WHAT AM I MISSING?

Lord, today I need reassurance that I’m walking with You.  Please allow me to see Your Light shine brightly today in my life. 

1 John 1:5-10

This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.  If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.  But 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.  If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.  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 is not in us. 

I don’t like darkness, mainly because it takes away my ability to see.  I learn today that God is light, and He desires for me to see clearly.  If I say that I know Jesus when I really don’t, I’m missing something.  This passage says that I’m lacking LIGHT.  That would make sense, since Jesus says He is the Light.  Light has a quality of purifying and cleansing dark areas of my life.  That’s what Jesus does.  However, if my life is dark and I say I know the Light, then I’m just lying to myself as well as others. 

If I say that I am pure and without sin—well, I know that I’m just lying to myself.  The passage says that I am lacking TRUTH.  Guess what?  Jesus also says that He is the Truth.  The remedy for this state of mind is confessing the truth about my situation—I have sinned and am seeking forgiveness.  What about if I think that I’m not to blame?  These are the times that I’m deceived and believe that I couldn’t have sinned.  According to the passage, if I say that, then I’m telling God that He is lying.  I’m should know better than that, because the Truth never lies.  When this happens, I’m missing out on the WORD—which I learned in last week's lesson is also Jesus. 

In all of these instances, I’m missing Jesus.  That’s because where sin is, Jesus isn’t.  Jesus loves sinners, but he hates sin.  He wants me to stop sinning so that I can fellowship with Him, and so that I can enjoy the Light that purifies, the Truth that forgives and the Word that instructs. 

THINK ABOUT THESE THINGS

I catch the lies in each of these scenarios.  When I lie to myself, lie to others and blame God, then I hide the Truth, displacing the Word of God and creating a huge void in my heart.  When I confess my sin, the Truth of God always sets me free from the lies I have been harboring in my heart and avoiding telling others.  When I confess these lies before God and those I’ve lied to, I receive forgiveness and am set free from the bondage that the lies created.   

Thank You, Jesus, for being my Light!  You are great, and worthy to be praised!