Shining! - 1 John 1:5-10
Terrell Carter, Pinnacle Affiliate
One of the questions that has stumped Christians for ages is what does it mean to reflect God’s presence? Another way to ask the question is when someone enters relationship with God through Jesus, how is that person’s life changed, not only spiritually, but physically? What do other people see emanating from inside and outside a person when someone has come into proximity to God? I think these types of questions are some of the things the writer of 1 John 1:5-10 was seeking to address. Within 1 John 1:5-10, the writer declares that when someone claims membership in God’s family a visible change should occur in them and their relationships with others.
John begins his letter by repeating the language he used in his gospel account. In John 1:1-5 John wrote, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John began this smaller letter to the church by adding to his teachings in his gospel account to further explain the connection between God the Father and God the Son. Both Jesus and the Father are light.
There is a consistency to how the biblical writers defined light and God’s self-revelation as light. First, light was a tool that God used in creation. In the beginning there was nothing and God said, “Let there be light.” From those words, or from God’s act of creating light, we now have everything else in creation. Light was a tool in God’s toolbelt to make all that is. God’s calling forth of light signified the beginning of God’s creative process. Light served a physical use.
Second, the use of the word light represented a moral statement about God and God’s intentional self-revelation to humans. God is light, purity, holiness, hope, and goodness. God’s presence brings about good things. God’s presence ushers in hope. God’s presence pushes out darkness. Where God is, there cannot be fear or the things that usually come with the dark. And because God is light, those who claim to be near to him should reflect that holy light, just as Jesus did when he walked the earth.
To be in relationship with God and to possess God’s light is not only a spiritual or theological idea. It’s also a moral imperative. Those who are close to God should be people of light, just as God is light. They should reflect God’s light (moral qualities) through their relationship with Jesus. Just as physical light drives out darkness, the spiritual light that comes from being in relationship with God through Jesus should drive out spiritual darkness in hearts and minds. As physical light brings life, God’s light should bring life to those who live under its rays.
This reflection of God’s light should illuminate every aspect of a person’s life, including their relationships with others. In verse 7, John told his readers that walking in God’s light should lead them into positive relationships with others who also lived under God’s light. This is evidenced in the Greek word Koinonia, which at its simplest means partnership. But it also means more than just partnership. It also means “Life shared together”. When people share the goal of living under God’s light, this should cause them to build an intimate spiritual connection to each other.
John points out the primary cause for relationships not being vibrant and life-giving: Sin. In our day, the word sin considered antiquated and likely is not one that any of us use in our daily lives. For John it was a word that held great significance. It represented the things that were the moral opposites of living in God’s light. Sin was described as anything that was contrary to what God wanted. It was often described as missing the mark God set for a person. Sin was also described as departing from God’s justice. Considering what Jesus said were the two greatest commandments, love God and others, sin would be anything that interferes with our ability to fully live into loving God and others.
As a fellowship of people living under God’s light, John encouraged his readers to push back against sin and its negative affects against godly community. They were to confess sin so that it did not have an opportunity to hinder their relationships with God and others. John said that if they would confess their sins, they would surely receive forgiveness. To confess meant to “agree with the statements of another.” But it was not only about saying you agreed with a statement. It was also about living into that agreement. If I said I believed in something, my life would reflect that belief. My actions would be in line with those beliefs. I would verify those beliefs, not only in what I said but also in what I did.
This confession, and living into the belief that girds the confession, is made possible through the sacrifice that Jesus made. Through Christ’s sacrifice for us, we are now able to live into the confession that God’s light changes life. Because of God’s light which shown brightest through Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, we can experience relationships that truly reflect God’s love and purpose for creation. May we all live into that opportunity. Amen.
Contact Terrell at terrellcarter@msn.com