LIVING IN THE LIGHT (3)
We live in the light, we are blessed with a daily cleansing from sin through the blood of Jesus. Sin is our ever-present difficulty, plaguing us daily. We need a solution to our sin problem which is realistic and practical. John says walking in the light brings us into contact with the answer (1:7). He places before us two truths about God’s remedy for sin, declaring the fact of our cleansing and explaining the way the cleansing takes place. He says in Christ we experience a day-by-day cleansing of our sin. This constant flow of the blood of Jesus into our lives does not eliminate the need to apologize when we err or the need to repent of particular sins which enter our lives, but it does give us the assurance of constant forgiveness as we honestly strive to walk in the light.
Christians have a tendency to go to one of two extremes concerning sin. We either become discouraged over it or disinterested regarding it. Discouragement sets in when we see ourselves losing the battle with sin; disinterest comes when we are so confident of our victory over it that we do not give proper attention to it. Both views are unscriptural. God wants us to be confident of our victory in Christ, but He also wants us to be conscious of our sinfulness and need of His daily grace. Take this verse to heart. It is one thing to know a verse by heart, but another thing entirely to take a verse to heart. John issues a challenge and holds up a basis for confidence. His challenge is this: Live in the light. This challenge can be met by each one but it will require diligent adherence to the Word of God. The confidence he mentions is based upon your acceptance of God’s wonderful grace working in your life. Live in the light and lean on His grace and you can look toward heaven with confidence. Walk in the light because of the daily cleansing of it!
Jesus, the light of the world, invites us to live in the light. His invitation to this life should be easy for us to accept because of the divine character of it, the dynamic companionship of it, and the daily cleansing of it. How beautiful it is to walk in the light with Jesus! In 2 Kings 6 Elisha found himself surrounded by Syrian soldiers who were seeking to take his life. Seeing the soldiers, the servant panicked, saying, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” Elisha calmly prayed an unusual prayer. He prayed, “O Lord, I pray open his eyes that he may see.” It was a strange prayer because the servant had just demonstrated his ability to see. He was the one who had reported the soldiers to Elisha. The prayer was prayed because Elisha knew that his servant saw only his problems, not his powers: His eyes needed to be opened that he might see his divine strength. The servant’s failure is often our failure too. We see clearly our difficulties, but our vision of the divine dynamo available to us as we walk in the light is blurred. Open your eyes to the beauty and power of the life of light. Live daily in the light of the Son!
Word Affirmation: “ Arise, O LORD; save me, O my God: for thou hast smitten all mine enemies upon the cheek bone; thou hast broken the teeth of the ungodly." - Psalm 3:7 (Don't just say it, mean it!)
“ A man who gives up his Christianity only surrenders a life of faith troubled by doubt, for a life of doubt troubled by faith - John Hutton "
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