Text- 1 John 1:6-7 – “If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 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.”
In our text today, we see how much emphasis is laid on right behavior for a believer. In essence, scriptures teach that it is not enough that you believe right; if indeed your believing is genuine, it will prompt you to begin to also behave right.
Let’s see what Jesus said in John 8:31-32
"Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:31-32)
Here, we see the dynamics of Grace and Truth. It is Grace that saves your spirit when you BELIEVE, but then Truth converts your soul, and makes you BEHAVE. If your believing in Christ doesn't propel you to behave right, you are in error!
Romans 6:22 says, "But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life". You can see three things here:
1. Being made free from sin – This is justification
2. Ye have your fruit unto holiness. – This is sanctification
3. And the end everlasting life – This is glorification
None of the three must be missing in the equation of your salvation. While the first is an instant event that happens at that instant when you believe, the second is a gradual process that takes place as you continue in God’s word, living a life that pleases him. The third is the ultimate even that happens either when a believer dies, or when he is raptured.
So we have an instant event followed by a gradual process which then culminates in an ultimate reality.
See what Paul says in Ephesians 5:8-11:
"For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.”
As an aftermath of true believing, there will be a conscious and intelligent avoidance of sin and a deliberate following of God's will and ways. The fruits that your life should begin to yield after believing are encapsulated in these three concepts:
Goodness – Expressed to fellow men
Righteousness – Expressed to God
Truth – Expressed to yourself
According to Paul, these three are done for three basic purposes:
To prove what is acceptable to God
To persistently avoid the unfruitful works of darkness (Sin and Evil)
To express absolute disapproval of sinfulness.
Anything different from the above stated concepts or done for any reason different from the above stated purposes is not true believing. If you truly believe, you will definitely behave!
PRAYERS
Lord, help me to consistently prove what is acceptable to you; help me to persistently avoid the unfruitful works of darkness; and grant me the courage and boldness to express absolute disapproval of sinfulness at all times in Jesus Name.
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