5This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. 7But 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, purifies us from all sin.
8If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.
…………………………………………………………………… I John 1: 5-10
We were challenged at church on Sunday to read through I John this week, and I have done so a couple times through. I really love how the words of I John 1: 1-4 echo the words of John 1: 1-5. Although those are not the verses I quoted above, I will mention them briefly in order to point out that John sets the tone in both these books: God is the creator; Jesus was with God at creation. Through him, and by him, and for him all things were made that have been made. As the passage quoted above points out, we are made for one purpose: to love God—to walk in the light.
What does it LOOK LIKE to walk in the light. A friend of mine recently posed a question to a group of men: “What does it look like to live a truly missional life?” In other words, ‘What does it look like to live in the light and love of Christ, since Christ is the Author of the mission?” While I was not privy to the chain of responses that ensued, the question intrigues me—what should my life look like? Are there things I should give up? Or is it more, what new ways should I adopt? Or is it a combination of both?
