First Epistle of John: Lesson Seven

"...If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because

he sees the light of this world. But

if one walks in the night,

he stumbles, because the light

is not in him."

John 11:9-10

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Let's begin with prayer....

"Father God, we pray to You today and ask for Your guidance and light to shine for us and in us. There is great comfort and warmth in the light and we know that we need it. I pray that Your light will be seen in me. I pray that I will not stumble or fall, but stay in the light where You are.

I seek forgiveness of my sins. I pray that You will search me for hidden sins and cleanse me with Your precious blood. I pray that You will fill me with Your spirit and Your light.

I pray for the ladies reading this study today. I pray that she is seeking Your face this morning. I pray that You will keep her in Your word and in Your light so she may not stumble and fall. Bless her and keep her, Lord.

In Jesus' name....amen."

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Walk in the Light

Today we will look more about the light and what it means to walk in the light...

1 John 1:7-

"But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jeus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin."

Last lesson we left off realizing that if we say we have fellowship with Jesus but walk in darkness we lie and do not practice the truth. This seems sort of hopeless.

But this lesson we learn that there is hope:

If we walk in the light as Jesus is in the light, then we not only have fellowship with one another, but with Jesus too because the very blood of Jesus cleanses us from sin.....darkness.

Please read:

Eph 5:1-13

What does it mean to "walk in the light" ?

What does it mean to "walk in darkness"?

What happens when you walk in the light, literally not metaphorically?

• You know where you are going. You see where you are and who you are. You know what you are bringing with you and what you have left behind. There is security, warmth, nourishment-safety in the light.

What happens when you walk in the darkness?

• You stumble, you can hurt yourself, you can fall down. You grope around searching for something to steady yourself. You don't know where you are or where you are going. There is insecurity-fear of the unknown. Since you cannot see where you are going, you can become paralyzed with fear of what lies ahead. You can't know who or what is near you.

Please read:

John 3:19-21

John 11:9-10

John 12:35-36

Remember what the word "fellowship" means: communion, partnership, participation with one another.

No other time in the book of First John is the word fellowship mentioned other than chapter one. It was an important theme for this opening chapter, obviously, and something that John wanted us (readers) to remember and know.

• According to First John 1, how do we believers provide opportunities for other believers to have fellowship with God?
• When we are walking in the light, with whom are we in fellowship? What does walking in the light do for believers?

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"And the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin."

Please read:

Rom 3:24-25

Rom 5:9-10

1 Cor 10:16-17

1 Cor 11:23-27

Eph 1:7

Eph 2:13

Col 1:13-14

Col 1:20

We have been reconciled to God through the blood of Christ, His Son.

But to completely understand this, it is best to read Hebrews 9-

Heb 9:1-28

This chapter completely explains the Old Testament ceremonies by the Priests in the Tabernacle and how they were a foreshadowing of what our High Priest would have to do in order to reconcile us to God.

John has given us a glimpse of the hope: the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from ALL SIN....if we walk in the light. And who is the light?

Jesus and God.

1 Tim 6:16

Dan 2:22

Ps 27:1

Ps 43:3

Ps 118:27-29

Ps 119:105

First John gives us the hope that is found in the entire Bible! Next lesson we'll delve deeper into these truths...

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Life Application

We can take what we have learned today and apply it to our lives by really defining what it means to walk in light verses darkness.

As I have shared with you before in previous Bible studies, I walked away from Christ when I entered college and walked in the darkness of sexual sin for almost 3 years. If someone were to ask me how I know the Bible is true, I can easily share with them that I lived John 3:19-21 and it is the TRUTH.

I walked in darkness and hated the light because my deeds against Christ were evil and I did not want my deeds to be seen by Him or by myself. It was easier to remain in the dark even though it was lonely and I was desperate.

But I lived with three young women who were in the light! They walked in the light and in His truth and their "deeds were clearly seen that they had been done in God."

I not only lived this contrast, but blessedly I learned from it. The Lord brought me back to His light and now I earnestly want my deeds to be seen by the Lord. I pray daily that these deeds have been done in Him.

My prayer is that you remain in the light. Walk in it so that you may know where you are going and that others may see your deeds. Learn to love the light! Learn to seek it daily and hate the darkness because there is no darkness in God at all.

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Until next time.....

"And here is great encouragement for those who are exercised with the temptation of Satan; for how often do we read of Christ casting out Satan from those of whom he had the strongest possession! And Christ is the same still. And whoever are under spiritual darkness from the consideration of their own sinfulness have encouragement hence to look to Christ for comfort; for if they do so He will be ready to say to them, as He did to the paralytic in Matthew 9:2, 'Son, be of good cheer; thy sins are forgiven thee,' for He is still the same as He was then."

-Jonathan Edwards 1703-1758 (Altogether Lovely, 1997, p. 139)

Blessings,

Ruth