Day 11 - 1 John 1:5-10

One of the most difficult struggles in life is matching my actions with my words. The writer of 1 John points out this distinction between what we "say" on how we "walk." The key theme that holds these thoughts together is the idea of "fellowship" (vv. 6-7). If we say we have fellowship with God, but live contrary to God's truth then we are living in deceit.

I used to think of "fellowship" as the time after a church service or Bible study where you eat snacks and make small talk with one another. But over the years, I think the word has taken a turn in a direction away from the New Testament. I hope that's not the kind of "fellowship" we have with God. I think "fellowship" does refer to building relationships with one another but it also refers to what we share in common. As followers of Christ, we share common beliefs and a common mission. The readers of 1 John are called to join the fellowship of the apostles in their belief in Christ and in serving the mission of Christ (v. 3).

The sobering reality is that we fall short all the time and our actions do not match up with our words. There are moments when I'm very conscious of this. But the hardest part is to actually "confess" and name the sin. When I acknowledge my shortcomings in generalities, I actually feel like I'm not that bad. This is deceitful though (v. 8). When I can name the sin and look to Jesus for forgiveness, fellowship is restored and I can "walk in the light" (v. 7). I hunger for this kind of deeper fellowship with God and others.

Throughout this 40D2D, I believe it is a time to fellowship with God and one another as we are cleansed in areas of sin, both corporately and individually. I believe the grace of God will be sweeter as we look to Jesus for this cleansing. We can do this because he is "faithful and just to forgive" (v. 9).