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1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
1:2 For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and show to you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested to us;
1:3 That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, so that you may also have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.1
1:4 And these things we write to you, so that your joy may be full.
1:5 This then is the message that we have heard from him and declare to you: that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
1:6 If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not [live in] the truth.
1:7 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.2
1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us._________________________________________
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1 if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another. To walk in the light is to no longer walk by the light of the sun or the moon. To walk in the light, is to see by the light of God instead. After seeking, after listening, after being faithfully obedient over a period of time, God will cause his light shine in you heart, giving you knowledge of God in the face of Christ Jesus, whose face you behold, as if in a mirror, as you are restored to the image of God in increasing glory.
John is speaking of a fellowship in the spirit with other believers and with the Father and Jesus. But you have come to mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of righteous men made perfect. Heb 12:22-23. He brought us to life in union and fellowship with Christ; and has raised us up together [with Christ], and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Eph 2:5-6. And George Fox wrote of a spiritual fellowship in the early Quaker meetings— knowing each other in the spirit and light.
Keep your meetings, and you will feel the seed to arise, though never a word be spoken among you. .. Meet together, and in the measure of God's spirit wait, that with it all your minds may be guided up to God, to receive wisdom from God. That you may all come to know how you may walk up to him in his wisdom. That it may be justified of you, and you in it preserved up to God, and be glorified. And Friends meet together, and know one another in that which is eternal, which was before the world was. For knowing one another only in the letter and flesh, differs you little from the beasts of the field; for what they know they know naturally. But all knowing one another in the light which was before the world was, this differs you from the beasts of the field, and from the world's knowledge, and brings you to know one another in the elect seed which was before the world was.
2 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.
John in the very next verses explains how Christ's blood purifies us from all sin. He said:
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. (We start as sinners, before being cleansed.)
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives. 1 John 1:8-10
When you examine these verses in lieu of the verses before and after the above three, this is the meaning:
With faith in the name of Jesus, we go to the Light (Jesus) to quietly listen and watch, hoping for purification by his blood and grace.
If we go claiming to be without sin, we deceive ourselves, have no humility, and get no help, the truth is not in us.
If when he (the Light) shows us our sins and we confess them, he will forgive and purify us.
But, if when he (the Light) shows us our sins, and if we claim to be without the sin he has shown us,
thinking He is not the Truth, thinking whom we hear to be a liar, we have thus failed to repent of our sins;
and His word fails to be planted in our heart, so that it can control us in the future. Thus we have rejected Christ.
But if we accept his conviction [confess and repent] and Him [the Word or Light] as Truth, his word stays in our heart to keep us from sin.
This is how we accept and "receive" Christ. We believe the Light that shows us our sins is Christ.
We believe in Jesus within, the true Light, which enlightens every man who comes into the world. John 1:9
John in the next verses, continues: My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin.
But if anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous..
And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.
Now by this we know that we know Him: if we keep His commands.
He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commands, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him;
By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked. John 2:1-6
John continues: And every man who has this hope in him purifies himself, even as he is pure.1 John 3:3
Whoever commits sin practices lawlessness; for sin is lawlessness. 1 John 3:4
And you know that he appeared to take away our sins, and in him is no sin. 1 John3:5
Whoever abides in Him does not sin; whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. 1 John 3:6
For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, [in us] that he might destroy the works of the devil. 1 John 3:8
The purpose of the Son is to destroy the devil and his works [sin] in us - if we go to him.
John continues: Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him;
and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God. 1 John 3:9
And His seed are the words he has planted in your heart, words that you have heard, the Word of God. Luke 8:15Previous Chapter/Next Chapter
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