First John Chapter One
Note: You really should read this Bible passage first. After all this is a Bible study. Go on. Try it out.
Jesus is the Touchable Message From God
(Seriously, have you read the passage yet? Go on. I won't let you go any further until you do it.)
John says that he (along with many others) had “heard”, “seen” and “touched” Jesus :1.
Jesus is the “Word of life”, “the life”, and “eternal life” :1-:2.
John (along with other eyewitnesses) “testify” and “proclaim” this life, this Jesus :2
Fellowship Up and Down
Fellowship = partnership. The context provides who or what the partnership is with or about.
Two life changing partnerships makes us who we are.
1. “fellowship with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ” – Vertical :3
2. “fellowship with us” ie. with each other – Horizontal :3
An Unexpected Message
There are so many messages coming from so many churches, preachers, authors. No wonder the world looks at us as though we Christians are a little flakey. The Holy Spirit is about to tell you what the message of Christians is to be.
“God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.” :5. Seriously? Yes. It may not be in your church slogan, or church creed or hardly even spoken about by our preachers but here it is but that is a topic for another time. This is the message of Jesus, the Word of life.
God is simple. In fact John explains God in terms of something as simple as light and darkness. You know light and darkness, don’t you? Put up your hand if you don’t. Didn’t think there was any. Well God is like the light and He is nothing like the darkness.
Darkness is sin :6, :7, :8-:10. Sin is disobeying God 3:4.
Light is God :5. It is not sinlessness. God just told us what the light was in :5. Got to remember that.
Fellowship with God
Jesus reveals clearly that God, the holy one, desires with unstoppable passion, to fellowship with the unholy (that’s you and me). His very presence on this earth and in your life is proof of that!
But, how can Light fellowship (partner with) darkness? Religions since Adam was a grown man have asked this question. However you don’t have to figure it out on your own. You just have to believe the answer God gives us.
Here it is. Ready? “If we walk in the light, as He is in the light … the blood of Jesus, his Son purifies (makes us holy) from all sin” :7.
Next Study: Walking in the light is probably not what you think it is. Well, maybe it is, but you wouldn’t want to miss the next study would you?
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