The Admonishing Censure – 1 John 1:6c

Review

We are following John’s outline. First, The Alleged claim “if we [including myself] claim, 1 John 1:6a. Topic #17.” Second, The Alarming Contradiction, “to have fellowship with Him and walk in the sphere of darkness, 1 John 1:6b Topic #18.” Now thirdly, The Admonishing Censure, "[then] We [including myself] are lying to ourselves and are not practicing the truth [Bible Doctrine], 1John 1:6c. Topic#19.”

In our previous studies in verse 6, we have learned a painful truth. Christians can indeed fall away from God and return to the darkness ¹ out of which they have been delivered. If you are still confused about this, the recommendation is to review the previous lessons, especially topics #15–18. A summary of the salient points now follows:

1. The alleged claim is made by professing Christians. The inclusive use of the first-person plural indicates that this warning is for everyone in the church, “if we [inclusive use] claim.” This person claims to be a Christian and one who is walking with the Lord, “we have fellowship with Him.”

2. The alarming contradiction reveals a different story. The one who is professing to be a child of God is by character and conduct exhibiting the marks and patterns of the unsaved. They are unlike the Lord Jesus Christ, and their lifestyle proves it, 1 Corinthians 3:1-3.

3. John does not take up the issue of whether they are saved or not, only that they are not walking in the light.

4. John’s eyewitness examination concludes they are “walking in darkness.”

5. Darkness is a Biblical word that is associated with Satan. Paul describes his divine calling and mission in this passage. He says, “God called him:”

Acts 26:18

to open the eyes of the outsiders so they can see the difference between dark and light, [mutually exclusive] and choose light, see the difference between Satan and God, and choose God. ‘I’m sending you off to present my offer of sins forgiven, and a place in the family, inviting them into the company of those who begin real living by believing in me.’

5. Can a believer allow Satan’s influence to drive them away from God? Yes! It is a sobering thought when we awaken to this idea.

Now, the third increment of our study in verse 6 involves John’s condemnation of their lifestyle.

"[then] we [including John] are lying to ourselves and are not practicing the truth [Bible Doctrine ²]." 1John 1:6c

Remember, John is writing to believers who are no longer walking in the light and are following the path of their gnostic teachers ³, who have led them astray. One doctrine that is under John’s scrutiny is Hamartiology—the doctrine of sin. Do Christians sin? If so, what effects does personal sin have in their walk with God? Clearly, John teaches that Christians still commit sin after salvation, and therefore, if you do not deal with the sins in your life, you cannot have fellowship with God. If you fail to confront personal sin in your life, then you are walking in darkness. John focuses on two prominent features of this denial: you can sin and have fellowship with God. First, there is self-deception – “we are lying to ourselves.” Secondly, we are “not practicing the truth.”

THE FIRST FEATURE IS SELF-DECEPTION

The middle voice of PSEUDOMAI paints a grim picture of believers who have been wooed by the false teachers and have embraced their new understanding of the Christian Way of Life. These charlatans of evil, have promised a lifestyle free of concern for sin. This has appealed to some in the flock who join them in their hedonistic lifestyle. John places the responsibility directly on the believer. You chose to follow them. The law of volitional accountability says:

If you have committed a sin, even if you are unaware that it is a sin, you are still held liable, guilty, because of the law of volitional accountability. If it is an overt sin, you chose to do it. If it is a mental attitude sin, you chose to think it. If it is a sin of the tongue, you chose to say it. There are no exceptions. God does not expect me to live a sinless life, but He does expect that when He convicts us of sin, we confess it not cover it up.

You have left the path of truth and light, no longer concerned about sin, and you have embraced the deception--you can walk with God without feeling the guilt that comes with sinning or the need for repentance. They promise you a walk with God free from the godly sorrow that comes when we sin, 2 Corinthians 7:9-11.

John is sending out a loud siren-warning to all the churches, watch out for false teaching for it can lead you down the path of darkness. Does this not highlight the importance of the teaching of the Word of God? If you are a Christian and you are reading this study, be informed that you have the Truth; Bible Doctrine, what the Bible teaches, is in your possession. You are responsible for knowing the Word and what you believe should line up with the Scripture or your human viewpoint thinking will lead you down a path of darkness, just as it did these believers.

They were taught by John that sin separates us from fellowship with God, but they no longer held that view. Their unbiblical thinking was that personal sin did not interfere with their walk with God. The Biblical view is that sin in any category interrupts our fellowship with God. When any pastor or theology ⁴, gnostic or other, minimizes the dangers of personal sin in the life of a believer, they fail their congregation. For now, no teaching that makes us comfortable about sinning glorifies God. The remanence of Adam’s sinful trend in us, when active, grieves the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30) and quenches Him (1 Thessalonians 5:19). It takes an enormous toll on us spiritually. ⁵

THE SECOND FEATURE IS REJECTING THE TRUTH

The article before the word “truth” indicates John is talking about “what is believed—The Truth.” One of the ways we reject the truth is to believe in something that is in opposition to it. The oral message which these believers received from John was as much Biblical truth as what became inscripturated in the writings of the Apostles. The doctrine taught by John about the Christian Way of Life was rejected, and the new norm replaced it. This hedonistic, lascivious lifestyle that resulted led the believer on a downward plunge into darkness. ⁶ Instead of conforming to Christ, they were conforming to the world. John will address this in a future passage:

1 John 2:15–17

15) Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

16) For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.

17) The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.

There are some common features found in the lifestyle of darkness. Don’t forget, the people who are walking in darkness involves both believers and unbelievers. In the studies below, both groups will be represented. It is a benefit to us if we learn about some of the significant principles that reveal and reflect darkness. Why? We are children of light, and we are to reflect this light. For instance, Paul wrote:

Ephesians 5:8

for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light.

Case Studies of Those Walking In Darkness

1. The Case of The Religious Pharisees

The reason we start with the religious establishment in our Lord’s day is that they are a clear pattern of religious unbelievers who claim to walk with God, but in reality, they were walking in darkness. Here is an example of people who are lying to themselves and not practicing the truth (found in God’s Word). Keep in mind they had the same Bible and rearing under the law of Moses that Jesus had, but their character and conduct are glaringly different. The Jewish religious establishment in Jesus' day claimed they were following Jehovah and fellowshipping with Him by keeping the law. This was their claim, and from our Lord’s words, specific themes begin to emerge. Our Lord repeatedly spoke about their spiritual condition, and from Him, we gain a knowledge of what walking in darkness looks like.

We wonder how it is possible for a group of people longing to see their Messiah, and when He arrived, they rejected Him? When we read the Gospels, we get to see our Lord, and like a magnet, He draws us to Himself. We love Him, but they hated Him. What causes these two different responses? Our Lord untangles this for us and shows us this mystery in Matthew twenty-three. It reveals three facts about their conduct and which are repeatedly found in the case studies:

First, He States That Their Shameful Resistance To Him Was Due To Their Pride, Matthew 23:1-11. For instance:

Matthew 23:5

“But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments.

Their promenading lifestyle promoted themselves, not God. Jesus said they were driven, that is motivated, by pride,” to be seen by men.” The infinitive connotes purpose, and Jesus says their religious activity was a mere external going through the motions so that their ego could be satisfied. They wanted to feel important. This was their motivation. They wanted to be exalted above others. Jesus said, “ALL their works, not some,” was motivated by pride. His word is THEAOMAI—to be a spectacle, and from the noun, we get our word theatre. It means to put on a show. They are actors playing the part of a Holy and Godly person. Our Lord calls them HYPOCRITES. In the Greek theater, the actors, hypocrites, played a part, masquerading themselves on the stage.

His proof was they broaden their phylacteries. A phylactery is a leather pouch with some Scripture written inside of it. It contained four Bible passages: Exodus 13:1-10; Exodus 13:11-16; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Deuteronomy 11:13-21. ⁷ What is so problematic with that action? Don’t we carry our Bibles to Church? Well, let’s take a look. They would strap this pouch on their forehead, right between their eyes or they would strap it on their left arm above their elbow so it would be close to their heart. They put it on their arm or head so that it could be outwardly seen. God says He wants His Word to be on the inside, Psalm 119:11.

This was a part of their parade uniform, and when they left their houses, they were on display. “Look at me, see how deeply spiritual I am.” It amounted to a sort of good luck charm like people wearing a rabbit's foot or St. Christopher's medal. Religion is filled with superstitions. Christians bring their Bible to church because they like to follow along as the message is preached. They are like those early Berean's who want to make sure what is being taught, lines up with the Scripture. I love the Berean attitude. Sadly, some take their Bible to church simply to be seen carrying a Bible. They want to be seen as deeply spiritual. It is a part of their Sunday’s dress up clothing. How many have a Bible in their home where it sits in a prominent place unopened? This activity is an outward show and has no spiritual value.

They broadened their phylacteries by adding the number of straps to hold the pouch. They finally ended up with seven straps. Why did they choose seven? It is the number of perfection. They were striving for perfection. The Pharisees failed to see that knowing the Scriptures was what God wanted them to pursue, not wearing the Scriptures. Wearing it on your arm does not mean a thing. They emphasized the external, God stresses the heart, Matthew 4:4; 2 Peter 2:2; 2 Peter 3:18. Now our Lord was not condemning the custom but the attitude which motivated it. The principle is this: Their shameful rejection of the Lord Jesus Christ was due to their pride, Matthew 23:1-11.

What do we know about pride?

1. The word pride in the Scripture, both Old and New Testaments, is most often portrayed as a sin. It is a mental attitude sin. One lexicographer declared that pride “figures as the very root and essence of sin.” ⁸ In our passage, it is pride that has shaped the character and conduct of the Pharisees.

2. Pride may be defined as an inflated view of one’s self, looking at life through a self-centered lens. Pride is an elevated view of one’s self, abilities, and possessions.

3. Pride is the opposite of humility, which is a Christ-like attitude we are to emulate, Matthew 23:12; 1 Peter 5: 4.

4. Pride is related to another word, “arrogance.” Arrogance is prolonged pride. It is a deep-seated pride. It is a dominating influence infecting all that one is and does. An arrogant person exaggerates their own importance and emphasizes themselves instead of God.

5. Pride never stands alone. It thinks. It speaks. It feels; it has emotion. It makes choices; it decides. If pride goes unchecked, it will engulf the whole person; every facet of the personality will be influenced. Pride motivates human behavior. It impels people into action--to speak, act, think the way they do. When a mental attitude sin of pride becomes a motivator of behavior, it dominates the person.

6. Pride comes before a fall, Proverbs 16:18. When you trip, you lose control of your body.

For instance, Satan did not wake up one morning filled with pride and instantly reject His Creator. It was more subtle than that. He had a twinge of pride. Then a little more as the angels celebrated his unequaled beauty and wisdom. Then, after some time, the pride that he felt in his position; he was the greatest of all the angels, superior in intellect, superior in authority, superior in power, superior in wisdom, took control of him. Habitual pride is blind arrogance. How was it possible for Satan to think he could defeat God? How is it possible that he could overlook God’s Omnipotence? Pride! Pride! Pride! See Isaiah 14:12-14.

This illustration highlights the fact that pride is dangerous. If the greatest creature to ever be created by God fell prey to his pride, how much more vulnerable we are to the sin of pride. Let’s face it; we are our own worst enemies because of pride.

7. Pride is involved in the defense mechanisms employed by humans. A defense mechanism is a self-protecting way of dealing with an attack upon ourselves. On almost every page of Scripture, we have people dealing with problems by shifting blame onto others, justifying themselves, rationalizing, denial, sublimation, projection, all to protect oneself from being wrong or at fault. “Lord, it is not my fault that I sinned against you; it is the woman you gave me,” Genesis 3:12. In other words, it was God’s fault. Way to go Adam! From that moment until now, we are born with Adam’s sinful trend, and we would cover our sin rather than confess it; that is, to simply admit we are wrong.

This leads us to the second fact our Lord brings out in the life and conduct of the religious establishment.

Secondly, Their Pride Blinded Them to The Truth

The downward path into darkness begins with pride and morphs into Blind Arrogance. What is Blind Arrogance? It is a spiritual condition in which the person cannot see they are wrong. What we find in this passage is that the Pharisee’s inflated pride blinded them to the truth. Jesus called them “blind” five times in Matthew 23. Of course, this is a metaphor. They were not physically blind. Instead, their pride hardened, becoming arrogance, and this blinded them to the Truth.

They rejected our Lord’s message. They said to themselves, “we can’t be mistaken.” “Our way is righteous; He is wrong.” This was their attitude, and it shaped their actions toward the Lord Jesus. In their self-righteous pride, they were totally correct and morally superior to everyone, including our Lord Jesus Christ. It just never occurred to them that they could be wrong.

When the people turned to Christ and began to follow Him, it cut deeply into their pride. He offended them, and they hated Him. They lifted themselves up with pride, and their inflated view of themselves blinded them from seeing Jesus as Messiah. What a warning to us this passage brings. Watch out for pride! Pride will ruin you. It could put you on the road to ruin and into a condition of the heart called: BLIND ARROGANCE. We will see this concept in other case studies as well. This leads us to our third fact found in this passage.

Thirdly, They Came Under the Influence of Satan.

When Jesus said to the Pharisees, “you are not following God, you are following Satan,” they went ballistic. First, no one ever talked to them that way, how dare He? When their proud and arrogant lifestyle came under attack, they struck back. When you are self-righteous, you will retaliate against anyone who poses a threat to you. Rather than repenting, which required them to admit their entire system of theology was in error, they rejected the message of the Lord Jesus, and in so doing, they rejected their Messiah and their salvation.

Matthew 22:29

But Jesus answered and said to them, “You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures nor the power of God.

For example, they believed they were saved by good works; that is, keeping the law. Their system of religious-good-works-for-salvation developed within them a growing pride in themselves. Their righteousness, gained by KEEPING the law, blinded them to the truth of salvation. Jesus said:

Matthew 5:20

“For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Jesus spoke out, and it was clear to all that heard Him, the religious establishment was not saved. They were not going to heaven. In fact, Jesus said, “that everyone who followed them was bound for hell. They were bound for hell, not heaven.

Matthew 23:15

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.

When the gospel was given to them, it was antithetical to everything they believed. Satan had been sowing his lies in anticipation of the Lord’s arrival so that they were blinded to the true gospel, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shall be saved.” When the Lord offers them salvation, they rejected it. They didn’t need to be saved; their good works saved them, see John 8:31-59. At the end of John eight, we see that they were willing to violate the law, “thou shall not murder – Exodus 20:13,” to deal with that madman, Jesus.

John 8:40

“But as it is, you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth (the true gospel), which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do.

Our Lord associates the behavior of the religious establishment in His day as motivated by Satan.

John 8:44

“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

These three factors are found over and over again in the Bible:

1. The sin of pride is sown in the life.

2. Prolonged pride takes control leading to Blind Arrogance.

3. The unbeliever or the believer comes under the influence of Satan, or according to John, walks in darkness. Darkness is the realm of Satan.

1 John 5:19

We know that we are of God and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one (Satan).

2. The Case of Gentile Unbelievers.

2 Corinthians 4:3,4

3) And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing,

4) in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

Satan is called here” the god of this world.” What is the veil that Satan casts over the eyes of the unsaved that blinds them to the gospel? The unsaved have concluded that they do not need to be saved because their good deeds exceed the bad things they may have said or done. The gospel says we are sinners in need of salvation, and we must look to the Lord Jesus Christ to save us. Satan sows his false gospel, a gospel of works, throughout our world. Many have been deceived. Many believe they can be saved on their own merits. How tragic! Yet all three facts are found in this passage. Pride in their abilities. Pride in their good works. Pride in their efforts. Pride through good works has developed into blind arrogance. They need salvation, but they are too arrogant to admit they are sinners [blind arrogance]. Paul declares unequivocally that Satan is involved.

3. The Case of Christians

Paul warned the church in ordaining men into the ministry because of this pattern:

1 Timothy 3:6

and not a new convert, so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil.

Again, all three facts are present in this case study. The reason we do not ordain new believers into the ministry is that the pastors are looked up to by the congregation. They are deeply loved and respected. They have a position of great authority and power. Spiritual maturity is necessary to resist the temptation of becoming conceited.

The verb in this passage is TUPHOO [5187]. Tuphoo means “to be wrapped in smoke.” The root of this verb is TUPH meaning “smoke, smolder.” Here is the picture; we are all seated around a campfire toasting marshmallows. A strong wind comes, and the smoke shifts, and we are engulfed in it. Our eyes begin to sting, and we are temporarily blinded by the smoke, i.e., Blind Arrogance. Finally, the new convert operating under Blind Arrogance fails. He falls under the influence of Satan. In fact, he follows the same path that the prince of darkness took in his rebellion against God. It does not end well for the new candidate to the pastorate who lacks the spiritual maturity not to fall into the snares of the devil unless someone rebukes and restores him. This is very sad. This is another passage regarding Christians walking in darkness.

Galatians 6:3

For if anyone thinks [arrogance is a mental attitude sin], he is something when he is nothing [to have an inflated view of yourself], he deceives himself.

Here is a case of an arrogant believer who thinks “he is something.” We all think about ourselves, which is normal, but this person thinks about themselves more than they have a right too. Self-deception is involved in arrogance. When we think we are walking in the light and we are not, that is self-deception. We are living a lie. We are not practicing the truth.

There is a great illustration of this in the life of Billy Graham. Dr. Graham was on Larry King Live and was asked how he felt being on the list of the ten most important men in the century. “Larry, I don't understand it,” he replied. I am thankful that people think of me like this, but my success is God-given. l am just a poor sinner saved by His grace. “

In the case of the Gnostics that John was challenging, they altered the gospel and made it in their image and likeness. They were all about knowledge. Sin was not important. Instead, it is the pursuit of knowledge. John rebuffed them. The key to the Christian way of Life is acquired by a daily sustain walk with God in the light as he is in the light. This requires us to address sin by seeking God’s forgiveness and cleansing. This is the solution, and in the next article, we will examine “The Amazing Cure.”

ENDNOTES

¹ Review the Doctrine of Darkness, Click here.

² See footnote #9, Exegesis of 1 John 1:6.

³ See the previous study on Gnostic doctrines in Topic #1 Introduction. Click here

⁴ See the “The Awful Consequences of sin” in Topic#18 The First False Claim – Part 2.

⁵ Sin in the new theology is diminished for it no longer believes we are sinners saved by grace, but now we should see ourselves as simply Christians who sin. Sin is minimized. See article by Moore, D. G., & Pyne, R. A. (1996). Neil Anderson’s Approach to the Spiritual Life. Bibliotheca Sacra, 153, 75.

⁶ Asceticism versus Lasciviousness

When you study Gnosticism, you find yourself mystified at how these individuals ended up following two diametrically different lifestyle paths. One group of Gnostics pursued asceticism. Asceticism is a futile attempt to gain the approbation of God through extreme self-denial. Many Christians were susceptible to ascetic Gnosticism because of the guilt they carried for participating in personal sin.

Colossians 2:21

These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body [extreme asceticism], but are of no value against fleshly [sin nature] indulgence.

They saw the body as evil, and therefore, the way of life that mistreats the body was how to achieve holiness.

A second group, starting from the same premise -- the body is evil, pursued a lifestyle of debauchery. There immoral and perverse conduct came from the same philosophical root. They said the body is evil and filled with desires, which we would call lusts. However, the spirit of a person is good --the inner person, yet that person is in conflict with the flesh. They drew upon Paul's words to the Galatians and Romans:

Galatians 5:17

For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.

Romans 7:23

but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members.

Romans 7:24

Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?

What was their solution to this problem? If we fulfill the lustful desires of the flesh, we remove the conflict. This idea led many of the Gnostic down a path of lascivious ruin. Lasciviousness means to have a lifestyle of immoral and excessive behavior, 2 Corinthians 12:21; Ephesians 4:19. Their attitude was, "why fight it!" Two different lifestyles. On the one hand, a life of indulgence and, on the other hand, a life of isolation from the world.

⁷ Phylactery, In Baker encyclopedia of the Bible (Vol. 2, p. 1693). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.

⁸ A reasonable or justifiable self-respect; or improper and excessive self-esteem known as conceit or arrogance. The apostle Paul expresses a positive kind of pride when speaking of confidence in Christians (2 Corinthians 7:4) or of strength in the Lord (2 Corinthians 12:5, 9). However, it is the latter sinful meaning of pride, which most frequently appears in the Bible, both in the OT and the NT. Elwell, W. A., & Beitzel, B. J. (1988). Pride. In Baker encyclopedia of the Bible (Vol. 2, p. 1752). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.