"This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another..."
Some of you might be surprised that, in blatant defiance of all exegetical rules, I stopped in the middle of that verse (1 John 1:5-7). And yes, the words I left out, "and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin" are extremely important words! But tonight, those words, "we have fellowship with one another," hit me squarely in the middle of the forehead. If I hadn't been reclining already, I just might have fallen over!
If we are walking in the light, we have fellowship with one another. The only way our relationships are going to work is if we are walking in the light. Yes, wise counsel is good; yes, it is important to "work" on friendships and other relationships, but the bottom line is that if I am not walking in the light (as HE is in the light - yikes!), I will not be able to relate well with others. Quite the challenge: letting the light expose my darknesses and draw me forward to purer relationships. True, holy fellowship only comes through that light -- in all its dreadful purity and deadly perception.
Amen, Amanda. Light pouring into our community is what helps us to see what our community is and where it should be going.
ReplyDelete"True, holy fellowship only comes through that light -- in all its dreadful purity and deadly perception."
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