Now that the ‘Word of God’, life itself, has come and overcome the reign of death and its attendant tragedies, we are able to live out the triumph of a transformed life, knowing the truth that we cannot fix things by ourselves.   

The beloved disciple John wrote this letter in his eighties or nineties and was by that time, the only surviving apostle.  His testimony was therefore vital to correct the distortions that had come into the faith and resist the threat from deceivers that were trying to ruin the faith. 

His letter focuses on the central, eternal and foundational truths of Christianity and these he proclaimed bluntly and without reservation.  These were not intricate, complicated or difficult to understand messages.  There were clear, tough, direct and easily understood by everyone. 

There is no possibility of us trying to dance around and evade these truths.  As a matter of fact, John makes it absolutely clear in this letter that people who profess to be Christians have a tendency to specialize in deception. They do any and everything that they can to cover-up the destructive and sinful things that they do not like about themselves such as lust, greed and so on. 

He points out that people like to lie and are good at appearing to be righteous.  To counter any misconceptions that deception will succeed, John discusses the nature of God in such a way, that when the attributes or qualities of God are contrasted with the behavior of those who profess to follow him, their weaknesses and sins appear clearly. 

John stresses that truth, righteousness and love are essential to genuine Christian faith and that without manifestation of these there is no true Christianity. 

It is important to note that John refutes the growing gnostic theory, that Jesus only appeared to be a man and that he did not really come in the flesh. He begins by giving his personal testimony; emphasizing that Jesus was made a man, lived among us, shared in our humanity, was our brother and though without sin and having committed no wrong, died in our place and atoned for our sins. 

So our lesson focus is on Jesus, what He has done for us and what He now requires of us who profess faith in Him.  This is basic information and it cannot be disregarded.  It simply calls us back to the truth and straightens out the false concepts that have come into our thinking and into our actions. 

Some believe that it is helpful to also bear in mind that John immediately introduces a relationship, a fellowship and a resulting joy. 

We should also bear in mind that we are listening to the words of an older man giving his testimony.  He is remembering the life he had with Jesus Christ, following him for years, remembering his parables, his powerful teaching, watching him encourage those he would heal and His words of mercy and hope.  There were so many things he had heard Jesus say and so many things he had seen Jesus do and the memories filled his mind.   

He badly wanted to transmit the core of all this information to the younger believers, so that they would know that following Jesus was following the way of life.  So let us look carefully at what this last surviving Apostle had to say. 

THE TEXT

Verse 1.   He is talking about Jesus, but note carefully how he begins.  He does not mention Jesus Christ until verse three and there is a good reason for this. John is speaking about eternal things, he takes us into eternity past, so that he can introduce us to this One who was from the beginning. 

“Since then the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise partook of the same; that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death (that is, the Devil),” Heb 2:14.   

John tells us that he personally had intimate experience with this eternal Being. This is not knowledge from tradition, hearsay, or conjecture.  His was from personal experience and so he could write and preach about this eternal Being. So here is John telling us that his Subject was heard audibly, touched, seen, looked on intently and carefully and handled physically, so that there was no doubt that he was real. 

This Eternal Being had come in a very basic, easily understood fashion, so that all the men who came in contact with him could relate to him, could know him, talk to him, argue with him, like or dislike him, ask him questions and ask him for whatever he had to offer. 

So we are looking at the evidence of an eyewitness.  He came into the world to be the light of the world and manifest the glory or God and he was a real man. 

This was critically important teaching for some dangerous teachings which we know as Gnosticism had come into the church, teaching that Jesus was God, but that he was not really a physical man but some kind of ‘physical phantom’.  

John's statement was not only aimed at refuting this dangerous heresy but he went even further.  He called this eternal Being who was now physically present the Logos, the Word. 

In the Jewish and Greek world then, God was often called the Word, given that God revealed himself in His Word.

 The Greek philosopher laws had for many centuries talked about the Logos, the Ultimate Reason, the Intelligence behind the universe, that organized and controlled all things. 

So John was really saying, “look! this man is the Logos that every philosopher and religious expert had been writing about for hundreds of years.  Now here He is!  We have seen him, pinched him to make sure he was real, touched Him, heard him, followed Him around and so we can tell you about Him”.  This was massive a confrontation with Greek and Jewish thinkers. 

John had spent much time with Jesus; hearing his words was sound evidence and to see with ones own eyes was twice as convincing, yet the sense of touch, to hold to handle solidified the reality.  John had experienced all the possible evidence one could require and his testimony was credible. 

This was the Word of life.  This One was life.  He was in every respect they turn out Word of God which was now plainly before men. 

Note the importance of this phrase, for God had life in himself.  So God who had life in himself simply spoke and life resulted.  The speech of God, the Word of God had now been revealed.

Verse 2.   John reiterated that this life was manifested, that is, became active flesh and blood and physically real. 

John and the other apostles having spent more time with Jesus during his earthly ministry than anyone else, were most qualified to bear witness and to testify the truth regarding Jesus.  He was speaking about what he had seen.  This is an historical being. 

Having established the humanity of Jesus, that he was truly come in the flesh; John now turns to introduce Jesus as the Eternal One, without beginning or end, forever one with the Father from eternity past. “which was with the Father…”. 

This indicates that this eternal Being who has eternal life in Himself, is distinct from the Father.  So John supports the New Testament understanding that God exists as three Persons, equal and one, yet distinct in their person.  See also Matthew 28: 19, 2 Corinthians 13:14, and 1 Peter 1:2 among the many texts teaching the same thing. 

In fact Jesus is not only the eternal One, but the author of eternal life.  The word life is then rightly assigned to Jesus, as all life proceeds from him. He is the giver and sustainer of life.

 “For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself.” John 5:26. (See also Micah 5:2.) 

Note that Jesus has eternal life in himself but we are not eternal in that sense but in the ‘future’ sense we will never perish. 

It will be helpful to understand what John is saying, if we keep Jesus’ words in mind, that  ‘the Father was in him’; this means that Jesus continually reminded people that he was saying what the Father told him to say and he trusted his Father to be working through him.  This is living in dependence on the Father, doing exactly what the mind of the Father wanted to be done. 

In response to Philip’s request that Jesus show the disciples the Father, He responded.“….Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip?  He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believeth thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me?  The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.” (John 14:9-11) 

There is an incredible closeness in the relationship between the Father and the Son.  John is about to inform us of a new and special situation involving ourselves.  Note from now on that we have to bear this in mind, because we have been brought into that exact kind of relationship. No deviation is allowed for true believers.

Verse 3.   John now declares himself a preacher, a proclaimer. He again states that he had personally seen and heard the things he now conveys to them.  He has a purpose and aim in making this declaration. 

He does this so his readers may have fellowship with us the Saints of God and with the Father. The fellowship John speaks of is not a mere social acquaintance. The word “fellowship” is the ancient Greek word “koinonia” which refers to a communion, sharing, a common bond, a living, breathing, loving relationship with another person. It comes from a word which means literally “common” or being shared by all.  It is the word used in Acts 2:44which reads:

“Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common.” 

The idea in fellowship then, is that those in fellowship are bound together, share the same resources and have the same responsibilities. 

It is unbelievable to think that believers are in this relationship, where the resources of the Father, His son Jesus Christ and all believers, are tied up in this amazing bond and relationship. 

It should amaze us that we can have this kind of relationship with God, and with each other.  When Jesus was telling men in Matthew 6:9 that they should addressed God as Father, he was taking them way ahead of what they normally thought. 

When we consider what John is talking about it should give us pause, for fellowship with God implies something extremely powerful.  Sharing a common life with God, having fellowship with Jesus means that we are not what we were before, namely, people motivated by the ‘flesh’. 

Fellowship results from a shared experience of employment in the illuminating work of the gospel and being partakers or partners in eternal life, as John and the other apostles were. “I exhort the elders who are among you, I being also an elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed.”.( 1Peter 5:1) 

“through which He has given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, so that by these you might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” (2 Peter 1:4)   

Through the love of God and the atoning work of Christ; we can have fellowship with the Father through Jesus, as we live in him and He in us.

 Believers have the same source of life and belong to the same family. Believers must understand that they are never alone and have no need to be frightened. God’s presence is never far away. We cannot depend on feelings.

With fellowship comes friendship, mutual interest, a partnership.  Whatever is lacked is supplied by those in the fellowship, whether it is wisdom, power, or whatever. 

Joy is defined as the kind of optimism and cheerfulness that comes from a deep relationship with God.  It is said to be the conviction that the ‘everlasting arms of God’ are around us, that God will wipe away every tear when His purposes are accomplished.  It is not the same as happiness which is defined as cheerfulness based on circumstances.  Joy is not something that is simply based on emotion and is affected by whether things are good or bad.  

Knowing the immense love of God for us and possessing eternal life results in great joy.  The chief aim of this epistle is to ensure and maintain this joy.  John does not want anything to take away the joy of the belief.  When one possesses Christ, it is a shame if ‘ fullness of joy’ is not produced.  John will tell us how to produce this fullness of joy, so that no difficulty or tragedy can destroy it.

It is often pointed out and we should note this carefully; that achieving fullness of joy is very possible, but if achieving it was a certainty, John would probably not have to write what he was about to write.  Too many believers do not understand how beautiful and important fullness of joy is, and accordingly they do not draw close to God.  

The rise of false teachers and their heretical doctrines threatened to undermine this joy, by systematically destroying the true doctrine essential to this joy.  However Jesus emerges not only as the life but the light that conquers.

Verse 5.   The entire life of Jesus was a message. He came to tell us certain things so that we would see God more clearly.  

Simply put, it was, ‘God is light and in him was no darkness at all’.  In telling us that this is the message that he had heard and which he now declared, John is emphasizing that he is not speaking his personal opinion, but speaks on the authority of God.  Jesus is God's message and that is what he has revealed.  

It is a message of immense importance for us now as it was then; it shows us how to identify and deal with those who do not walk in the light and with whom we should not have fellowship. 

John now deals with the nature of God, stating that God Himself is light, and that light by definition completely rules out darkness.  John’ statement is emphatic.

 In scripture light and darkness are very familiar symbols; spiritually and morally, light represents biblical truth, holiness or purity,

 (Ps 119:105; Prov 6:23; John 1:4, 8:12).  Darkness represents the converse, falsehood, sin and wrongdoing. (Rom 13:11-14; 1 Thes 5:4-7). 

The heretics that were emerging claimed to have the truth and that they were truly enlightened and walked in the true light.  John denies and refutes their claim, because they did not recognize their own sin. 

John now emphasizes the purity and holiness of God, “…in Him there is no darkness at all.”.  God is absolutely perfect and nothing can impinge or compromise His character.  If we say we walk in the light and we are in him, then sin must be continually dealt with, else our claim to walk in the light are empty words and we remain in darkness. “And this is the condemnation, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than the Light, because their deeds were evil.” John 3:19 

“Then Jesus spoke again to them, saying, I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” John 8:12   

To understand what “God is light” means on the human level, we have to look at what light accomplishes, so that we can understand what God does in our life.   

Light reveals, while darkness hides.  God is said to open our eyes so that we can focus clearly and see without distortions;  illusions are seen clearly and deceptions are revealed.  Things become clearer and clearer as life is increasingly transformed.  We begin to see the problems that are inside us, the self-deceptions we practice, the inner, hidden sins that we love, the problem that we create for others and ourselves. 

Light also measures, telling us what is straight and what is crooked.  So God tells us the truth about ourselves, measures what we do against the truth, shows us what is unpalatable and shows us when we are headed into darkness.  When we look on God we highlight the crookedness in our lives. 

Light also gives energy, imparts life and quickens.  So God leads a person out of darkness into productive and vital life, one with vision and meaning. God opens up all kinds of new areas and provides the power and energy to meet all the occasions which arise. 

Therefore, in our relationship with God, He cannot be the one at fault for there is no sin or darkness in him.  When a problem arises in our relationship with God, we know that it is blasphemy to blame God.  It is our fault and we must go to him for correction. 

Some love impurity and are proud of what they do, while others like to appear righteous and lie, pretending to be committed to right living, when in fact they are hiding things that they should be ashamed of.  They are in fact sacrificing truth. 

When we look at the life of Jesus we see that he never lied about anything and was always open and honest, full of integrity.  He never tried to fool anyone and pretend.  He showed his love for his Father and his love for people at all times.  He was never afraid to tell the truth and lived the truth. 

If we are to live according to this message from God, we are to behave as Christ behaved.

Verse 6.   John can now say that if we are in fellowship with Jesus and with the Father, if we say we have fellowship, this implies a right relationship with one’s brother 2:9, and that one walk as Christ also did, in truth and obedience to the word of God.

 If our claim to fellowship is not backed up by a genuine walk in the light and there is any hint of darkness manifest in our life, we are telling a lie and we remain in darkness.  That darkness is the state of sin, ignorance and unbelief; or more seriously a state of unregenerate blindness. 

Note that John is dealing with a false claim to fellowship.  Some might claim a relationship with God that they do not have or mistakenly think that they have a relationship with Him.  So we are looking at a walk, a pattern of living, not an occasional slip into sin. 

These people will continue in darkness becoming more and more engrossed in it, for they prefer it to light, they take pleasure in sin.  Such persons pretend to have fellowship with God, but they are liars.  This is a case of men who are depraved.‘We lie...”  it is a contradiction and it is impossible for these people to have fellowship with light, for light cannot have communion with darkness.  

So in spite of the claims to enlightenment of these false teachers, their walking in darkness refutes any genuine Christian fellowship with God or the sons of light. 

In fact the word ‘lie’ refers to a habitual failure regarding the practice of truth, they do not speak the truth or act according to the truth – they are hypocrites and pretenders.  If they practiced truth, they would come to the light and not walk in darkness.  John 3:21.

Verse 7.   John is here warning that these people are not in fellowship though they might claim to be.  One writer describes them as putting on “moral cosmetics”, putting bits of color here and there, rearranging their behavior, and arranging themselves to look spiritual, when it is really all for show. 

People who walk in the light have been enlightened by the Spirit of God, they live an obedient life, never resisting the Holy Spirit, walking circumspectly, and showing by their actions that they are in fellowship. They are given true spiritual sight, have a sense of their own sin and know Christ and the way of salvation.  They show that they are in good relationship with the brethren and are being honest with God about who they are. 

“We have fellowship one with another…” this is the fellowship that we have with the brethren and with God.  This however applies to all brethren, since all partake of God’s feelings and views, and ought to resemble each other. Loving the same God, embracing the same views of religion, and living for the same ends, we shall of course have much that is common to us all, and thus shall have fellowship with each other. 

The description of the righteous is made clear at this stage, for we are told that they are cleansed people, continually experiencing the cleansing of the blood of Jesus.  They are not sinless, for if they were sinless, they would not need to be cleansed in the ongoing manner stated here.  The tense of the word cleansing is continuous, meaning day by day activity.  This is necessary to remain in fellowship. 

Clearly Jesus died on the cross to remove the guilt of sin but the blood of Jesus also continually removes the stain of sin, so that we will have continual relationship with the Father.  The blood of Christ is therefore of infinite value.  It is the only thing that is effective against sin.  No rites, ceremonies, or sacraments can save us.  We are saved by the blood. 

“The blood of Christ cleanses us from all sin.”  That is, the blood of Christ is sufficient to pay for all sins, past, present and future; when we walk in the light this results in forgiveness of sins and continual cleansing from sin. 

It is interesting to consider at this statement by Spurgeon.  He says:

“Does my walking in the light take away my sins?  Not at all.  I am as much a sinner in the light as in the darkness, if it were possible for me to be in the light without being washed in the blood.  Well, but we have fellowship with God, and does not having fellowship with God take away sin?

Beloved, do not misunderstand me-no man can have fellowship with God unless sin be taken away; but his fellowship with God, and his walking in light, does not take away his sin-not at all.

The whole process of the removal of sin is here, “And the blood of Jesus Christ his Son or cleanseth us from all sin”. 

Never take your eyes off the blood of Jesus.  People nowadays do not like to sing about the blood of Jesus.  Some think it is gross to be constantly talking about the blood.  But note this:

This is the only thing that solves the problem of sin.  Philosophical speculation, intellectual education, drugs, entertainment, scientific investigation, will never bring us to fellowship with God.  We can only come to fellowship with God when we deal with our sin problem through the blood of Jesus. 

So when we are in the light, the light will reveal our sin and our state. It will measure us and evaluate us and then it will energize us and give us strength. We will be able to deal with our issues.  So don't hide, come out into the open, be honest, and the blood of the son of God Jesus Christ, will cleanse us from all sin, and keep us in fellowship with the Father and with the Son.

Verse 8.   “If we say we have no sin…” This is a way that some try to manage sin, control it and fix it themselves.  The result here is self-deception and we are then entrapped. 

Some ancient as well as modern people like to say there is no sin.  Others say that there are spiritual techniques that will enable us to go to amazing spiritual depths, give enlightenment and break great barriers that will take a person out of the ordinary and we will no longer sin.  All this of course is foolishness as the leadership scandals in the church demonstrate over and over again. 

Others like to say they are not sinners but simply victims or sufferers, blaming everything on abusive relationships, dysfunctional upbringing, the faults of society, or even faults people in the church as not doing enough for them. John simply tells us that we can be cleansed. 

Let us not seek to undo all that Christ has done.  “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil; who put darkness for light and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!” Isa 5:20   

If we say we have no sin we are practicing a Satanic kind of self-deception, for a perverted reason.  It is dangerous to say ‘we have no sin’, or that ‘we are only human’, or ‘we are only making mistakes’ . 

Not only does such a claim make God out to be a liar, for He said, “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God”, but they deny the need for a Saviour, count the blood of Christ as nothing, and in effect damn themselves.  This is so because confession of sin and repentance from sin is requisite to salvation.

Verse 9.   There is the ‘root’ inside us and it has to be dealt with.  It is ‘planted’ deep but we do not need to have it control us. There might be times when we are walking free from the taint of sin, but there will be times when we do sin.  It makes no sense to try to cover it up and refuse to acknowledge it.  

So we are told not to deny the anger, envy, lust, jealousy, selfishness, vain ambition, malice and silly mistakes. We also are told not to deny that the root of sin is deep, but to face reality and confess when the things that are unlike God appear. 

Those who confess their sin will receive God’s forgiveness and continual cleansing. Now this is not the same as asking for forgiveness. 

Confess actually means to say the same thing about sin that God does and acknowledge His perspective. In this way, one will be lead to repent and put ones trust in Christ, as the only hope and remedy for sin. 

In confession there are absolutely no “ifs”.  When they are ‘ifs’ it is out of the realm of confession.  So let us say the same thing as God says about what we do. 

John does not focus on the need to confess every single sin, but wants to convey the need for the recognition of sin in our life and acknowledge the need for cleansing and forgiveness. (Eph 4:32; Col 2:13) 

Just remember that cleansing is based on the work of Jesus Christ and because of that, God is faithful and will forgive if there is penitence and confession.  God will never be unfaithful or unjust.  He will always forgive those that come to him with a humble heart.  It is probably quite normal that when we are aware of having fallen into sin, to let the flesh take over and react in a wrong and ungodly way. 

Let us train our selves to stop right then and there, agree with God that what we did was wrong, experience his wonderful cleansing from all unrighteousness and keep ourselves clean and happy in fellowship with God.   

Ongoing, repeated confession is always necessary for Christians.  We are quite inadequate and quite needy.  We need constant confession.  All we have to do is remember that those who put their faith in Jesus Christ will not face the destructive judgment of God.

Verse 10.   Rationalizing our behavior will never be correct. Anyone who claims to have no sin, whether past or present, makes God out to be a liar.  No matter how profusely such a person may claim to have fellowship with God, they do not and God word is not in them. 

The Word brings light and expels darkness, through it, the Holy Spirit convict of sin and by it we come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. 

When we attempt to change what is true it always results in blasphemy. We often seem to prefer saying God is a liar, rather than admit that we are the sinners. 

We are in fact saying that we do not care what God has said, or what he thinks, but insist we make the rules and will live whatever kind of life seems best to us. 

God has a right to tell us what to do, for he made us.  We don't have a right to make the rules.  We should never blaspheme our Maker in that way. 

1 John 2 

Verse 1.   John now addresses the faithful. Those he calls brethren and in such language as to comfort and encourage us not to sin, that we should always aim to live holy lives before God.   

Although Christians need to continually confess sin in their life, we are not totally powerless, for we are commanded to conquer sin by the power of the Holy Spirit (Rom 6:12-14; 8:12-13; Cor15:34; Titus 2:11,12;  1 Pet 1:13-16). 

The statement that he writes his beloved children that they will not sin, comes right after the statements about people who are trying to cover up their sin, their destructive behavior and their tendency to deceive themselves and others.  

He is blunt in looking at the tendency to cover up what is wrong and now he has looked at the worst side of the brethren. He is addressing the kind of direction we are following, our habits in life and the way we live in a slightly different way. 

He is pointing out that even though God has made all provision that we will not sin, if anybody does sin and he assumes they will, God has taken the additional step of providing an advocate for us. 

It seems that since God has seen his children fail so many times, and being caught in so many snares, that failure, though serious will not put him away from us.  He knows how bad we are. 

So he provides an advocate, someone who lives in his presence and who will plead for us.  This one who is an Advocate is righteous and he covers us with his righteousness. 

Of course He has already warned us that we should confess our sins daily, repent and be serious about living in fellowship with God.  God wants a behavior change.  We are warned elsewhere that if we continue to ‘fool’ around, then come punishment. 

It is interesting to note that Israel walked after idols for a long time.  However when they were exiled into Babylon and saw idols on every street corner and lived with them wherever they went, there were cured.  When they came back to the land they did sin, but idol worshiping was not one of them.  They even resisted the Syrians with military might when they eventually tried to impose Greek idol worship on them.  So it will be with us. We can be sure there will be punishment which will cure us of our frequent serious sins. 

Note however that if we have an advocate who defends us, we cannot also have two lawyers and try to defend ourselves.  We have to rely on his defence and his sacrifice.  We can't stand before God in defiance telling him we are not to blame and that we are not guilty, trying to blame others, and blaming the pressure of circumstances.  If we are evasive and try to justify ourselves, just remember that the blood of Jesus cannot cleanse excuses.  It can only cleanse sins. 

Let us be mindful that we have a righteous Brother standing in front of the Father, showing God His righteousness and God will look at Him and cleanse and accept us.

Verse 2.   Jesus having lived a perfect life without sin is the spotless ‘Lamb of God’ and the propitiation for our sins.  He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins.  He took our guilt as well as the guilt of every person, so that no man who ever comes to Christ in faith and accepts His work will ever be kept away from God because of his sins. No matter how bad or extreme the sin, the work of the cross is sufficient. 

He took on the guilt of the whole world and paid the price for everybody.  Anyone who accepts the work of Christ on his behalf will be reconciled to God.  Jesus’ death is sufficient.  His propitiation is said to extend as far as sin extends.  

Note however that the advocacy of Christ is limited to believers.

Unfortunately there are those who choose to live and remain hostile to God, defying God, running away from him and not accepting his forgiveness.

Verse 3.   John makes it clear that a person does not have to be an intellectual to be saved or have a long life of obvious service to God.  The willingness to keep His commandments, is a sign that there is a active relationship and fellowship.  All a person has to do is to listen to his voice which comes to all His ‘sheep’ and who know him because they possess the Holy Spirit. 

This would only occur if there is already union with Christ. Obedience is what is demanded by Christ and what those that are united with him will do.  Those in fellowship with Christ will want to please him and know that what he wants is perfection.  This obedience to Christ is an expression of love for him.  (See John 14: 15-21). The willingness and commitment to obey Christ shows whether we are false or true.   

Now let us be careful here.  Do not think we can come to God by attempting to keep His Commandments.  We come to God by faith in Jesus Christ first and then he will give us the ability to keep his Commandments. Under the New Covenant He writes his laws on our hearts and gives us the gift of the Holy Spirit.  So receive Jesus by faith.

Verse 4.    John does not mince words. He insists that as far as God is concerned, one who claims fellowship with God, who may say the right things, knows the religious lingo, but shows no real desire to obey God and does not keep His commandments, is simply a liar.  The truth is not in them and they are still in bondage to Satan and their own wicked ways.  It is probably true to say that those who say they love Jesus and disobey His Commandments know that they are phonies.  They are counterfeits.  One writer says

“They preach cream, but live skim milk.”

Verse 5-6.   An unchanged life shows a heart that is not cleansed. When a person is willing to obey Christ, whether or not they understand the reasons for His Commandments, shows that the love of God is in fact taking over their lives and changing them.  They are showing the effects of sanctification.  The Holy Spirit is leading them onward and transforming them into the image of Christ.

This shows that fellowship is in full force and the love of God is being perfected or increased steadily.  This is the plan of God in action.

The more obedience there is, the more the leading of the Holy Spirit continues step-by-step, the more we continue to be cleansed and the faster the experience of the fullness of joy in Christ will come.  This adds up to a ‘walk’, an abiding, which is exactly the same as “fellowship with him”.  This sign of this abiding is to walk in the same way as Jesus walked, to live by his principles, to be in the kind of relationship that he had with the Father. 

CONCLUSION

So we come back to the secret of Jesus' power. He has told us that He was not doing the things He did by himself and speaking his own words but He worked the way He did because the Father dwelt in Him. He was only speaking the words that He heard the Father say. He counted on the Father every minute of the day. 

It is hard to learn that lesson but we must learn that like Jesus, we must walk in what one writer called the; “total, unrelenting, unbroken fellowship and dependence upon the activity of the Father who in dwelt him”.

God wants us to get rid of the self-approach, the self-centeredness, arranging things the way we want. We must learn to live in a quiet, unrelenting dependence on the indwelling Holy Spirit.  It is only He that can bring about the changes in us that He wants, for He wants to transform us into the image of God’s Son. That is what fellowship is all about. That is what abiding in Him means.  It is a package deal.