption. We're so familiar with the passive obedience of Christ, we're so familiar with the fact that Christ died for our sins, he allowed himself to be killed. For our sins. But that active obedience of Christ, he. As a man, the god man, where he kept the whole law, and because of that, this principle of imputed righteousness is made possible. So we look at Exodus chapter thirty one, and it says you should be put to death because of your violations just of the Sabbath, and in Christ, because of his active obedience. We can say, yes, that's true. But in Christ, his righteousness is imputed to me, and God looks at me as one who has kept that perfectly. Amen, that's just good news, says It's also horrible news for anyone expecting to stand before God and be justified for having kept the law. It's horrible news because one of the designs of the law, as we read in Galatians, is to remind you time and time again that you can't do what you're required to do. Somebody's got to do it for you. And as we run up against the law, that's what we run against. But here's the other question. Do we then go toward antinomianism lawlessness as a result of our understanding of this imputed righteousness of Christ? Do we sin as Paul would say, so that grace may abound all the more? His response, may it never be? Where do those two things come together? I'm so glad you asked, look with me, if you will first John chapter one. We finally reached this second paragraph here, verses five through ten. And let's look here at first John chapter one, verses five through ten. Let's look at the marks of the Kingdom of Light. Verse five. This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you. And again you follow back, and this is what we just read earlier about hearing this message and proclaiming this message. A matter fact, let's just go back one. That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and have touched with our hands. Concerning the word of life, the life was made manifest, and we have seen it and testified to it, and proclaimed to you the eternal life which was with the Father and was made manifest to us. That which we have seen and heard, we proclaim to you also so that you too may have fellowship with us. And indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with the Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. Now he picks up the same thing. This is the message we have heard from him, and proclaim to you that God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all. 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 cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. These marks of the Kingdom of Light. There are a couple of things that are important to keep in mind as we look at First John one five through ten. There are a couple of things, a couple of rails, if you will, some rails that will keep us from going off the track as we look at First John, and really as we look at all of this epistle of First John, the first thing that we need to understand is that John is speaking categorically here. That he's speaking categorically here, he's talking about categories of individuals. That's very important to remember that he's talking about categories of individuals. Because if you don't remember that, then as we go through first John, here's what will happen. Say. If you're like this, you're in the kingdom. If you're like that, you're not well. If you catch any one of us on a bad day, guess what. Ooh, I'm out. If you catch any one of us on the bad day. Matter of fact, truth be told, you catch any one of us on a good day, Amen, somebody, and we're going, oh, I'm out. He's speaking categorically. He's talking about categories of individuals. Remember, what he's doing is in part this polemic, if you will, and apologetic for those within and without who've been influenced by many different doctrinal heresies, perhaps the most prominent of which is gnosticism. So what he's doing here is he's drawing a line in the sand, and he's basically saying, these individuals are teaching false doctrine, and here's why. Here's their category, here's our category. So he's speaking categorically. Okay, that's very important to keep in mind that he's speaking categorically, And because of that, it's important to keep in mind that he's talking about our character, our character. Remember that he's talking about our character. That's the issue here. One of the verbs that's used here in John, this Greek verb petipateo to walk around the way that we walk, is what he's talking about. So he's talking about our character. He's talking about who we are as individuals, not what can sometimes happen in our lives, but who we are as individuals. And here's the way that I like to sort of explain that for people. I mean, imagine, if you will, if we're talking about a child and an obedient child versus a disobedient child. All children disobey. There should have been a whole bunch of little bitty voices in the room going aymen. Pastor body. All children disobey. But the difference between what we would call an obedient child and what we would call a disobedient child. Again, we're characterizing that child. Are they characterized generally by obedience or are they characterized by disobedience. So here's the difference. When a child that's characterized by obedience disobeys, because all children disobey, it's different than when a child who's characterized by disobedience disobeys. For example, if there's a child who's characterized by obedience and that child disobeys, Let's just say, you know one of my children. You look at one of my children and you say, this particular child is characterized by obedience. When that child, that child of pastor vodies characterized by obedience, and all of a sudden one day you see that child fangs out, veins in the neck, pointing the finger at me, just going off. Well, if that child's characterized by obedience, normally, if they're characterized by disobedience, your response would be there they go again. But if they're characterized by obedience, your response will probably be, Lord, whatever demon that is that just possessed that child, would you deliver them from it quickly because it would be terrible to see them die. Today, it's important to understand that that's what we're talking about here, talking about the. Way we walk, the way we walk, who we are as individuals. And again, this will make more sense as we go along, and you'll see why it's important that we take time dealing with this. But as we look at this with those rails to kind of keep us on the track, look here at verse five. 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. So when we talk about this kingdom of light, the first thing that we recognize in this kingdom of light is that the King is light. In the Kingdom of Light is light. Here's the message that we proclaim to you that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. First of all, God is. There's an apologetic here for God himself, for the existence of God, and for the character of God. God is. First of all, there is a God. Amen that there is a God. So anyone who would come forth with an idea of righteousness apart from God is already running up against the argument here in one John, chapter one, verse five, God is. So that's where we start. We start with the existence of God. When we start talking about character and what righteousness looks like, we start with God, who is the very definition of character, the very definition of righteousness. God is. So we don't measure ourselves against the standard of other people. We measure ourselves against the standard of the word. Amen, we measure ourselves against the standard of God. Don't we tell our children this all the time? Let pastor vote do something that your mom and daddy do all the time. Kids, your mom and daddy tell you all this all the time, and you think it's just them. But let me just tell you so that you'll know it's not just them. They didn't just make it up, and here it is because you think you're a good kid. And oftentimes sometimes those of you who get a little bit older, you have a tendency to say, yeah. But I'm not like so and so. You just mean because I'm not like them, look at what they do. Newsflash. We are neither governed nor judged by the standard of those use people. If you can't say amen, you ought to say ouch. We're governed by the standard of the Word of God. That's where we measure ourselves. We're governed by the standard of the Word of God. Not is not? Is my attitude and are my actions better than most people out there? But the question is do they measure up to the standard that we find in the Word of God. God is and God is light. He's light. This idea of purity, this idea of holiness. That's who our God is. By the way we see this throughout scripture. You know, I've written down several verses here that I just wanted to read. Listen to this and Psal I'm thirty six nine. For with you is the fountain of life. In your light, do we see light? Look at Psalm eighty four eleven. For the Lord God is a sun and shield Daniel two twenty two. He reveals deep and hidden things. He knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with him is in a John one four. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Look at John one six. There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to bear witness about the light that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about what the light. And then down in verse nine, the true light, which enlightens everyone it was coming into the world John chapter eight and verse twelve. Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, I am. The Light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. John ninety five. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world on Timothy six fifteen, He who is the blessed and only sovereign, the King of kings, the Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him, be honor and eternal dominion. Amen. Every good gift and every perfect gift, James one seventeen says, is from above, coming down from the Father of Lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of change. God is light, God is holy, God is righteous. God is the standard by which we judge. Now, this is very important when you look at gnosticism, especially for example, when you look at modern day gnosticism, and for those of you who haven't been with us, we talked about the gnostics, and that word comes from the Greek word for knowledge, gnosis. These individuals believe that that there was the spiritual immaterial world, and then there was the physical world, and that spiritual immaterial world that's the world of the divine, and that as individuals we have to get in touch with that spiritual immaterial world. They believed this so much that they believed that Jesus was not actually a physical being. He did not have a corporeal body. He was a spirit who sort of walked around among men, and he looked like he had a physical being. But because the physical world is evil and the spiritual world is good, there's no way that God could possibly taken on this physical body. Just a brief synopsis of their teachings. Now you think, okay, we don't have modern da nacissism. Of course we have modern day gnosticism. Of course we have these ideas. In fact, they take it even a step further because the Gnostics had this idea of the spark of the divine that was within us as individuals, and as a result of that spark of the divine, we were in part deity. I want to read you a couple of excerpts from a couple of books. This is. Etkart Tole. Etcart Totley is a New York Times number one best selling author. Let me read to your review from his number one book, This is You review from Don Whitney. Since I first heard of etcart Tole during a medical examination after learning that I was a professor of Biblical spirituality, The doctor asked, have you read etckart Tole's The Power of Now? This is one of Oprah's big book club books. So everybody, averybody, not everybody. Everybody is reading Tola. Okay, that's beyond everybody, all right, everybody's reading it. I said, no, I had not a brilliant, multi talented man with a Catholic background. The physician began to commend the book to me as insightful and profound. Toley's work is insightful and profound. Oprah howner television programming on our radio programs got millions upon millions upon multiplied millions of people reading the works of eck Cartole. He became familiar with the book, and he leafed through it and eventually had to read it and write a review. Here's a couple of things that you find in Toley's earlier book, The Divine Life Essence. Recognize it as one with your own essence. Listen to this. There is only one absolute truth, and all other truths emanate from it. Yes, you are the truth. If you look for it elsewhere, will you will be deceived every time? The very being that you are is truth. Jesus tried to convey that when he said, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Jesus speaks of the innermost. I am theset, the essence, identity of every man and woman, every life, form and fact. He speaks of the life that you are. Jesus was making a statement that we all need to learn how to make. I could read you more from Toty's other bestseller, but I won't. Here's the other best seller, by the way, This is the Secret. As far as hardback books on the New York Times bestseller list, this is number two. This is number two the hardback books. It's been on the New York Times bestseller list for seventy six weeks. Seventy six weeks, and it's still number two. For a while, this book was number one. Number two was the final installment of the Harry Potter series, and number three was the audio version of this book. It's huge and again, everybody's reading it, so what are they reading? Pray tell well, it's the Secret and it's ultimately the secret to life. Listen about Proctor, a philosopher, author, personal coach. The Secret gives you anything you want, happiness, health, wealth. Listen to this one doctor Joe Vitality metaphysician, marketing specialist and author. You can have, do or be anything you want. What kind of house do you want to live in? Do you want to be a millionaire? What kind of business do you want to have? Do you want more success? What do you really want? Here's the premise of this book. Everything out there in the world operates on frequencies and vibrations. When you think about those things, you tune yourself, like a radio to their frequencies. So if you want it, think about it. That'll tune you to the frequency and you'll attract it to yourself. It's called the law of attraction. Now, why pray tell? Does this law of attraction work the way it does? Here's why listen to her. You are God in a physical body. You are Spirit and the flesh. You are eternal life expressing itself as you. You are a cosmic being. You are all power, You are al wisdom, you are all intelligence. You are perfection, you are magnificence. You are the creator, and you are creating the creation of you on this planet. Three of the most popular books in the world today and its modern day gnosticism directly and completely at odds with the Word of God, Directly at odds and completely at odds with the Word of God. It's another category all in its own. What does John say to this kind of thinking, This is the message that we have heard and proclaim to you that God is light and in him is no shadow of darkness. There is no darkness in God at all. God is light. There is a God. You know. There's one of my favorite lines from a movie, from any movie. It is a line from the movie Rudy. Those of you who love movies and love football, you love the movie Rudy. And if you don't keep praying, God will make you more spiritual and you'll get there. But in the movie Rudy, there's this time when you know, Rudy's trying to get into Notre Dame, and Rudy's just working really hard to get in Notre Dame. He can't get in Notre Dame. He goes and he talks to the priest there, and he's trying to get some information from this priest. And this priest looks at him and says, you know, there are two things I know for sure. One there is a God. Two I'm not him. That's not what the modern day Gnostics say. The modern day Gnostics say, your problem is you're God and you don't know it, John says, here's where the message starts. God is light in him. There is no darkness at all. You are not God, You are not part of God. God is God all by himself. And as we've said before, God is not running for God. Amen. He was the only one around when the votes were cast. There's never going to be a recount or a reelection. God is God. He needs no help being God. He's God, and there's no darkness in him. Why is this important, Well, here's where we get to the distinction between these two kingdoms. First of all, we see that this first kingdom, that the king is light. Secondly, his subjects are characterized by light. Look at the next part of this. There are five if then statements that follow this first statement, three negative, two positive, and they alternate negative positive, negative, positive negative. These five if then statements, and here they are. Listen to the first pair. If we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. That's the first if then statement. The then is assumed. Look at this if we have if we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, then we lie and do not practice the truth. If my mouth says I have fellowship with God. But my life, my petipateeo, my walk, my lifestyle says that I walk in darkness. Then ultimately, the fact of the matter is there is no light in me. I am a liar. If that's the case, I'm darkness and I can't, on the one hand, with my lips confess that I belong to the Kingdom of light, and I belong to the King of light. And on the other hand, with my life, live in a way that reflects darkness. Because what's the truth? What's the reality? The reality is the way that I live, the way that I'm characterized. Amen, didn't he just say if you ever have a dark moment, that you're not in the kingdom. That's not what he said. Okay, But is that the way you're characterized? Is that who you are? Is that the way you live? That's the question? Is that your walk? Is that how your life is defined? If your lips say one thing and your life says another, you are a liar. It's that simple. How are you walking? How are you living? That's the question? How are you walking? Does your life look like light or does your life look like darkness? That's the question. Here's the other side of the coin. Here's the positive if then statement. But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another first of all, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. If we walk in the light as he is in the light. First of all, we have fellowship with one another. We talked about that last week, this fellowship within this body of believers. And secondly, the blood of Jesus washes us, cleanses us from all sin if we walk in the light. Now, notice here's what's not being said. We're not talking about works based salvation here. Remember he's talking about in general, these two categories of individual and he's talking about how we're characterized, the individuals who are characterized by walking in the light. He's not saying this, Well, if you're an individual who's characterized by walking in the light, then the blood of Jesus will cleanse you because you're walking in the light has earned you cleansing. No, that's not the point at all. If you walk in the light, you walk in the light because the blood of Jesus has cleansed you. By the way, look at the passage we just read earlier today. Look at the passage we just read earlier today. Look at John chapter three, and look at beginning at verse nineteen. Beginning verse nineteen of John chapter three. And this is the judgment. The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light lest his deeds should be exposed. But whoever dues what is true comes to the light so that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been carried out in God. Notice that he comes to the light so that we can see that his deeds have been carried out in God. In other words, John is not saying in John chapter three, if you walk in the light, you have earned forgiveness from your sins. Knows he's saying in first John chapter one, if you walk in the light, you. Have earned salvation from your sins. No, if you walk in the light, you have evidenced salvation from your sins. That's the only way you can walk in the light. We see that in John three. By the way, look at the Look at the last part of that chapter. Let beginning verse thirty five, the Father loves the son and has given all things into his hands. Whoever believes in the Sun has eternal life. Whoever does not here stop, Whoever believes in the sun has eternal life. Now, the next phrase ought to be whoever does not believe? Right when that makes sense if there's a parallel here, if there's a contrast. Whoever believes in the sun has eternal life. Whoever does not believe does not. But look at what he says verse thirty six. Whoever believes in the sun has eternal life. Whoever does not obey the Sun shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. How do you know if somebody believes, they walk in the light, That's how you know. How do you know somebody is cleansed, is washed, they walk in the light. If any man is in Christ, Paul says in Second Corinthians five, if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things have passed away the whole new things have come by the way. This is from God. Amen, It's from God. So again the legalist argument. Here's the legalist argument. The legalist argument says, I must keep the law so that I can be made right with God. That's the legalist argument. And if we read this and don't understand that he's talking about categories of individuals and he's talking about the character of these individuals, it's easy for us to sort of fall into that. But that's not what he's talking about. He's talking about what we're characterized by. And those who walk in the light are characterized by a couple of things. One, these individuals are characterized by the unity that they have with one another. Folks, when we're not walking in the light, we don't have unity with people who are Amen. As a matter of fact, when you start inching over towards sin. Have you noticed this, When you start inching over towards sin, you don't want to be around godly people. Maybe that's just me. Maybe you guys have never had that experience before in your life. Maybe you've never been in a situation where all of a sudden, a dark shadow is coming over you because of some things that you've been about, or you've been exposed to or whatever. And as this dark shadow comes over you, last thing you want is those light people. You can't say amen, You ought to say ouch. That's the first thing that we're characterized by. Secondly, we're characterized by the fact that we're washed in the blood of Jesus. That's why, and that's how we walk in the light. The blood of Jesus cleanses us. That's how we walk in the light. That's why we walk in the light. Again, the imputed righteousness of Christ, the blood of Jesus that cleanses us from all sin. Christ died for sin, once for all, the just, for the unjust, in order that he might bring us back to God. This washing, this cleansing that is ours, is what brings us to the life light. Listen to this Isaiah chapter nine, verse two. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness on them has light shined? Anybody claiming that in here as me. Amen, listen to John twelve thirty five. So Jesus said to them, the light is among you for a little while. Longer walk while you have the light, lets darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light. Believe in the light that you may become sons of light. Believe in the light that you may become sons of life, sons of light. How by believing, placing your faith in Jesus Christ. We talk about it all the time. Repentance, faith, that's how you become these children of light. You don't walk in light so that you can become a child of light. You become a child of light by being adopted into the family of the Father who is light. Amen. And the blood of Jesus Christ cleansing you thereby allowing you and propelling you into walking in light. Don't we see this as well in Ephesians. Look with me if you will turn to Ephesians chapter two. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not of your own doing. It is the gift of God, not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. And then verse ten, For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus, for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Whatever good work I'm walking in, God prepared beforehand that I should walk in it. Amen. It is He who works in me, both to will and to do his good pleasure. I walk in the light because of the cleansing power. Of Jesus Christ. I'm characterized by walking in the light. And because I'm characterized by that, when darkness comes, that darkness is not who I am. When that darkness comes, that's when I know I got a problem. Amen, When I sin, the reason that that sin doesn't sit well with me is because that's not who I am. And as we walk, and as we are sanctified, we have less and less of an appetite for those things that we used to feast on. And that's good news. That's good news because of the blood of Jesus that washes us and cleanses us, that propels us to walking in the light. Look at this Revelation twenty one twenty three, and the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the Glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the lamb. And again Revelation twenty two and five. Night will be no more. They will need no light of a lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. Amen. Amen, here's another thing we're characterized by. We confess in we forsake darkness. Look at the next part of our passage here in first John, look at verse eight. Verses eight through ten kind of make a sandwich. Eight and ten our almost direct repeats of one another. He just says it more forcefully in verse ten. But look at verse eight. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. Now you may be asking yourself, okay, who would say that? Well, first of all, those modern day gnostics would say that these books here, these books that I just read for you from early earlier, these books would say that these books would not acknowledge any sin in you. Your only problem is you don't recognize your divinity. Your only problem is you're not thinking on the right wavelength, and therefore you're not attracting to yourself the right things. That's your problem. Your problem's not sin. But you know, the Gnostics also taught this. Listen to this, since salvation is not dependent upon faith or works, but upon the knowledge of one's true nature. Sound like King just out of here. These are the Gnostics. Some Gnostics indulged deliberately in licentious behavior. Carpocrates, for example, urged his followers to sin, and his son Epiphanes taught that promisity was God's law. Look at what John says. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. There are also those who teach perfectionism. Now, perfectionism is the idea that believers come to a place of sinlessness, that sanctification is completed here on earth, and that believers come to a place of sinlessness, to which John says as well, if we say we have no sin, we've deceived ourselves and the truth is not in us. We do have sin. Here's the other side of it. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us for all unrighteousness. Two categories of people sin deniers and sin confessors. One category of people is a category of people who say that they're no, not sinful, or not sinful enough to matter. The other category of people is a group of people who confess that that word, literally in the Greek means to say the same thing as they say about their sin, what God says about their sin. They acknowledge, they announce, and they forsake their sin because it's displeasing to God. And in verse ten, he comes back and closes the door on it. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us. I want to spend a couple of minutes on this from a theological perspective, because here's how we have a tendency to look at this. Listen to this from Charles Rray in Ryley's Study Bible. His point about first tiwn one nine, forgiveness and fellowship within the family of God is restored when we confess. Conversely, if it's restored when we confess, it's taken away when we sin. Our forgiveness is taken away when we sin. Our fellowship is taken away when we sin. I don't believe Rary means this in the way he says it, because the way he says it makes it sound almost like the Catholic concept of forgiveness. For example, why do people have such a problem with the idea of suicide? Again, I have such a problem with is probably not the best way to phrase it, but why do people struggle so much with the idea of what happens to a believer who is a believer for real, who committed suicide? Here's why they have a problem. Your last act was a sin for which you could not confess, and if you couldn't confess, you couldn't receive forgiveness. Just like that, it's over. Because you got to confess it in order to be forgiven of it, right I mean, I mean it would seem like that's what we're reading here. If it hadn't been confessed, you have been forgive of it, and forgiveness is removed and fellowship is removed. Because you didn't confess. There's a couple of problems with that idea. And again I'm not saying that this is what Rary is trying to communicate, But here's the first problem with that idea. Look at the scripture again contextually. Look at verse nine and what verse nine says, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness, all unrighteousness. This is a reference to what Christ does in salvation. This is a reference to that category of people who are confessors of sins, who are born again because they acknowledge their sin before God and they are cleansed and they are forgiven for their sins. In Toto here's the second problem. If we hold to this idea, if. We confess our sins, here, faithful and Justine give us our sins and cleansess of all and righteousness. The other side of that, of course, is if we commit a sin and that particular sin is not confessed, then we don't have forgiveness for that particular sin, and we don't have any cleansing from that particular sin. What does that do to the context of the rest of this paragraph? Look at what he says. If we say we have fellowship with Him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. If I do an act of darkness, does that mean that I'm no longer part of the Kingdom of light? Are we losing and regaining our salvation over and over and over again? Is that the case. No, that's not the case. That's not the case here. That's not what's being spoken of here. Let me give you three three comments on this passage scripture to help us, and I think it's very important. Normally, I don't like to sort of draw out a lot of different comments from different common today on these sort of subjects, But I think it's very important that we understand the nuances here versus scripture, so that we can be freedomp in this area. Listen to this one first from Daniel Lachan. The claim to be without sin probably arose from John's opponents understanding that fellowship with a holy God required one to be sinless. Verses eight and ten are essentially parallel. The heretics argued that the condition for fellowship with the Father is sinlessness. Therefore they claimed to be sinless. Yet in this very claim they rejected God's word, deceived themselves, and made God out to be a liar. Sinlessness is theirs by virtue of life in Christ alone. It cannot be located merely within themselves. Fellowship with God requires sinlessness. Therefore we're sinless. Now, fellowship with God requires sinlessness, and the only way you get that is through the imputed righteousness of Christ. Otherwise, you know, I die, and I face God and he goes, I'm gonna What's that? Is that? The list of my sins that are under the blood. Now, these are the ones that you forgot to confess. This is why you can't come into my kingdom, because you forgot to confess these right here and every last one of us has millions upon millions upon multiplied millions of sins that we forgot to confess. If that's the meaning of this verse, we're in trouble. Well, here's how some people deal with it. Lord, forgive me for my sins and all those that I've forgotten. Listen to this one from Calvin. He again promises to the faithful that God will be propitious to them, provided they acknowledge themselves to be sinners. I love that Calvin says, provided they acknowledge themselves to be sinners. It is of great moment to be fully persuaded that when we have sinned, there is reconciliation with God ready and prepared for us. We shall otherwise carry always a hell within us. Few indeed, consider how miserable and wretched is a doubting conscience. But the truth is that hell reigns where there is no peace with God. There more than it becomes us to receive with the whole heart this promise, which offers free pardon to all who confess their sins. Again, Calvin is talking about this in the broader sense, you confess your sinfulness. In other words, this is what salvation is. We come to a place of repentance and faith. We become sin confessors. We acknowledge who we are. Yes, all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and I'm part of all. Amen, Hallelujah, Praise the Lord. I agree with God that I am a sinner and that the only answer for my sin problem is Jesus Christ, the righteous One. He must wash me and I must have his righteousness. He must take on him my sinfulness. And one final one from John guil and this I believe puts perhaps the finest, perhaps the finest point on it and helps us grapple with this forgiveness of sin. Here intends not the act of forgiveness as in God proceeding upon the bloodshed and sacrifice of Christ, which is done at once and includes all sin past, present and to come. That's very important. At salvation, we're. Forgiven at once for all sin, past, present and future. That's what salvation is. We have eternal life as a present possession, and it's not contingent upon anything. That I do or have done. So we got to read first John, chapter one and verse nine in light of that overall theological reality. Okay, but he says it's not that, but an application of pardoning grace to a poor, sensible sinner humbled under a sense of sin and confessing it before the Lord. And confession of sin is not the cause or condition of pardon, nor of the manifestation of it, but is descriptive of the person and points him out to whom God will and does make known his forgiveness and love. Please don't miss that. Gil says, this active confession is not what brings about the pardon. This active confession is evidence of the pardon. He confesses his sin because of who he is can pfess is a sin because he knows God, and it grieves him. For to whomever he grants repentance, he gives the remission of sin and doing of which he is faithful to his word of promise. Amen. So here's here's what First John one nine doesn't say. First John one nine does not teach that, first of all, a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, one who is born again, one is truly regenerate, one who is truly saved, who has come to repentance in faith. First John one nine does not teach that there's another step that you have to go through in order to make sure you get to heaven. And the other step is you have to make sure that you do the work of confession, because if you don't do the work of confession, then the work of Christ on the cross it's null and void because it was not powerful enough to do that part for you. Not what First John one nine teaches. Nor does First John one nine teach the Catholic view that somehow this removal is there until we perform this act and then it's sort of restored. That's not what first John one nine teaches. It doesn't, But it also doesn't teach that we never again confess. Don't miss that part of Gil's statement either. It doesn't teach that we never again confess. Listen again, let me read again what Gil says. But an application of pardoning grace to a poor, sensible sinner humbled under a sense of sin and confessing it before the Lord, and confession of sin is not the cause or condition of pardon, nor of the manifestation of it, but is descriptive of the person and points him out. If you are truly converted, and you are truly born again, and Jesus Christ has cleansed you and made you whole, and He's washed away your sins, past, president and future. You know, one of the things that will characterize you when you sin and become aware of it, you'll confess it. Amen, sin grieves you. You're washed in the blood of Christ, and sin grieves you. And one of the marks of those individuals is the confession of sin. God, that was sin. I agree with you that that was sin. I know that grieves you. It's one of the things for which Christ had died. I plead his blood and forgiveness right now, and thank you that He has provided for that. We are perpetual confessors of sin. It is the part of what marks us. But we've got to make sure that we're careful and that we don't run off the reservation to this place that has us shackled to what is, in essence a work added to salvation. The confession of sin is not a work added to salvation. Being a sin confessor is part of what characterizes us as us and not them, And being a sin confessor is part and parcel of who we are and the way we live, just like walking in the light. So we don't claim sinlessness. On the one hand, so we don't look at our actions and say our actions weren't sinful. And secondly, we aren't characterized by callousness. We sin, and all of a sudden we go, oh yeah, is under the blood? No, absolutely not. Jesus Christ purchased my pardon with his blood. When I sin, that must grieve me. It must. So as we look here at this first test, ask yourself the pertinent questions, which of these characterizes you? Are you one who walks in light or are you one who walks in darkness? Which one is your way of life? Are you a light liver or a darkness dweller? Which is you? Where are you at home and the light are in the dark? And second, what's your attitude towards sin? Are you a sin denier or a sin confessor? Which is you? Does sin delight you or does it grieve you? Which is you? Because the way we answer these questions is indicative of whose we are. But notice in both instances. I want you to see this in both instances. First of all, look at verse seven. We walk to the light as he is in the light. We have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus's son cleanses Us from all sin. How we cleanse the blood of Jesus and then verse look at verse nine, we confess our sins. He is faithful and Justine forgive us as our sins and cleanse us of all unrighteousness. The only way to not be a darkness dweller is through the cleansing work. Of the Son of God. The only way to be a seening confessor instead of a sin denier is through the cleansing work of Jesus Christ, the son of the Living God. That's our only answer. So here's what one John one five through ten is not teaching. You better work harder, try to walk like those light people are not those darkness people. You better count your sins more carefully. It's not what it's teaching. It's just asking a real simple question. And now a real simple question. Is this, which one of these camps do you belong to? And as you answer, answer from your life and not your lips to which camp do you belong? How is your life characterized? Who are you? Are you? His as is evidenced by the fruit born in your life as a result of the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ being applied to you through repentance and faith or are you not, which is evidenced by darkness being the place where you're at ease and sin being something that you don't very much like to confess. There's always an excuse, there's always an answer, there's always a reason. It's never just flat out, bald face I sin. I agree with God. It's not the product of the way I was raised. It's not just a preference. It's not just something that I'm inclined to. It's not a disease. It is sin, pure and simple, and it is ugly, and I hate it because God hates it, and I'm bringing it to the throne. That's how we act towards sin and the Kingdom of Light. Let's buy