1 John - 6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 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 cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
We come across this above passage in 1 John. It is quite a powerful passage. This came across while reading a Bible plan on repentance. There is so much to draw from this particular passage of scripture. It very much related to repentance.
The 6th and 7th verse says, if we say we have fellowship with Jesus and walk in darkness (or sinful life), we lie and do not live a life that reflects what we claim. If we really walk in the light (that is stay away from sin), then we really have fellowship with Jesus. And 8th verse says, if we say we have no sin then we are lying and there is no truth in us. It might sound like a these verses are little contradicting. If we proclaim I am walking in the light and there is no sin, then we are lying. If we are sinning, then we are not walking in the light! So what is conveyed here?
9th verse explains it all. If we confess our sins, Jesus will forgives us our sins. He himself is light. He is the One who can make us walk in the light. We cannot walk in light by simply saying I am not a sinner. We cannot walk in light by our own strength and stay away from sin. It is not possible in flesh. It is possible only by confessing our sins and asking for forgiveness. Repentance is what it takes to make us walk in light. As quoted in the devotional, repentance is our action and forgiveness is God's reaction to that. God's grace and mercy is immeasurable that He goes beyond simple forgiveness as we know. His forgiveness wipes the slate clean and grants great promises which we cannot stand upon. The promise of eternal life itself.
This repentance is not one time deal. It is certainly the starting point. It all starts with it. However, it is a continuous routine until we are in flesh.
We come across this above passage in 1 John. It is quite a powerful passage. This came across while reading a Bible plan on repentance. There is so much to draw from this particular passage of scripture. It very much related to repentance.
The 6th and 7th verse says, if we say we have fellowship with Jesus and walk in darkness (or sinful life), we lie and do not live a life that reflects what we claim. If we really walk in the light (that is stay away from sin), then we really have fellowship with Jesus. And 8th verse says, if we say we have no sin then we are lying and there is no truth in us. It might sound like a these verses are little contradicting. If we proclaim I am walking in the light and there is no sin, then we are lying. If we are sinning, then we are not walking in the light! So what is conveyed here?
9th verse explains it all. If we confess our sins, Jesus will forgives us our sins. He himself is light. He is the One who can make us walk in the light. We cannot walk in light by simply saying I am not a sinner. We cannot walk in light by our own strength and stay away from sin. It is not possible in flesh. It is possible only by confessing our sins and asking for forgiveness. Repentance is what it takes to make us walk in light. As quoted in the devotional, repentance is our action and forgiveness is God's reaction to that. God's grace and mercy is immeasurable that He goes beyond simple forgiveness as we know. His forgiveness wipes the slate clean and grants great promises which we cannot stand upon. The promise of eternal life itself.
This repentance is not one time deal. It is certainly the starting point. It all starts with it. However, it is a continuous routine until we are in flesh.