1 John 1:5-10 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 yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives. God calls us to walk in the light. If we take a step into sin, we're moving toward the darkness. But God, in His great mercy, tells us exactly what to do with that sin. He says in effect, don't try to hide it or act like you haven't done it. Just confess it and bring it to the light and repent of it. As we do, we are cleansed of it. When God washes, He washes white as snow. The light is for godly living and because of that, it is for exposing sin and dealing with it, too. When we reject the conviction of sin in our lives, we are rejecting the word of the Lord which can free us from it. When we reject the freedom, we choose instead bondage. Choose to live in the space of grace, where the light shines and not only reveals but cleanses. The bad thing about sin is that it puts up walls between us and God and between us and others. Sin brings shame, fear, and a resultant attempt to control so that we can try to hide it. Clean living is free living. There's no reason for shame, fear, and control. We can cast that aside and live in freedom. The space of grace is a place of freedom. And then we can continue our walk in the light.