What Is Forgiveness? Part 4

Read I John 1:1-7. This is the fourth part of the series “What Is Forgiveness?” Biblical fellowship is both negative and positive. The negative is stated by Paul, “And do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them” (Eph. 5:11 NASB). The Greek verb used by Paul in this verse is the compound verb of the preposition sun (with) and koinoneo which is the verb form of koinonia, the noun for fellowship. The compound verb sugkoinoeite (share, take part, participate, contribute, or give a share) is a present active imperative, which is a command. We are commanded to stop having constant fellowship with or taking part with the unfruitful works of darkness. The positive side of the argument is also an imperative. The apostle said, “…but instead even expose [elegchete, present active imperative of elegcho, prove guilty, condemn, reprove, or expose] them.” Both the positive and negative sides are commands.

Since the two prerequisites to fellowship in I John 1:1-3 are incarnation and regeneration (vv. 1, 2), fellowship presents (1) a work to declare Christ, (2) a motive to become spiritual benefactors to those who have hearing ears, and (3) an object to bring the regenerated into fellowship with those who are in fellowship with the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ (v. 3). The work of the witness is to declare Jesus Christ in both His Person and Work. To declare, one must know what he is announcing. Christian doctrines are so closely connected that when error is taught on one doctrine it spreads to corrupt other truths. “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth” (II Tim. 2:15 NASB). This is positive action. Negative action is seen in II Timothy 2:16-18—“But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, men who have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and thus they upset the faith of some” (NASB). Therefore, a personal and experimental knowledge of fellowship with God is an absolute necessity for this work in which we are engaged. A mere report of a report is cold, but a report of personal knowledge is warm. Read slowly and carefully I John 1:1 and 2 as though you had personally received the message, because if you are a Christian it was written FOR YOU.

The motive of the witness is to become a spiritual benefactor to those whom the Holy Spirit regenerates. It is the love of Christ that constrains us to declare Christ. Paul said, “For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, that they who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf” (II Cor. 5:14, 15 NASB). Christians who have this attitude will not become guilty of saying, “I must go and witness, or souls will go to hell if I don’t.” This attitude disqualifies the witness, because he is making himself a savior rather than Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit regenerates without the help of anybody.

The object in witnessing is to bring the elect who have been regenerated into fellowship in a true assembly of Christ. The consequence of fellowship is threefold: (1) Sin becomes more detestable. (2) The world lying in the power of the evil one loses its charm. (3) The depraved flesh of the Christian loses its power because of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Therefore, fellowship with God includes the Father who planned it, the Son of God who provided the means of its accomplishment, and the Holy Spirit who brings about the realization of it. “What we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, that you also may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ” (I John 1:3 NASB). Paul said, “If therefore there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose” (Phil. 2:1, 2 NASB).

Fellowship is the result of regeneration, and joy is the result of fellowship. Joy arises out of the fellowship which is produced by knowledge. Joy is the cause of true happiness, not the effect of worldly pleasure. Much of that which is called spiritual joy is nothing more than religious excitement over some musical program, a religious holiday, an ordinance, or the stirring voice of some preacher. Matthew explains it in the parable of the Sower: “Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road. And the one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word, and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away. And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world [age], and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit, and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty” (Matt. 13:18-23 NASB).

True joy comes from doctrine understood and practiced. The order of entrance is mind, heart, and will. “And these things we write…” (I John 1:4 NASB) refers to the Person and Work of Christ and the fellowship to which they give. Therefore, it is assumed that the fullness of joy arises out of the fellowship which is produced by the knowledge of Christ revealed in the inspired Scriptures.

The apostle John goes from “we have heard” to “we have seen” to “we have observed for ourselves.” What a climax! These are proofs that eternal life was manifested in time. This makes every Christian desire to study the Scriptures. Every Christian should desire to study the subject of “eternity and time” while being in time before stepping out into eternity. John found out that Jesus Christ cannot be separated from His message—“we have seen,” “we have heard,” and “we have handled the Word of Life.” God that is not infinitely above finite comprehension is not the true God. There is not one shadow that dims God’s character. Note the positive and negative of I John 1:5—“And this is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.” John’s message is a revelation, not a discovery. “Again therefore Jesus spoke to them, saying, I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12 NASB).

The Christian message includes a warning in I John 1:6—“If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth” (NASB). “Walking in darkness” is a statement of great debate. The following are some views of this verse:

1. Some say verse 6 speaks of professors but not possessors of eternal life. They say true fellowship is salvation, and one cannot lose his fellowship. They say it is the joy of it that he loses. They believe verse 6 is speaking of a non-Christian. Their proof texts are John 8:12, Acts 26:18, and I Thessalonians 5:4 and 5. According to their view, sin messes up the fellowship; but it does not put one out of the fellowship.

2. There are others who say “walking” is interpreted as a way of life. They suggest a careful reading of I John 1:6-2:6. “If we say” and “the one that says” in I John 1:6, 8, 9, and 10, and I John 2:4 and 6 sum up the probing process. They say that our professed fellowship with God is put to a practical test, and “walking” is interpreted as a way of life.

3. There are others who say “walking in darkness” does not mean either the forfeiture of life or the strangulation of love, but it does mean clouding the light with an unholy walk (Rom. 13:11-14; Gal. 5:9-21). They say no Christian can claim an unbroken or unclouded fellowship.

4. Others argue that there are seven “ifs” in I John 1:6-2:3, and they are divided into three and four. Three declare condemnation, and four reveal salvation. These are the first three: (1) “If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and yet walk in the darkness, we lie…” (1:6). (2) “If we say we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves…” (1:8). (3) “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar…” (1:10). These three declare condemnation. The last four reveal salvation: (1) “If we walk in the light…we have fellowship…” (1:7). (2) “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins…” (1:9). (3) “If anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father…” (2:1). (4) “And by this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments” (2:3).

We cannot always ascertain what truth is by merely looking up texts bearing upon a certain subject. For example, Paul was writing to Christians in I Corinthians 3:1-5—“And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to babes in Christ. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?” (NASB). Paul also wrote this to the Corinthian church: “Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree, and there be no divisions among you, but you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment” (I Cor. 1:10 NASB). We should cherish people with whom we have something in common and are on the same wavelength. In most churches today, there is nothing but fleshly activity without spiritual minds. “For I have been informed concerning you, my brethren, by Chloe’s people, that there are quarrels among you. Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, I am of Paul, and I of Apollos, and I of Cephas, and I of Christ. Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, that no man should say you were baptized in my name. Now I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized any other. For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, that the cross of Christ should not be made void” (I Cor. 1:11-17 NASB).

Let us seek to examine the evidence of those who believe “walking in darkness” refers to immature believers. It is a fact that “no sin” in this life is impossible for the greatest Christian. No matter how great the Christian, he is not without sin. The more we know about the Scriptures, the more we know about the grace of God and about God Himself, the more sinful we see ourselves. As we grow in grace, we also grow in the knowledge of our sinfulness. (Read I Timothy 1:12-16.) It is also true that grace operates in the regenerated person, renewing the will, cleansing the affections, and purifying the thoughts. (Read Philippians 1:1-9.) Therefore, we must not forget that there is a principle of sin remaining in all Christians until they die. The principle of grace and the principle of sin co-exist in the people of God while they live in time. Any person is self-deceived who does not understand the co-existence of these two principles. (Read Romans 7:14-8:2.)

An old trick of Satan is to get novices to balance one thing over against another, thus excusing themselves. We must be careful and not disguise our vices by giving them false names like recreation and diversion. We cannot change our sin’s name and think we are done with it. We must not disguise our vices by giving them false names. An infallible judgment is possible only in a perfect and sinless person. Prejudice prejudges a question in accordance with its own bias. Therefore, attachment to a theory or traditional interpretation causes us to do violence to the natural meaning of words or verses of Scripture if we are not careful.

“No sin” refers to the root of sin. We must distinguish between the root and the fruit of sin. The root sin that remains in Christians may sprout forth any time without much provocation—something that provokes, incites, angers or irritates. The root of sin can never be eradicated in Christians during their earthly sojourn. However, it can be counteracted. We have the grace of God and the indwelling Holy Spirit within us. We have a Divine Monitor. Paul said, “… walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please” (Gal. 5:16, 17 NASB).

Having opened Pandora’s box and viewing all the evils of the flesh described by the inspired pen of Paul in Galatians 5:16-26, let us try to get a Biblical perspective of who it is that walks in the darkness of I John 1:6—sinner or saint. Is it a professor or possessor? These are some of the highlights of I John: (1) John wrote to his little children. (2) He wrote to assure them of their relationship to the Lord. (3) He used 69 perfect tense verbs, participles, and infinities to assure their assurance. (4) The apostle let the little children know they also have a sin problem. (5) The Epistle is dealing with the little children’s condition—not position. (6) The main subject of the entire Epistle is the cleansing of progressive sanctification.

Both “walking in darkness” and “walking in the light” must be viewed in the light of their contexts. “Walking as men” (I Cor. 3:3) and “walking disorderly (undisciplined life)” (II Thess. 3:11) could never be classified as “walking in the light.” Admonitions to “walk honestly (behave properly)” (Rom. 13:13) and “walk in a manner worthy” (Eph. 4:1) are not the same as “walking in the light.” Therefore, admonitions to “walk by the Spirit” (Gal. 5:16), “walk in love” (Eph. 5:2), “walk as children of light” (Eph. 5:8), and “walk in wisdom” (Col. 4:5 KJV; “Conduct yourselves with wisdom” NASB) are necessary for Christians, lest the light in us have dark spots and our fellowship is hindered.

In I John 1:7, the present active indicative of the verb katharidzo (“cleanses us (little children) from all sin”) proves John is referring to the sins related to condition (progressive sanctification). This is what follows positional sanctification (I Cor. 1:2; Heb. 10:10-14). Positional cleansing (John 1:29) can never be the result of conditional cleansing. Failure to make this distinction leads to religious humanism.

NOTES FROM A FUTURE MESSAGE—

Is God a warrior? There are 226 references to warfare in the Scriptures. Most of them are in the Old Testament. Most of the references in the New Testament to warfare are in Revelation, and most of them are prophetic. God is not against all war. He is in control.