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.

My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense – Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. (1 John 1:5-2:2)

Light is a positive metaphor and can represent a number of things. When it is used as an intellectual metaphor, it can refer to revelation, guidance, intelligence, knowledge, and the like. The Bible teaches that God enlightens the minds of his chosen ones and grants them understanding about Jesus Christ and spiritual things. On the other hand, it refers to non-Christians as blind, stupid, and so on. When it is used as an ethical metaphor, it refers to holiness, righteousness, purity, openness, and so on. The Bible calls Christians the children of light, and non-Christians are the children of darkness.

Here the emphasis is ethical. John says that God is light, and there is no darkness in him, and then darkness is associated with sin. He is making a point about claim versus reality, and truth versus deception in the spiritual life. If we claim to have fellowship with God but yet walk in darkness, or walk in sin, then we lie and do not live by the truth. Or, if we claim to be without sin or if we claim that we have not sinned, then again we lie, deceiving even ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

James makes the identical point in his letter. He says that if we merely listen to the word but does not do what it says, then we deceive ourselves (James 1:22). If a man does not obey the Bible, he can think he is one kind of person when in reality he is the opposite. Then, a man can think that he is religious and spiritual, but if he does not control his tongue and if he hardens his heart against orphans and widows in need, again he deceives himself and he is not in fact religious and spiritual (James 1:26-27).

And a man can claim that he has faith, but if his faith does not lead to the results that the Bible specifies as the inevitable fruit of faith, then he does not in fact have faith (James 2:14-26). A man has faith and is justified entirely apart from works, but if he has genuine faith, then this faith will produce what the Bible says true faith ought to produce. Paul writes that we are “created in Christ Jesus to do good works” (Ephesians 2:10). Or, a man may claim to possess wisdom and understanding, but if he harbors envy and selfish ambition, then this wisdom is not of God but is of the devil, and thus in fact not wisdom at all (James 3:13-18). The man thinks that he is wise, but the truth is that he is a fool.

Some professing believers attempt to isolate James from the rest of the New Testament writers and then eject him from the Bible. They do this not because they are heroes for orthodoxy and champions of the faith, but because they are false believers and James makes them nervous. It is futile to isolate James in the first place. The apostles were united on this issue, so if anyone claims to be a Christian but attacks this doctrine or any of the writers, then he is a liar, and the truth has no place in him. He is afraid that his secret sins and his hypocrisy will be found out, and rather than running to God for forgiveness and deliverance, he tries to excuse himself. Thus he deceives himself and is cheated out of the salvation that is only in Jesus Christ. There is no need to wonder or be in doubt. The truth is straightforward and the lie is obvious. The Bible tells us the truth plainly. One is a liar if he walks in darkness and if he claims to be without sin, or that he has not committed sins.

It is appropriate to draw attention to the implied blasphemy of a false claim or false doctrine. John writes, “If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar.” God says that we have sinned, and he has sacrificed his Son, Jesus Christ, to atone for our sins, to save us from hellfire and divine wrath. So for a person to claim that he has not sinned is to say that God has made a false statement about him and that there was no need for the atonement. His false claim implies the blasphemy that God is a liar and a fool. John charges such a person not only with the claim that he makes but also with the implication of the claim. This is a significant point for theological discussions and church policies.

People can lie about their spiritual condition. They can lie to themselves, and they can lie to others. But God is never deceived, and not one of these liars can escape his punishment. On the other hand, Jesus Christ gives us wisdom to perceive the reality and the courage to admit the truth, and he speaks good news into our plight. He gives us the ability to confess our sins, and when we confess our sins, we agree with the truth that God speaks about us, and instead of hiding our sins in self-righteousness and self-deception, we show reliance on Jesus Christ to deal with our sins, expressing our faith that he has secured forgiveness and cleansing for us by his sacrifice.