1 John 2:9-11 - Still in the darkness

2:9

God created us in His image. For everything we see in the Bible there is both the vertical and the horizontal, ie our relationship with God, and our relationship with each other. We were created out of love, and we were created to love. Moreover, as we will see later in this letter, God is love. So if we claim to know God, to be in light, but hate our brother or sister then we are either deceived, or are deceiving. Such a person is still in darkness.

2:10

Conversely, if we do love our brothers and sisters then we are indeed in the light. Now there are many things that might cause a person to hate someone else. That person may have done something wrong against you. We may be greedy, or want to gain some other advantage over the other person.  There may be some ethnic or other reason for hating them. But if we come into the light, all these reasons vanish, they are consumed by the light. Through the cross we receive forgiveness, so if we are in the light we will forgive others. If we are in the light we seek the wellbeing of others above ourselves. Indeed, we have full confidence in God to provide for us, so we do not act selfishly. If we are in the light we know that all men are equal, we know that we were all created by God, and that Christ died for us all, so there can be no reasons whatsoever for ethnic hatred. If we are in the light we will love one another.

2:11

If we hate our fellow Christians then it is a sure sign that we are in the darkness. The fruit if being in the light of Christ is that we will love fellow believers. Indeed, if we are in the light of Christ it is the only rational thing to do, nothing else makes any sense. Darkness blinds. If we are full of hate then we will not be thinking rationally, and certainly not in a godly manner.