1 John 1:1-3 “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, concerning the Word of life—the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us—that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.”
In this month’s Thru the Bible newsletter, the late Pastor J. Vernon McGee focused on how we can be close to God. He writes that when the book of 1 John was written, Jesus had already ascended back to heaven. But we’re told in John 13:1, “Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end”, and He wants them to have continued fellowship with Him even though He is now back in heaven and we’re down here on earth.
The Apostle John is talking to you and me. He spans the nearly twenty centuries, looks down on us today, and says, “we want you to have fellowship with Him, and this is the way it is done. John tells us we can have fellowship with God! One of the most glorious prospects before us today is that we can have fellowship with the Father, with the Son, and with one another. But, many have asked, God is holy and I am a sinner, how can I have fellowship with Him? People have tried to do this in three different ways.
1 John 1:6 “If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.”
Method #1 – Bring God down to man’s level. That’s strong language. The Apostle John isn’t too polite to say it so bluntly. If you and I say we have fellowship with God but walk in darkness, we are liars. We must deal with the sin in our lives. If you are going to walk with God, you are going to have to walk in the light. The Lord Jesus said in John 3:19-21 “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.” And if there is sin in your life, you are not walking with Him. You cannot bring Him down to your level. 1 John 1:7 tells us, “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.” Jesus died to save us from the guilt of sin. I have been saved – that’s justification. I am being saved – that is sanctification.
1 John 1:8 “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us."
Method #2 – Bring man up to God’s level. The other side says man has reached sinless perfection and is living on the same high plateau as God. Pastor McGee states that this is even worse than being a liar; you are deceiving yourself. Who do you think you deceive when you say you have no sin? You deceive yourself, but you don’t deceive God. The Apostle says that the truth is not in a man or woman like that because they cannot see that they are a sinner. Yet a great many folk try that route in their efforts to bridge the gap between themselves and a holy God.
1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Method #3 – Confess. The word “confess” means to own; to acknowledge; to declare to be true, or to admit or assent to in words; opposed to deny. Another meaning is “to say the same thing”. This is important. You are to say the same thing God says. When His Word says something you are doing is sin, you are to get over on God’s side and look at it. And the only acceptable answer is, “You are right, Lord. I say the same thing You do. It is sin.” Rationalizing it isn’t an option either. If God says it is sin, it is sin, and we must confess the same thing God says about it. That is what is means to confess your sins., and it is one of the greatest needs we have. This is God’s way for a Christian to deal with sin in their own life.
Go to the Lord and open your heart and talk to Him as you talk to no one else. Tell Him your problems. Tell Him your sins. Tell Him your weaknesses. Confess it all to Him. Say to your heavenly Father that you want to have fellowship with Him and want to serve him. He has made a marvelous and wonderful path back to Himself we can walk every day. Jesus longs for our continued fellowship.
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