Read 1 John 1:1–2:11
When beginning this letter, John states his purpose for writing from the start. He says he has a message to share with the readers that was revealed by God directly. That message is this: “God is light, and there is absolutely no darkness in him.” If that point comes at the beginning of the letter, John must think it’s pretty important for his readers to know. And in fact, as he continues writing, he explains why this characteristic of God matters so much, and wh people should know about it.
For people to have credibility when they talk about their relationship with God, they need to look like they actually know God. If a person’s life seems to be full of nothing but darkness and sin, can they say they really know God? No matter how much they insisted, that claim would come across as an obvious lie. That would be like a person insisting they were a doctor, but then not being able to explain how breathing works, or how the circulatory system functions. So if those of us who say we’re followers of Jesus bear no resemblance to Him at all, we should consider ourselves in trouble.
The good news is, we don’t have to stay in trouble. If we let the God of light into our lives, He will overcome the darkness that’s characteristic of us apart from Him, because “that light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness did not overcome it” (John 1:5). Walking in that light will result in us being obedient to the Lord’s commands, and fill us with the same love that God has for all people.
Begin praying with Psalm 139:11–12:
“If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me,
and the light around me will be night’—
even the darkness is not dark to you.
The night shines like the day;
darkness and light are alike to you.”