1 John 1:7
There
are some things that you just don’t talk about in polite company. At least that
is what I was told when I was much younger. But our world has changed so much
that those forbidden, taboo subjects, the ones that used to bring a healthy dose
of shame, are now talked openly, boasted about, and reveled in. Four letter
words of every off color are used openly in the public arena. In some circles a
sentence isn’t complete, even a single word sentence unless there is a swear
word. These words are used in place of every possible adjective. They can be
both positive and negative, derogatory and commendatory. And so they have
really lost all meaning. We might as well substitute the word “bleep” in as a
substitute.
But
not everything is acceptable to discuss. You can’t talk about the four letter
word “sin” without getting the scorning looks coming your direction. Just in case
you missed it, “sin” has only three letters, but it is still something you can’t
discuss in public without stares and glares. For many its existence is still in
question. Or sin is something other people, those people, do, with those people
being Jesus-followers who dare to call out sin for what it is. The act of
proclaiming truth has now been labeled the forbidden sin.
They
give that sin of proclaiming truth the label “intolerance” and “bigot” so that
they don’t have to face the fact of sin in themselves. This is why living in
the light of the LORD is so difficult, so humbling. His light will illuminate
the darkest corners of our soul. He will point out the areas of darkness and
ask us to open up and let His light into those dark boxes in the storage shed.
Light
will bring us together. This togetherness is called fellowship, fellowship with
Him and fellowship with each other. When we live lives that are in line with
His will, walking in the light in the same way He walks in the light, then
something happens. We can never be in the light in the same sense that He is in
the light since He is the source of this moral uprightness. He is the One who created
the standard, a standard that lays out the best life possible, a life that is
as it was designed to be lived.
When
we walk in this arena illumined by the character of God, then we connect with
each other in ways never imagined. We support each other as no one else can.
But John gets right to the point: sin has gotten in the way of this connection,
and sin has to be dealt with when we walk in this light. Sin and light can’t
coexist, because sin is darkness.
And
John’s stated solution is the blood of Jesus. Jesus innocent life given in the
place of our guilty life. We deserved to die for our sins and Jesus voluntarily
took our place. He died so that we don’t have to die. It is not that our hearts
will continue beating forever, but that our life gets hidden in Him. His life
infuses us so that even when our bodies die, we don’t.
So
Jesus life poured out on our behalf is expressed in the expression blood of
Jesus. There isn’t a mystic holy grail somewhere with Jesus’ blood in it. We
don’t have to spend our lives searching for some hunk of metal. Jesus gave His
life. His life poured out becomes our source of life received.
And
I am glad that His life was powerful enough to take care of my complete list of
sins. He took the complete catalog of human sins and purchased the whole order.
There is no sin outside of His forgiveness and restoration. The vilest Hussein’s
of the world can have their sins forgiven if they are willing to walk in His
light. They must be willing to trust His sacrifice instead of their own or any
other’s path.
Are
you walking in the light?