1 We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning,[a] whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. 2 This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us.3 We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We are writing these things so that you may fully share our joy.[b]
5 This is the message we heard from Jesus[c] and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. 6 So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. 7 But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.
8 If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. 9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.
As Christ followers, we’re either walking in the light or walking in darkness, there’s no middle ground. We can say we love God, but if our lives, words, and actions don’t reflect Him, we have to ask ourselves: Are we truly following Jesus, or just saying we are?
But here’s the thing, walking in the light doesn’t mean being perfect. It doesn’t mean pretending we have it all together. Actually, it’s the opposite! What does light do? Light exposes what’s in the room. Light exposes the sin in our lives and our hearts. As we walk in the light we probably notice more and more sin in our lives. It’s not acting like we don’t struggle with sin, that is missing the whole point. The gospel doesn’t just save us from sin,it gives us the power to actually fight it. The moment we say “yes” to Jesus, the battle begins. And if we ignore that reality, we’re only making it easier for sin to creep in. So live in the light!
In 1 John 1:9, John gives us two simple but powerful steps to walking in the light:
1.Be honest about your sin – We all fall short, and pretending we don’t only keeps us stuck. Acknowledging where we struggle is the first step toward freedom. 2. Confess and repent – Confession isn’t just saying “I messed up.” It’s bringing our sin to God, turning away from it, and allowing Him to transform us.
And here’s a secret: you don’t have to do this alone. Sharing your struggles with trusted sisters in Christ brings so much freedom and accountability. God designed us to walk this out together. The Christian life isn’t about being perfect—it’s about daily surrendering to Jesus and letting His love change us from the inside out.
Think about where you were walking in darkness this week. Who can you share this with so they can keep you accountable to walking in the light!?
As your walking in the light and noticing more “dirt” or sin, repent of this and share with a trusted Christ follower to keep you accountable.