Walk In The Light As He Is In The Light
Grace Doesn't Override Justice
1 JOHN 1:7
“But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
”I John 1:7 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/1jn.1.7.NKJ
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In Old Testament times, people would sacrifice an animal to pay their debt of sin by symbolically transferring their debt to the animal (see a description of this ceremony in Leviticus 4).
The animal died in their place, giving them the freedom to continue to live in God’s favour.
God graciously forgave them because they obeyed Him concerning the sacrifice.
By God’s grace, He made a temporary way for people to be forgiven, in anticipation of the time Jesus would come and pay our debt in full with His own blood.
My beloved, He died on a cross that the sin of the world was paid in full, once and for all time.
Truly I tell you, He is the Lamb that was slain.
No more is it necessary to sacrifice animals or perform religious rituals, for Jesus fulfilled it all. He has set us free from the power of sin and death and eternal life is now possible for all people through the blood of Jesus Christ.
It is like this, if one gets caught speeding, he will have to pay the penalty, but if someone else pays his penalty, he is free from it. That is justice.
Every one of us has already been caught speeding in this world of sin and the penalty is death ; that is the wages of sin and justice must be done.
But our merciful God did something no other gods or people could do. He settled the debt with His own blood, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”
John 3:16-17 NKJV
Jesus is the coming judge that knows we are all guilty and deserve the ultimate punishment.
But because of His love, He paid everyone’s debt in full by taking our place on a cross.
Our new life in Christ has been justified for all who believe in Him. But to receive this wonderful gift, His blood must be applied to our lives.
Many say “God won’t send nice people to hell, His grace is sufficient”, but unfortunately, grace does not override justice, if it did, Jesus would of had no reason to die on a cross to pay our debt of sin.
But salvation is not a complicated process, Jesus completed the process and said, “it is finished (JOHN 19:30).
“But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.””
Romans 10:8-13 NKJV
The real cleansing of sin comes from the blood of Jesus, “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (JOHN 1:29).
Sin brings about death, but Jesus never sinned, so He didn’t deserve it, but He chose death to save you! Indeed, because of His love and His grace, He took our place on a cross, paying our debt of sin, making a way for the salvation of all who believe on Him.
Furthermore, having died a painful death on a cross, and giving Himself up to the grave, on the third day, He was risen (1 CORINTHIANS 25:4), taking away the power of death.
There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for a friend (JOHN 25:13).
“This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, We shall also live with Him. If we endure, We shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.”
II Timothy 2:11-13 NKJV
My beloved, Light shines in the darkness, it illuminates everything, the good, the bad, and the evil.
You can only walk in the light if you have nothing to hide.
Transparency brings peace!
It’s important not to attempt to hide our sins and mistakes, we all make them.
Therefore, confess your sins and repent, so that devil cannot hold you in fear of the embarrassing truth.
That truth maybe uncomfortable, but when you confess, it cannot be held over you any longer. Furthermore, God is faithful to forgive and removes the weight of your shoulders; it came off of you in and is confirmation of your repentance and willingness to change.
Therefore, “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”
James 5:16 NKJV
My brethren, we are all sinners; if anyone says they have never sinned, they are only fooling themselves and not living in truth. But if we confess our sin to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness (1 JOHN 1:8-9).
All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.
