1 John 1:8 - Why We Need Jesus!
1 John 1:8 (NKJV) If we say that we have no
sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not
in us.
1 John 1:8 (AMP) If we say we have no sin
[refusing to admit that we are sinners], we delude and
lead ourselves astray, and the Truth [which the
Gospel presents] is not in us [does not dwell in
our hearts].
COMMENTARY PEARL
Two Ways We Can Live
By nature, Im a messy person. But the
irony is that I dont like messes, even though I
make a lot of them. Ill let messes build up,
and then eventually Ill start cleaning up out
of frustration. In contrast, my wife, Cathe, is
very neat and tidy. She doesnt allow messes to
pile up because shes always cleaning.
So we have two approaches to cleaning:
the Greg way and the Cathe way. The Greg way is
to never do today what you can put off until
tomorrow. If theres some dust, sweep it under the
rug. And if you want to get rid of something,
just throw it in a drawer.
The Cathe way is to clean the rug and
clean underneath the rug. The Cathe way is to
organize the drawer you throw something into.
Its the same way with life. There are
two ways we can live. We can let messes build up
into bigger problems, or we can constantly see
our need to be cleansed. We all sin. Maybe some
of us sin more than others, but one sin is
enough to separate us from God.
The Bible says, If we claim we have no
sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living
in the truth (1 John 1:8 NLT). So if you
say, Im a good person. I dont sin,
then youre deceiving yourself. Were all
sinners because weve broken Gods laws and have
fallen short of His standards.
Yet the next verse offers this promise:
But if we confess our sins to him, he is
faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to
cleanse us from all wickedness (verse 9 NLT).
You dont have to clean up your life to
come to God. Rather, come to God, and He will
clean up your life. [Greg Laurie from Harvest
Ministries; https://www.harvestdaily.com]
COMMENTARY
Here John was attacking the second claim of
the false teachers: that people had no natural
tendency toward sin, that they had "no sin," and that
they were then incapable of sinning. This is a
lie. The false teachers refused to take sin
seriously. They wanted to be considered Christians, but
they saw no need to confess and repent. The death
of Christ did not mean much to them because
they didn't think they needed it. Instead of
repenting and being purified by Christ's blood, they
were encouraging sin among believers. In this
life we are always capable of sinning, so we
should never let down our guard. [Life Application
SB]
The false teachers not only denied that sin
breaks fellowship with God (1:6) and that they had
a sinful nature (1:8), but they also denied
that their conduct involved any sin at all
(1:10). That was a lie that ignored one basic truth:
All people are sinners by nature and by
practice. At conversion all our sins are
forgiven"past, present, and future. Yet even after we
become Christians, we still sin and still need to
confess. This kind of confession is not offered to
gain God's acceptance but to remove the barrier
to fellowship that our sin has put between us
and him. It is difficult, however, for many
people to admit their faults and shortcomings, even
to God. It takes humility and honesty to
recognize our weaknesses, and most of us would rather
pretend that we are strong. But we need not fear
revealing our sins to God - he knows them already. He
will not push us away, no matter what we've done.
Instead, he will draw us to himself. [Life
Application SB]
We should not try to lessen our guilt by
excusing sin. We must accept God's estimate of sin,
and that is heavy indeed. Calvary alone can
reveal the terrible enormity of sin. If we had to
bear our own guilt, it would crush us. But the
sinless One has taken our place; though undeserving,
He has borne our iniquity. "If we confess our
sins," God "is faithful and just to forgive us our
sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
1 John 1:9. Glorious truth! - just to His own
law, and yet the Justifier of all that believe in
Jesus. MB116
CLOSING THOUGHT
Keeping An Honest Account
We deceive ourselves when we say we have
no sin. The Scripture doesn't say that we are
sin; it says that it is possible for us to sin
and for sin to reside in our mortal bodies
(Romans 6:12). We are not sinless saints; we are
saints who sin. It's important to keep honest
account of our failures and pick up our cross daily.
When we become aware of a discrepancy between our
identity and our behavior, we must confess it and
deal with it. The person who deceives himself by
ignoring these sinful discrepancies and allowing them
to build up is headed for a great fall.
Those of us who live in earthquake-prone
Southern California keep hearing about "the big one,"
which is thought by many to be inevitable along
the San Andreas fault. Whenever we experience
minor earthquakes (up to about 4.0 on the Richter
scale), we may be frightened by them a bit, but we
also see them as a good sign. These little
tremors mean that the plates in the earth's crust
beneath us are shifting. As long as the crust is
adjusting this way, it's unlikely that "the big one"
will hit. It's when we don't get any minor
earthquakes for several months or years that the danger
of a major, devastating quake increases.
Similarly, living in the light, holding
ourselves accountable to God, and confessing and
dealing with sin on a daily basis prevents the major
spiritual crises from building up in our lives. If we
keep saying, "I don't have any sin," or if we
fail to acknowledge our shortcomings and settle
our differences with people as God convicts us
of them, we're in for "the big one." We will
eventually lose our health, our family, our job, or our
friendships. Unacknowledged sin is like a cancer which
will grow to consume us.
Lord, I know Your guidance is for my
benefit. I refuse to allow stubbornness and pride to
render me insensitive to Your nudges and warnings
in my life today. [Daily in Christ by Neil
Anderson]
PRACTICAL APPLICATION
Don't be afraid to face your sins. Except
for Me, there has never been a sinless person.
If you claim to be without sin, you deceive
yourself and evade the truth. It's actually quite
freeing to confess your sins, knowing that I will
forgive you and purify you from all unrighteousness.
The good news is that I have redeemed you - paid
the full penalty for all your sins. When you
confess your wrongdoings, you are aligning yourself
with the truth. Since I Myself am the Truth, your
confession draws you closer to Me. It also sets you
free from nagging guilt feelings.
When you realize you have sinned in your
thoughts, words, or actions, admit it immediately.
Your confession need not be lengthy or eloquent.
It can be as simple as: "Forgive me and cleanse
me, Lord." I have already done the hard part -
dying on the cross for your sins. Your part is to
live in the Light of the Truth. I, your Savior,
am the Light of the world. (1Joh. 1:8, 9; John
14;6; 8:32) [Jesus Always by Sarah Young]
LINK FOR FURTHER STUDY ON THIS PASSAGE
Romans 3:12 - Jesus; Our Greatest Need!
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2006/20060803-1456.html
YOUR COMMENTS
If anyone has a paraphrase, commentary or
testimony on this passage of Scripture, either
personal or otherwise, I would be interested in
hearing from you. Thanks in advance and let's keep
uplifting Jesus that all might be drawn to Him. Fred
Gibbs
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
Most Important Decision in Life:
http://www.youtube.com/embed/WGnEuGwvXqU?rel=0
Steps to Peace by Billy Graham:
https://stepstopeace.org/
A Man without Equal by Bill Bright:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiVa7UoruIo
Seeking God Made Real:
http://vimeo.com/31489782
Prayer Made Real:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tc8VdMV26VE
Importance of Choice:
http://creationhealth.com/CREATION-Health/Choice [click on video]
Medical Seminar on Healthful Living by David
DeRose, MD, MPH:
https://www.smartlifestyletv.com/lifestart
LINKS FOR BIBLE STUDIES
Lifting Up Jesus Bible Studies:
http://www.liftingupjesus.net/
Amazing Facts Bible Studies:
http://www.amazingfacts.org/bible-study/bible-study-guides.aspx
Hope Awakens Bible Study Guides:
https://www.hopeawakens.study/lesson-header;id=2
Glow Tract Video Bible Studies:
http://www.bibleresearch.info/
LINKS FOR BIBLE PROPHECY SEMINARS
Islam and Christianity in Prophecy, The
Third and Final Conflict by Tim Roosenberg:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHSJB-fuHLU&list=PLWhQIHGTHlkaGg5Cwe3NDzWtFX8vNSpsE
Unlocking Bible Prophecies by Cami Oetman of
Adventist World Radio: https://www.awr.org/bible
Revelation Now by Pastor Doug Batchelor:
https://www.revelationnow.com/
Hope Awakens by John Bradshaw of IIW:
https://itiswritten.tv/programs/hope-awakens
Prophecies Decoded by Pastor Ron Clouzet:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1A435C5373550657
