Posted on 07/11/2024 5:37:03 AM PDT by metmom
“If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He Himself 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 that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous 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 1:6-10).
True believers are sensitive to their sin and confess it.
Throughout Scripture, light is used as a metaphor for truth—both intellectual and moral truth (cf. Ps. 119:105, 130; Prov. 6:23). When the apostle John writes, “God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5), he is stating that the Lord is absolutely sinless since light and darkness cannot coexist.
Some claim to have fellowship with God (v. 6), to have no sin (v. 8), and even to have never sinned (v. 10). But they are living in darkness; it is characteristic of unbelievers to be oblivious to the sins in their lives. But that is not true of genuine believers. They have a right sense of sin: they “walk in the light as He Himself is in the light” (v. 7), and they “confess [their] sins” (v. 9). True believers know that if they want to commune with God, they need to confess their sins and turn to Christ as their “Advocate” before God (2:1).
The apostle Paul was very sensitive to the sinful realities of his life (Rom. 7:14-25). What about you? Are you aware of the spiritual battle raging within you? Do you realize you must live a holy life to have fellowship with God? Are you willing to confess and forsake any sin in your life? Do you realize you can choose not to sin? Are you weary of doing battle with the sin in your life (cf. Rom. 7:24)? If these things are true of you, rejoice in the assurance of your salvation.
Suggestions for Prayer
Confess any known sin to God right now, then forsake it.
For Further Study
Read Romans 7:14-25.
Make a list of all the ways Paul was sensitive to his sin.
How many of those can you relate to?
How should you respond?
From Strength for Today by John MacArthur Copyright © 1997. Used by permission of Crossway Books, a division of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.com.
Studying God’s Word ping
Heard a great explanation for living for God or self- I’ll have to paraphrase as can’t remember if exactly, but it went something like this
A man asked a fella how he overcomes sins, and the fella answered
“Well, it’s kind of like you have two dogs inside you, one good dog, and one bad dog- one wants to do only good, and the other only bad.”
The other fella asked “how do you know which one is winning?”
The man said “thats easy, it depends on which one I feed the most”
We need to be more conscious of which one we feed the most. Which nature we indulge or feed the most. Are we continually throughout the day praying from time to time as the situation requires? Or are we indulging our senses (ie “feeding the evil dog, or nature) and have no time for godly contemplation?
For instance, do we linger when looking at something we know we shouldn’t? Or do we ca5ch ourselves, and turn to God and ask forgiveness and flee the situation? Do we angrily attack verbally those who treat us bad? Or do we turn it over to God, and let him handle the situation? Many examples could be given, bu t the point is whichever nature we “feed” the most is the one that dominates pur lives and dispositions
Exactly, which fits in well with the constant admonitions to live by the Spirit and keep in step with the Spirit and take every thought captive.
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