Shady Lane
If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and we walk in darkness, we lie and are not practicing the truth. 1 John 1:6
Walk in Darkness – What do you think about when you read this verse? Most readers probably imagine that walking in darkness applies to the worst kind of reprobates, those who deny God’s goodness and live lives dedicated to themselves. But that doesn’t make sense, does it? John writes about people who claim to have fellowship with God, so it’s fairly unlikely that he has terrible sinners in mind. Sinners don’t claim to have a relationship with God at all. So, John must have someone else in mind; someone who says that he is close to the Lord but whose life doesn’t match his words. I wonder who that could be?
Maybe we should take a look at John’s theological background to see if we can determine who these poor souls are. To do that we have to look at John’s use of the imagery of light and darkness.
First, we recognize that John uses darkness to describe the path of wickedness. This path resists the light but it has no power to overcome it. To walk in darkness is to walk in opposition to and in ignorance of God’s ways. In his story of Yeshua, John uses darkness to describe those who had a form of religion but did not have the substance of relationship. While some of John’s statements encompass the whole world, most of his use of darkness describes religious people, not pagans. These are people who claim to be following the will of God but they do not follow the Way of the Son. In other words, even though they say that they have fellowship with the Father, they do not walk according to the example given by the Messiah Yeshua. Look at John 8:12, 12:35 and 12:46.
Secondly, Yeshua’s use of this imagery takes us back to the Hebrew Scriptures. Yeshua constantly reminds His audience of God’s Word. Darkness in apprehending God’s ways begins in Deuteronomy 28:29 where God pronounces a curse on those who do not follow His explicit instructions. The prophets echo the same warning (Isaiah 50:10, Jeremiah 2:31). Ecclesiastes tells us that a fool walks in darkness (2:14) and we must remember that the biblical use of “fool” is a man without moral sensitivity to God, not someone who is stupid. Proverbs 2:13 says that those who “leave the paths of uprightness” walk in darkness. The Psalms use this imagery over and over to warn us about departing from God’s direction (see examples in Psalm 18:28 and 91:6).
What can we conclude? Who did John have in mind? Clearly, John was not speaking to people who reject God completely. He was speaking to those who claim they are in alignment with the Father. But they are not doing what the Father says. In other words, they have determined their own codes of conduct. As a result, they are blind to the truth.
How about you? Are you standing in the shade by refusing to walk with the Son in His way? Are you making it up as you go along? Or is His path your path without qualification?
Topical Index: the Way, darkness, 1 John 1:6. skotia
