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Last Sunday, we concluded looking at John’s prologue to his 1st Epistle.
Verses three and four makes the message of Christ the basis of all significant Christian fellowship—first with God, and then with each other.
/“We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us.
And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.”/
(1 John 1:3, NIV84).
In order to create and nurture deep Christian fellowship you have to talk about who you think Christ is and what he taught.
That's what John begins to do in verses 5–7.
Let me begin by giving you the overall structure of this paragraph first, and then go back and unpack its meaning.
There are two parts of John's Argument:
* First, verse 5 gives the message of Christ that John has heard.
* Second, verses 6 and 7 describe some practical implications for life that come from this message.
So verse 5 is the theological foundation.
Verses 6–7 are the practical application.
!
I. FOUNDATION—GOD IS LIGHT v. 5
* /"This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.”/ (1 John 1:5, NIV84)
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John begins this passage with the affirmation that this message—the one he is about to proclaim—is the true truth
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John puts the stress on the word is as in This IS the message
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John reveals the timeless significance of the Gospel message that Jesus proclaimed during his public ministry
#. it’s the true truth because it’s not John’s truth—he’s not makn’ this stuff up as he goes along
#. the apostle writes, we have heard from him and declare to you
#. this message has not been subject to change and modification, because it did not originate with John or with any other apostles or writers
#. the him of verse 5 refers to non other than Jesus
#. it’s his message, John and the other disciples are merely passing it on as they heard Jesus teach it and preach it
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what’s the message?
#. that God is light; in him there is no darkness at all
#.
wow, now that takes some unpacking
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John is good at formulating short pithy statements that describe God’s nature
#. in John 4:24 he says, /“God is spirit”/
#. in 1 John 4:16 he says /“God is love”/
#. here, in 1 John 1:5 he reveals God’s essence in three words: /“God is light”/
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God is not a light among many other lights;
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God is not a light-bearer;
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God does not merely have light as one of his characteristics
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God is light; and although he created light (Gen.
1:3), he himself is uncreated light
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moreover, the light of God is visible in Jesus, who said, /“I am the light of the world”/ (John 8:12)
#. so then, what does it mean that God is light?
!! A. GOD IS LIGHT MEANS THAT GOD IS TRUTH
#. this comes from verse 6: /"If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not live according to the TRUTH."/
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John might have written, /"When we walk in darkness, we do not live according to the LIGHT."/
#. but he puts truth in the place of light
#.
so it seems that John is using truth and light interchangeably
#. in other words, God as light means that God is the source and measure of all that is true
#. practically, that means everything that we consider true, or beautiful, or good needs to be evaluated in the revealing light of God’s Word
#. in the beginning of Creation, everything that God spoke into existence was meant to bring glory to God
#. this is why at the end of every day, God looked at what He had created and pronounced it “good”
#. why was it “good”
#. because what He had created was perfect—God never had to worry about ‘do-overs’
#. because what He had created perfectly reflected His will—whatever it was it was there because God intended for it to be there
#. because what He had created perfectly fit into His total plan for creation
#. but, because of the Fall, sin taints everything man lays his hands to
#. this is why the Christian needs to measure everything against God and His Word
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John contrasts the light of God with the darkness of this world
!! B. GOD IS LIGHT MEANS THAT GOD IS HOLY
#. light speaks of the glory, the radiance, the beauty, the wonders and all of the other attributes of God
#. we describe the sum-total of these attributes as referring to God as Holy
* ILLUS.
One of the ways that God revealed His Holiness to the Hebrew people was through His Shekinah Glory.
It was God manifesting Himself in the unapproachable light of fire such as at the burning bush where He spoke to Moses or the Pillar of Fire that traveled with the Hebrews in their wilderness wanderings.
#. in Scripture, God is frequently styled simply as “The Holy One”
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He is so because the sum of all moral excellency is found in Him
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He is absolute purity, unsullied even by the shadow of sin
#. this perfection is solemnly celebrated before the throne of heaven, as the seraphim cry out day and night, /“Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts”/ (Isa.
6:3)
#. the psalmist pictures God clothed in garments of light
* /“He wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent”/ (Psalm 104:2, NIV84)
#. light then, is an appropriate symbol for the One who is pure, righteous and holy
#. we are told that, at the end of time, the New Jerusalem will need no external light source because the Holiness of God will light the city
* /“I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.
The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.”/
(Revelation 21:22–23, NIV84)
!! C. GOD IS LIGHT MEANS THAT GOD IS LIFE
#. light and life go together—it is hard to conceive of one without the other
* ILLUS.
We all know from science class that light initiates that process of photosynthesis.
It is the light from the sun that allows a plant to chemically convert carbon dioxide and water into organic compounds that cause plant growth.
Whether it’s a stalk of wheat or an apple tree—both depend upon photosynthesis to grow and produce fruit.
Oxygen is the waste product of plants, but necessary for our survival.
Sooo ... no light, no plants to eat and no oxygen to breath—we’re all dead.
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I don’t think it’s an accident that a God who is Light has revealed Himself in the light of His Word and that
Word, when it is ingested and digested produces growth
* /“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.”/
(Psalm 119:105, NIV84)
!! D. GOD IS LIGHT MEANS THAT GOD IS REVELATORY
#. what is the main value of light?
#. it helps us to see where we are going!
#. when you walk in the darkness, you may stumble over a log, or step on a snake, or fall into a hole, or hit your head on a low-hanging branch
#. darkness is full of threat—It frustrates your ability to successfully navigate to where you want to go
#. that God is light means that God has revealed Himself through His Word and through the Person of His Son
* /“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.
In him was life, and that life was the light of men.”/ (John 1:1–4, NIV84)
* /“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world.
Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.””/
(John 8:12, NIV84)
* /“I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.”/
(John 12:46, NIV84)
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He has done so in order to show us exactly where He wants us to go, to show us how to get there, and to show us how to live while we’re getting to where He wants us to go
#. the light of God exposes dangers and frees you from their lurking power
#. it opens the way to the Christian’s goal—conformity to Christ
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