Walking in the Light — Oswald J. Smith

Shall we stand together as we sing the doxology, as Mr. Knight leads us? Let's stand, everybody standing, please. Our loving Heavenly Father, we commit ourselves in this service and the time that lies before us unto Thee.

Bless in every part of it. Bless in the singing of the hymns, the offering of the prayers, the giving of the offering, the presentation of the music, and most of all, in the proclamation of Thy Word. Open our hearts.

Clarify our minds. May something happen today as the Word of God and our needs come into contact that will make a difference that will last forever. For we ask it in the name of Jesus and for His sake.

Amen. Shall we be seated, please, and shall we turn to hymn number 20? Hymn number 20 is our opening hymn this morning. Come we that love the Lord and let our joys be known. Join in a song of sweet accord and thus surround the throne.

We're marching to Zion. Hymn number 20, Lloyd Knight is here as our song leader in the absence of David Williams, our minister of music, and Lloyd will lead us together as we stand and sing all four verses of hymn number 20.

Shall we stand?

You may be seated. How many of you have your Bibles with you this morning?

Walking in the Light According to First John

But if you do have your Bibles, I'd be very, very glad if you would turn to the first epistle of John and the first chapter, not to the gospel of John but to the first epistle of John. And you'll need your Bible in connection with the message of the morning, and I trust that you'll be able to follow me as I speak from this epistle.

The first epistle of John, the very first chapter, and the verses that I want to deal with are from the sixth verse of that first chapter to the second verse and including the second verse of the second chapter, a very, very wonderful passage indeed.

And it will be a blessing to you if you understand it and God speaks to you through it. Commencing with the first chapter of the first epistle of John and the sixth verse, now you'll notice the very first word in this verse is the little word if, just two letters, I-F, if.

But if you look at the seventh verse, you'll notice that again that word occurs, if, I-F, once again. Then if you look down at the eighth verse, you'll note that it occurs once more, the little word if in the eighth verse.

And then if you look at the ninth verse, it also commences with the word if. And last of all, the tenth verse also starts with the word if. Now, five times that little word if is used, and I've underlined it in my Bible each time it occurs.

The sixth verse, if we say. The seventh verse, but if we walk. And the eighth verse, if we say. The ninth verse, if we confess. And the tenth verse, if we say. It's significant that the word if should occur five times in these verses in the first chapter of the first epistle of John.

Then there's something else that ought to be noticed that I think is very striking, and that is the word we. The word if occurs five times. The word we occurs seven times. Look again at the sixth verse, if you will.

If we say, we. And then look at the seventh verse. If we walk, we. Look now at the eighth verse. If we say, again, the word we. In the ninth verse, if we confess, the word we again. And last of all, in the tenth verse, three times the word we.

If we say, we have, we make. Three times the word we is used. So that in making a study of these verses, we note, first of all, that the word if occurs five times. The word we occurs seven times. In these few verses, the last few verses of the first chapter of the epistle of John.

The Deception of Claiming Fellowship While Walking in Darkness

Now let us go back to that sixth verse. The first if and the first we. If we say. Here is something that we're talking about. We're saying. If we say that we have fellowship with him. If we claim to have fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

And walk in darkness. We lie. John is very, very plain spoken. He doesn't say we tell a falsehood. He says we lie. Right out, definitely. We lie and do not the truth. So in the first place. If we say that we have fellowship with him.

And walk in darkness. If we're still walking in darkness. While claiming to have fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ. According to the word of God. And the statement of the apostle John. We lie. And do not the truth.

Fellowship and Cleansing Through Walking in the Light

The seventh verse. Again. If we. If we walk. If we live. If we walk in the light. For to walk means to live. If we walk in the light. As he is in the light. Then there are two things that happen. First of all we have fellowship one with another.

Now if you want to have fellowship with your fellow Christians. Then you will have to walk in the light yourself. Or you'll have no fellowship with them. And I say again. If you want to have fellowship with your fellow Christians.

You'll have to walk in the light. The light that God gives you. From day to day. From his word. If we walk in the light. As he is in the light. Two things follow. First. We have fellowship one with another.

You have fellowship with other Christians. We have fellowship one with another. And then second. The blood of Jesus Christ. His son. Cleanseth us. From all sin. Now we can't take that statement by itself.

We can't just say the blood of Jesus Christ. His son. God's son. Cleanseth us from all sin. We cannot say it. Unless we are walking in the light. For unless we are walking in the light. His blood is not.

Cleansing us from all sin. There is no cleansing. We're only cleansed as we walk. As we live. As we dwell. As we abide. In the light of God's word. Through the Lord Jesus Christ. So those two things happen when we walk in the light.

First of all we have fellowship with each other. And there is no fellowship apart from walking in the light. And second. The blood of Jesus Christ. His son. God's son. And here we have this tremendous statement.

That Jesus was and is. The son of the living God. He is spoken of here. As God's son. The blood of Jesus Christ. That blood shed on Calvary's cross. 1900 years ago now. The blood of Jesus Christ. His son.

Cleanseth us. Purifies us. From all sin. Not just from some of the sins that we commit. But from all sin. We're cleansed. We're purified. When we walk in the light. Now all we have to do is to ask ourselves the question.

Are we walking in the light? In the light of God's word. In the light of what we read in the Bible. Are we walking in the light of the truth of God? If we are walking. Or living. Or dwelling. Or abiding.

In the light of God's word. Then two things I say happen. First we have fellowship with one another. And then the blood of Jesus Christ. God's son. Cleanses us. Cleanses us. From all sin. Now that word cleanseth.

Is in the present progressive tense. It doesn't mean one. And only one cleansing. There is one cleansing. The first time. When we begin to walk in the light we're cleansed. But that doesn't end it. That cleansing is continuous.

That cleansing continues. Automatically. As we walk in the light. Cleanseth us. From all sin. You ask the question. How can I be cleansed from all my sins? From every one of them. How can I be cleansed?

By walking in the light. By living. Or dwelling. Or abiding. In the light. And if we do and when we do. Then we are being continually cleansed. From all sin. But only. As we walk in the light. Now in the eighth verse.

The Danger of Denying Sin

We have the statement again. If and we. If we say. Now here is something that we profess. Something that we claim. Something that we say. If we say. That we have no sin. No sin to be cleansed of. If that's what we're saying.

And if that's why we're not. Walking in the light. If we say. We have no sin. We deceive ourselves. We're not deceiving God. God knows that we have sin. We're not deceiving other people. Other people know that we have sin.

They're conscious of that fact. They know that we're not perfect. They can see the sins in our lives. Even when we ourselves cannot see them. They can see them. And they know perfectly well. That our claim is a false claim.

And that we are not. Walking. In the light. And we're not free. From sin. If we say that we have no sin. We deceive ourselves. And the truth is not in us. Did you ever hear of anyone. Who claimed to have no sin.

There are very few who would make such a claim. But there is one. Now and again who does make that kind of a claim. I came into contact with such an one. Not very long ago. Who claimed. That he had no sin.

No sin to be cleansed from. No sin to be forgiven. That he was living a sinless life. Well that's nothing but. Pure nonsense. For any individual. To claim that he has no sin. And that therefore because he has no sin.

He doesn't need to be cleansed. From his sins. If we say that we have no sin. We deceive ourselves. Now the only one we deceive. Ourselves. Not others. Not God. But ourselves. We deceive ourselves and the truth.

Confession, Forgiveness, and God's Faithfulness

Is not in us. Now the next if. And the next we in the ninth verse. And I think this is one of the most wonderful verses in the Bible. I know of no verse. That has brought me as much comfort. As this verse has.

If I have quoted this verse to God once. I have quoted it to him a thousand times. Again and again. I fall back on this verse. In my prayer life. The ninth verse of the first chapter. If we confess. Our sins.

Then what happens? If we're willing to confess them. If we're prepared to confess them. If we confess. Our sins. What happens? Listen if you will. It's glorious. He is faithful. He is just. Faithful. And.

Just. Faithful. Because. He promised. Just. Because. He atoned. Remember that. He is faithful and. Just. Faithful because he promised. And God always keeps his promises. He never breaks his promises. Therefore he is faithful.

And just. Just because he atoned. And on the basis of his atonement. He can cleanse us. From our sins. So he's both just. And faithful. If we confess. But the condition is. Confession. We must confess.

Our sins. And the moment we fail God. The moment we commit a sin. We should immediately turn to God in confession and humiliation. And confess the sin that we have committed. We shouldn't. Let any time go by.

Without having. Come to God. And confess the sin. That has been committed. God never tells us that Christians. Never sin. Even Christians. Occasionally fail God. And occasionally sin. And occasionally transgress.

Even Christians. And the only remedy for that sin. Is confession. And there is no forgiveness. Apart from confession. And we're not right with God. Unless we do confess. And so he says if. Here's the condition again.

John Writes to Believers About Their Need for Grace

We. May I pause and point out the. Importance of that word we. What does it actually mean. When God says. On seven different occasions. In the latter verses of this chapter. When he uses the pronoun we.

What does he mean. What does it stand for. It simply means. That the apostle John. Is talking to the people of God. This entire epistle. Was written for God's people. You discover that all the way through.

As you read it. It was written for the people of God. We we we we we. That expression. That pronoun is used. Again and again and again. If we do this. If we do that. If we confess. If we say. John includes himself.

And John was saved. John was a Christian. He was a beloved disciple. He followed Jesus Christ. And if we say. John is writing to the people of God. He's writing to you. He's writing to me. What he says is for us.

Those of us who are Christians. And that's why he uses the word we. So often along with the condition if. If we confess our sins. He is faithful. I say again because he promised. And just. And I say again because he atoned.

To forgive us. To pardon us. What would we do without pardon? What would we do without forgiveness? Where would we be? How would we ever be able to stand before God? How could we call ourselves Christians?

If it were not for pardon. If it were not forgiveness. What would we do when we sinned? When we failed God? When we did something that we ought not to have done. With no pardon. With no forgiveness. What could we do about it?

This is God's provision. His provision for the Christian who has failed. Who has sinned. If we confess our sins. He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins. And not only that. And to cleanse us. From all unrighteousness.

And he uses the word us. Again showing that he is talking to the people of God. In the tenth verse. Again. If and we. If we say. If we claim. If we say that we have not sinned. If we try to excuse ourselves.

And try to insist that we have not sinned. If we say. We have not sinned. What do we do? What's the result of that assertion? We make him. We make him God. A liar. Now think of calling God a liar. But that's exactly what happens.

We make him. A liar. And his word. Is not in us. Now who would call God a liar. But every time. That you say that you have not sinned. That you have never sinned. You call God a liar. And his word is not in you.

That's what John says. That's clear. Plain. Unmistakable. You should read these verses again and again and again. Until every verse. Will grip your heart. And you'll realize what John is attempting to say.

The Call to Sin Not and the Possibility of Holy Living

My little children. First verse of the second chapter. Which is the conclusion of what we have been. Reading and discussing. My little children. That's a very intimate expression. It's the expression used by the people of Scotland.

Barons. My dear ones. My saved ones. My little children. Referring to all of us. These things. Write I on to you. Why? Why is John writing these things to us? Why do we need them? Why is he writing to Christians?

My little children. These things write I on to you. That ye sin not. Sin not. Sin not. What you say. Is it possible to live without sin? Can I make the statement that I sin not? Is that possible for a man not to sin?

John is speaking here. About known. Conscious. Sins. The sins with which we are familiar. The sins that we ourselves recognize as sins. The sins about which there is no dispute. This is sin. That is sin.

And John says. That we are not to indulge. In things that we know perfectly well. Are wrong. And sinful. And that's possible. I say without any fear of contradiction. You can live a life for God. Without yielding to conscious known sin.

I believe that. I'm not saying that you do it. I'm not saying that you always live such a life. I'm saying it's possible. It can be done. You can live a life. In which you do not commit. Deliberately.

Purposely. Any conscious. Known. Sin. Don't try to make the excuse that you have to sin. That sin is necessary. And it's impossible for you to live without committing known sins. When it comes to the sins that you know.

Of which you're conscious. I say without any fear of contradiction. You and I. Do not have to commit those sins. Those conscious sins. Those known sins. It is not necessary. That we commit them. And that's exactly what John is saying here.

My little children. These things write I unto you. That ye sin not. That's the highest life. That you can live. That's the highest plane. Upon which you can dwell. The place. You reach. Where you no longer yield to conscious.

Known. Sin. That's God's ideal for you. That's God's plan for your life. That's what delights the heart of God. That's the kind of a life that God wants you to live. Where you do not yield to conscious.

Known. Sin. These things write I unto you for that purpose. That ye sin not. But. He adds it once. And. If any man sin. You don't have to do it. But if you do it. If. Is put in here. It's not necessary.

But it's possible. And if you fail God. If you yield to conscious sin. If you yield to known sin. If you do it. What about it? My little children. These things write I unto you that ye sin not. And. If.

Any man sin. And I wonder if there's anyone here this morning. Who can conscientiously and honestly say. I have never committed a conscious sin since I became a Christian. I have never committed a known sin since I became a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Is there any such individual in this congregation? Or is it not true. That at some time or other. Since you became a Christian. You committed some known conscious sin. Something that you knew was wrong.

You've committed it. Now what's going to happen? What's going to take place. If you do that. Well this is what John says. My little children. These things write I unto you that ye sin not. And. Or but.

Christ as the Christian's Advocate and Propitiation

If any man sin. Any Christian that means. He's not talking about the unsaved. He's talking about the Christians. Not only about the Christians. If. Any man sin. We have an advocate. Thank God for that.

That ought to make us say hallelujah. We have an advocate. We have an intercessor. We have one who takes our part. We have one who is on our side. We have one who intercedes. For us. If any man sin. Even if you sin.

And it's deliberate. And you know it's a sin. And you're conscious of the fact that it's a sin. If in your weakness. If you're overcome by temptation. And if you commit a sin. What happens then? Does God throw you away?

And cast you off? And disown you? No he doesn't. And why not? Because you have a go between. You have an advocate. You have an intercessor. You have one who stands between you and God. You have an advocate with the Father.

The Father God. An advocate. To plead your cause. To intercede on your behalf. What would you do if that were not the case? Suppose you should sin. And you had nobody to plead for you. You had no lawyer.

To handle your case. No one would become your lawyer. No one would intercede. No one would be your advocate. What would you do about it? How would you get through? But John says no. He says if by any chance a man does commit a sin.

Even though it's a known sin. A sin of which he is conscious. We Christians again. Christians. We. We have an advocate. With the Father. One to intercede for us. And he. Jesus Christ our advocate. Is the propitiation.

And that word means the mercy seat. The mercy seat. Not the judgment seat. But the mercy seat. He comes between the sinner. Or the sinning Christian. And God. The mercy seat. The propitiation. For our sins.

Thank God for an advocate. Thank God for an intercessor. Thank God for one who comes between. Thank God for Jesus Christ. Who because of his death on Calvary's cross. Can now say to God his Father. And your Father.

Father. He has sinned. She has sinned. But Father. There's my blood. That blood was shed. For her. For him. Don't look at him. Don't look at her. Look at the blood. Look at my blood. Look at the blood I've shed.

Let that blood atone. Let that blood come between. Let that blood cleanse. Look at the blood. He is the propitiation for our sins. And he is. My friend if you have sinned. You have an advocate. You have one who is a propitiation.

Between you and God the Father. And God himself was the one who provided that propitiation. Who gave his son. That there might be an advocate. And you might be forgiven. And even though you failed God since you were saved.

Jesus Christ your advocate pleads for you and takes your side. He's on your side. He wants you to be forgiven. He wants you to be pardoned. And if you'll go to him at once. The moment you fail. There'll be no break in the harmony.

None whatever. Your sin will be forgiven. You'll be cleansed in the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. And cleansed from all sin. Because you have an advocate. Jesus Christ the righteous. Not for ours only.

But also for the sins of the whole world. And no one can say. I'm absolutely hopeless. There is no hope for me. No one can ever say that. Because you have. One who is willing to become your advocate. When he becomes your savior.

And when you accept him. As your savior. He automatically becomes your advocate. And if by any chance you fail God. If by any chance you sin after you've been saved. You can go to God through Jesus Christ.

And Jesus Christ your advocate will take up your case. And plead with the Father on your behalf. And that sin of yours will be forgiven. And you'll be pardoned. And you'll go on. And live for Jesus Christ and for God.

As though you had never sinned. That's a provision God has made. For Christians. Who fall into sin. Now God doesn't want you to fall into sin. It's not God's plan that you should sin. God wants you to live on a higher level.

Above the power of sin. But if you fail. If you fall. Then thank God there's hope. There's an advocate. Jesus Christ the righteous. And he'll take up your case. And he'll become your lawyer. And he'll plead on your behalf.

That sin of yours will be forgiven. And you'll be cleansed. And you can still go on and live utterly and wholly. For the Lord Jesus Christ. My friend. This should give you encouragement. And if you fail God.

You should know now that there's hope for you. That God has made provision. That God will meet your need. If we confess our sins. He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins. And to cleanse us. From all unrighteousness.

Responding to God's Word in Prayer

Shall we bow together in prayer. Our loving Heavenly Father. Wilt Thou take Thy word and seal it in our hearts and in our minds. Give us the illumination of the Holy Spirit to understand it. And when we see it.

Help us to respond to it. And to do the thing that God is asking us through His word to do. We thank Thee for the cleansing power. Of the blood of Jesus Christ. That is available to us this morning. In Jesus name.

Amen.