1 John 1:5 announces the core message that Jesus revealed: God’s very nature is Light. God is utterly pure, good, and true. There is not even the smallest trace of darkness—falsehood, evil, or corruption—in Him. This truth becomes the foundation for understanding what genuine fellowship with God requires.
In 1 John 1:5, John proclaims the central message he received from Jesus—that God is Light, meaning He is perfectly holy, good, and true, and that no darkness exists in Him at all.
In the opening of 1 John, the author, John the Apostle, accomplished two things:
John grounded his message in his own personal experience with Jesus "we have heard and seen with our eyes" (1 John 1:1), and "we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life" (1 John 1:2), and "what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also" (1 John 1:3a).
And John presented two purposes for this letter: “so that you too may have fellowship with us” (1 John 1:3b), and “these things we write so that our joy may be made complete” (1 John 1:4).
Now, starting in 1 John 1:5, we move past the preamble and into the main body of the letter. John plainly states the central message of the letter:
This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all (v 5).
The central message that John wants to communicate in this letter is thatGod is Light. This truth undergirds everything that John has to say. Every call to confession, obedience, and fellowship in the letter flows from this foundational truth.
THIS IS THE MESSAGE WE HAVE HEARD AND ANNOUNCE TO YOU…
John stresses the significance of this theme that God is Light in the first half of verse 5 when he writes: This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you.
This lead-in also firmly connects the truth that God is light to John’s testimony.
As was mentioned in the commentary for 1 John 1:2-4, John uses the pronoun we when referring to himself as the author. Using we instead of “I” minimizes his individual importance, and it adds the credibility to the testimony, because we refers to and draws in the testimony of the other apostles and witnesses who have also proclaimed this message from the beginning.
John’s credibility was previously established in the letter’s preface. John’s credibility comes from the fact that he was with Jesus “in the beginning” (1 John 1:1a) of His earthly ministry as one of the twelve disciples. The message is among the things which John saw, heard, and looked at during his years with Jesus (1 John 1:1).
The message John wishes to convey does not originate from himself or any other human. It originated fromHim. That is, the message originated from Jesus who is God.
It is important that the message was fromGod because one of the themes of this letter is that teachings that originate with humans are false and lead to sin and death, but the Gospel message which is from God yields eternal life.
This is true in terms of whether someone receives the new birth or if the one who believes encounters it in their life experience. In this letter, John addressed believers. As we will see in 1 John 2:1, he addresses his audience as “my little children.” And in the previous section John stated that “our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ (1 John 1:3).
John heard and learned this message from Jesus. John is passing along the message he heard from Himto you (John’s readers). And the reason John is proclaiming this message of eternal life (1 John 1:2b) is because he wants you to have fellowship with God. Eternal life is given as a gift to all who believe (John 3:14-15). Eternal life is also a reward as a richness of life experience for those who walk in the obedience of faith in Christ. A major manifestation of that reward is “fellowship” with God and with one another.
The Greek term that is translated as “fellowship” throughout 1 John (1 John 1:3, 1:6, 1:7) is “koinonia.” Koinonia describes “community,” “friendship,” and/or “partnership.”
In this letter, John is explaining to believers (1 John 2:12-14) who already have the Gift of Eternal Life how they can have fellowship with God and experience eternal life to the fullest.
…THAT GOD IS LIGHTAND IN HIM THERE IS NO DARKNESS AT ALL.
The core truth that anyone must understand if they want to experience fellowship with God and to partner with Him is that: God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all (v 5b).
This key truth is first stated positively: God is Light.
The connection between God and light is found throughout the Old Testament. Here are a few examples:
"Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light." (Genesis 1:3)
"The LORD was going before them in a pillar of cloud by day to lead them on the way, and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night." (Exodus 13:21)
"For You are my lamp, O LORD; And the LORD illumines my darkness." (2 Samuel 22:29)
"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." (Psalm 119:105)
"Even the darkness is not dark to You, And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You." (Psalm 139:12)
"The people who walk in darkness will see a great light; Those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them." (Isaiah 9:2)
"Though I fall I will rise; Though I dwell in darkness, the LORD is a light for me." (Micah 7:8)
The Bible sometimes uses Light as a metaphor for the Messiah (Isaiah 9:2, 49:6). Thus, when Jesus said: "I am the Light of the World" (John 8:12a), He was claiming to be the Messiah of the World.
John uses Light as a symbol for truth, goodness, and God’s holiness.
Light, like truth, illuminates reality and reveals what is there. (John 3:20-21)
Light describes God’s inextinguishable brilliant power and holy radiance. (John 1:5)
In the context of 1 John, Light is used as a description of God’s essence: His holy character which radiates grace (goodness) and truth. Everything about God is pure, righteous, life-giving, and true. Thus, when John says God is Light, he is describing the beautiful wholeness of God’s moral perfection, His unwavering goodness, and His faithful truthfulness—qualities that never dim.
This matches the portrait of Jesus in the Gospel of John, who is "full of grace and truth" (John 1:14) and who reveals the Father perfectly (John 1:18). God’s Light exposes reality as it truly is, not to condemn but to invite fellowship and healing (John 3:17-21). "He who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life" (John 8:12b).
The Light brings clarity, goodness, and restoration to all who walk in it. God invites and enables us to walk in the Light with and through His Son Jesus (John 1:9). And as the Messiah, Jesus is "the Light of the World" (John 8:12a). It is only through Jesus (the Light) that we can possess and then experience eternal life. It is through the death of Jesus we gain the gift of eternal life (John 3:14-15). It is through walking in His resurrection power through the Spirit that we can gain the experience of eternal life (Romans 6:21-22).
In 1 John 1:5, John is describing God’s character when he writes: God is Light. He does this to establish a sharp contrast between Light and darkness. John is not making some kind of pantheistic statement, like saying that "light is God." God is not any created thing. Rather, John uses this metaphor to draw a distinction that illustrates what it means to walk in fellowship with God.
In this letter, John will go on to demonstrate that the main action of the Light is love (1 John 4:7-21). Just as God is Light, so also: "God is love" (1 John 4:8b).
"God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him." (1 John 4:16b)
And the Light of God yields love:
"The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him." (1 John 2:10)
John then reinforces his claim God is Light, by describing the same truth in negative terms: and in Him there is no darkness at all. This will set the stage for the application of this theme that God is Light, namely that believers cannot walk in fellowship with God while also having fellowship with darkness (1 John 1:6). We cannot love the lusts of this world or hate our brother while at the same walking in the love of God (1 John 2:15-16, 4:20).
John is so emphatic about there being no darkness at all in God that he states it with a double negative. A double negative is where there are two negative expressions in the same sentence. In English, a double negative is considered a grammatical error because the negatives appear to cancel each other out. But in Greek, the language in which this letter was originally written, double negatives are allowed. When a Greek sentence includes a double negative, it adds extra oomph to what is being rejected or denied.
In the second part of John’s claim the term that is translated at all is in the negative. This word literally means “none.” Here is how the double negative reads in the second expression of verse 5: "in Him there is no darkness—none at all!" John uses this negative expression to demonstrate how darkness has no fellowship with God.
Darkness is the opposite of Light, or said another way: darkness is the absence of Light.
Darkness, in this metaphor, represents sin and anything contrary to God’s character. It is the lusts of the world that lead to division and separation from God’s design, which is death.
In so far as Light is a metaphor for God and life with God, darkness is a contrasting metaphor for being separated from God, living life apart from Him.
As Light depicts God’s truth, goodness, and holiness, so does darkness depict falsehood, corruption, and sin. And just as there is no darkness at all in Him, so John will later express: "and in Him there is no sin" (1 John 3:5b).
"Sin" is walking apart from God and His design. To say "in Him there is no sin" is to say that God never waivers from being God; He is always the same (Hebrews 13:8). To walk in sin is to walk apart from God’s design.
Light is also an image of experiencing eternal life and joy with God through walking in His design. Darkness is an image of death and misery without God, walking apart from His design. God designed humans to reign together in harmony with Him, leading through serving others. Jesus displayed this attitude of servant leadership and John observed His example (Matthew 20:28).
In this letter, John will go onto to equate the darkness with the ways of the world when he writes: "the darkness is passing away" (1 John 2:8), and then a short while later, he says: "the world is passing away, and also its lusts" (1 John 2:17a).
And just as John will demonstrate that the main action that Light produces is love, he also will show how the main action that the darkness (Light’s opposite) produces is hatred. Hatred is the opposite of love. God’s design is for unity. Love breeds unity but hatred divides. It is a seed that produces exploitation and violence.
The world is full of darkness and hatred.
"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." (1 John 2:16)
The word’s dark lusts and pride leads us to exploit and manipulate others for selfish gain. It promises us gain through our exploitation, but actually delivers destruction (Romans 1:24, 26, 28). Envy places us at the center rather than God, and leads to hatred and exploitation. We cannot be walking in such darkness while also walking in the Light; the two are mutually exclusive.
The theme that God is only Light will underscore John’s assertions that we cannot experience both at the same time. Darkness cannot coexist with Light. Light destroys darkness.
The darkness of the world fosters hatred:
"But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes." (1 John 2:11)
It is because God is Light without any darkness, and the world is full of darkness, that John says and then exhorts his readers: "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" (1 John 2:15).
"If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen." (1 John 4:20)
John sets all of these applications up by stating the core truth and message of 1 John 1:5. By affirming the positive God is Light and then denying the negative and in Him there is no darkness at all, John is stressing the point that Light and darkness have no fellowship together.
Light and darkness cannot exist together in this framework. Saying that God has no darkness at all is to say that darkness is not of Him. Light casts out darkness. And darkness cannot exist wherever light shines. Light produces love. The darkness produces hatred.
Believers must continuously decide between fellowship with the Light and fellowship with the darkness: "No one can serve two masters" (Matthew 6:24a). If anyone wishes to have fellowship with God, he must leave the darkness and choose to walk in the Light by serving one another in love. This is the process of being sanctified in our daily walk, which is God’s will for us (1 Thessalonians 4:3). To walk in fellowship with God requires walking in the Light as He Himself is in the Light. Walking in the Light is the same thing as walking in fellowship with Him.
To have fellowship with the Light means to trust and follow God and to walk in His ways by faith. It means trusting that His ways are best even during difficulty and suffering. It means continuing to trust God and continuing to obey even when it would be easy to disobey to acquire temporary gain or relief.
Jesus promises great reward for those who endure with Him (Matthew 19:28-29, 24:45-46, 25:21, 25:34-36). He encourages His disciples to diligently seek His kingdom and to enter by the narrow gate (Matthew 6:33, 7:13-14). While the faithful will be rewarded by being given a seat at the Messianic banquet, the unfaithful sons of the kingdom will be denied fellowship and cast out (Matthew 7:21-23, 8:11, 25:30).
The picture Jesus uses in Matthew 8:11-12 is of an evening banquet where faithful Gentiles (like the Roman centurion Jesus commended for his faith) will be honored in His kingdom by being seated at the head table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The head table would be situated at the center of the tent, and have the greatest light. The “sons of the kingdom” who did not exhibit such faith will not even get to attend the banquet; their place will be the "outer darkness." An application of this parable is that believers who walk in the world’s darkness will gain the rewards of the world (darkness) and miss the rewards of the kingdom (light).
John teaches a consistent message throughout 1 John about having fellowship with God and enjoying the fullness of eternal life. Both Jesus, in the passages about rewards in the messianic banquet, and John, in this epistle, are describing the Prize of Eternal Life. The Prize is different than the Gift of Eternal Life.
The Gift of Eternal Life is freely offered and received by grace through faith in Jesus Christ as God’s Son and the Messiah (John 3:16,Ephesians 2:8-9). The Gift includes being born into God’s eternal family and not being condemned to eternal separation from God for our sins. The Gift of Eternal Life is entirely dependent on the finished work of Christ on the cross and His resurrection. It depends not on our deeds. All sins—past, present, and future—were nailed to the cross with Christ (Colossians 2:14).
The Prize of Eternal Life is rewarded to believers (who have already received the Gift) for choosing to follow Jesus by faith to overcome life’s trials in His strength and for His namesake. The Prize includes possessing our inheritance, which is to enter into and take our divinely appointed positions reserved for us in God’s kingdom. When we possess our inheritance through a walk of faith, overcoming as He overcame, we inherit our divine destiny (Revelation 3:21).
But the Prize is not limited just to the age to come. The Prize includes enjoying fellowship with God in this life by faith. A substantial part of the Prize is to enjoy the peace of Christ (Philippians 4:6-7). It is to enjoy walking in fellowship with Christ and with one another, finding unity rather than division with others (Galatians 5:13-15).
The Gift is received once and for all the moment a person believes in Jesus. The Prize must be chosen and pursued each day (Galatians 5:16-17). John is mostly writing about the Prize of Eternal Life in this epistle because he is telling believers how they can maximize their joy and enhance their experience of eternal life through fellowship with God.
If we are to experience this fellowship in this life, it must be regularly chosen. We must choose to live and walk in the Light and not in darkness if we are to have fellowship with God and those who are in His kingdom.
And the core reality that frames this choice is that God is Light and in Him there is no darkness at all. All that follows from John’s epistle flows from thismessage: God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.
1 John 1:5
God Is Light
5 This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.
Set to dark mode
1 John 1:5 meaning
In 1 John 1:5, John proclaims the central message he received from Jesus—that God is Light, meaning He is perfectly holy, good, and true, and that no darkness exists in Him at all.
In the opening of 1 John, the author, John the Apostle, accomplished two things:
Now, starting in 1 John 1:5, we move past the preamble and into the main body of the letter. John plainly states the central message of the letter:
This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all (v 5).
The central message that John wants to communicate in this letter is that God is Light. This truth undergirds everything that John has to say. Every call to confession, obedience, and fellowship in the letter flows from this foundational truth.
THIS IS THE MESSAGE WE HAVE HEARD AND ANNOUNCE TO YOU…
John stresses the significance of this theme that God is Light in the first half of verse 5 when he writes: This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you.
This lead-in also firmly connects the truth that God is light to John’s testimony.
As was mentioned in the commentary for 1 John 1:2-4, John uses the pronoun we when referring to himself as the author. Using we instead of “I” minimizes his individual importance, and it adds the credibility to the testimony, because we refers to and draws in the testimony of the other apostles and witnesses who have also proclaimed this message from the beginning.
John’s credibility was previously established in the letter’s preface. John’s credibility comes from the fact that he was with Jesus “in the beginning” (1 John 1:1a) of His earthly ministry as one of the twelve disciples. The message is among the things which John saw, heard, and looked at during his years with Jesus (1 John 1:1).
The message John wishes to convey does not originate from himself or any other human. It originated from Him. That is, the message originated from Jesus who is God.
It is important that the message was from God because one of the themes of this letter is that teachings that originate with humans are false and lead to sin and death, but the Gospel message which is from God yields eternal life.
This is true in terms of whether someone receives the new birth or if the one who believes encounters it in their life experience. In this letter, John addressed believers. As we will see in 1 John 2:1, he addresses his audience as “my little children.” And in the previous section John stated that “our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ (1 John 1:3).
John heard and learned this message from Jesus. John is passing along the message he heard from Him to you (John’s readers). And the reason John is proclaiming this message of eternal life (1 John 1:2b) is because he wants you to have fellowship with God. Eternal life is given as a gift to all who believe (John 3:14-15). Eternal life is also a reward as a richness of life experience for those who walk in the obedience of faith in Christ. A major manifestation of that reward is “fellowship” with God and with one another.
The Greek term that is translated as “fellowship” throughout 1 John (1 John 1:3, 1:6, 1:7) is “koinonia.” Koinonia describes “community,” “friendship,” and/or “partnership.”
In this letter, John is explaining to believers (1 John 2:12-14) who already have the Gift of Eternal Life how they can have fellowship with God and experience eternal life to the fullest.
…THAT GOD IS LIGHT AND IN HIM THERE IS NO DARKNESS AT ALL.
The core truth that anyone must understand if they want to experience fellowship with God and to partner with Him is that: God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all (v 5b).
This key truth is first stated positively: God is Light.
The connection between God and light is found throughout the Old Testament. Here are a few examples:
(Genesis 1:3)
(Exodus 13:21)
(2 Samuel 22:29)
(Psalm 119:105)
(Psalm 139:12)
(Isaiah 9:2)
(Micah 7:8)
The Bible sometimes uses Light as a metaphor for the Messiah (Isaiah 9:2, 49:6). Thus, when Jesus said: "I am the Light of the World" (John 8:12a), He was claiming to be the Messiah of the World.
John uses Light as a symbol for truth, goodness, and God’s holiness.
(John 3:20-21)
(John 1:4)
(John 1:5)
In the context of 1 John, Light is used as a description of God’s essence: His holy character which radiates grace (goodness) and truth. Everything about God is pure, righteous, life-giving, and true. Thus, when John says God is Light, he is describing the beautiful wholeness of God’s moral perfection, His unwavering goodness, and His faithful truthfulness—qualities that never dim.
This matches the portrait of Jesus in the Gospel of John, who is "full of grace and truth" (John 1:14) and who reveals the Father perfectly (John 1:18). God’s Light exposes reality as it truly is, not to condemn but to invite fellowship and healing (John 3:17-21). "He who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life" (John 8:12b).
The Light brings clarity, goodness, and restoration to all who walk in it. God invites and enables us to walk in the Light with and through His Son Jesus (John 1:9). And as the Messiah, Jesus is "the Light of the World" (John 8:12a). It is only through Jesus (the Light) that we can possess and then experience eternal life. It is through the death of Jesus we gain the gift of eternal life (John 3:14-15). It is through walking in His resurrection power through the Spirit that we can gain the experience of eternal life (Romans 6:21-22).
In 1 John 1:5, John is describing God’s character when he writes: God is Light. He does this to establish a sharp contrast between Light and darkness. John is not making some kind of pantheistic statement, like saying that "light is God." God is not any created thing. Rather, John uses this metaphor to draw a distinction that illustrates what it means to walk in fellowship with God.
In this letter, John will go on to demonstrate that the main action of the Light is love (1 John 4:7-21). Just as God is Light, so also: "God is love" (1 John 4:8b).
"God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him."
(1 John 4:16b)
And the Light of God yields love:
"The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him."
(1 John 2:10)
John then reinforces his claim God is Light, by describing the same truth in negative terms: and in Him there is no darkness at all. This will set the stage for the application of this theme that God is Light, namely that believers cannot walk in fellowship with God while also having fellowship with darkness (1 John 1:6). We cannot love the lusts of this world or hate our brother while at the same walking in the love of God (1 John 2:15-16, 4:20).
John is so emphatic about there being no darkness at all in God that he states it with a double negative. A double negative is where there are two negative expressions in the same sentence. In English, a double negative is considered a grammatical error because the negatives appear to cancel each other out. But in Greek, the language in which this letter was originally written, double negatives are allowed. When a Greek sentence includes a double negative, it adds extra oomph to what is being rejected or denied.
In the second part of John’s claim the term that is translated at all is in the negative. This word literally means “none.” Here is how the double negative reads in the second expression of verse 5: "in Him there is no darkness—none at all!" John uses this negative expression to demonstrate how darkness has no fellowship with God.
Darkness is the opposite of Light, or said another way: darkness is the absence of Light.
Darkness, in this metaphor, represents sin and anything contrary to God’s character. It is the lusts of the world that lead to division and separation from God’s design, which is death.
In so far as Light is a metaphor for God and life with God, darkness is a contrasting metaphor for being separated from God, living life apart from Him.
As Light depicts God’s truth, goodness, and holiness, so does darkness depict falsehood, corruption, and sin. And just as there is no darkness at all in Him, so John will later express: "and in Him there is no sin" (1 John 3:5b).
"Sin" is walking apart from God and His design. To say "in Him there is no sin" is to say that God never waivers from being God; He is always the same (Hebrews 13:8). To walk in sin is to walk apart from God’s design.
Light is also an image of experiencing eternal life and joy with God through walking in His design. Darkness is an image of death and misery without God, walking apart from His design. God designed humans to reign together in harmony with Him, leading through serving others. Jesus displayed this attitude of servant leadership and John observed His example (Matthew 20:28).
In this letter, John will go onto to equate the darkness with the ways of the world when he writes: "the darkness is passing away" (1 John 2:8), and then a short while later, he says: "the world is passing away, and also its lusts" (1 John 2:17a).
And just as John will demonstrate that the main action that Light produces is love, he also will show how the main action that the darkness (Light’s opposite) produces is hatred. Hatred is the opposite of love. God’s design is for unity. Love breeds unity but hatred divides. It is a seed that produces exploitation and violence.
The world is full of darkness and hatred.
"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."
(1 John 2:16)
The word’s dark lusts and pride leads us to exploit and manipulate others for selfish gain. It promises us gain through our exploitation, but actually delivers destruction (Romans 1:24, 26, 28). Envy places us at the center rather than God, and leads to hatred and exploitation. We cannot be walking in such darkness while also walking in the Light; the two are mutually exclusive.
The theme that God is only Light will underscore John’s assertions that we cannot experience both at the same time. Darkness cannot coexist with Light. Light destroys darkness.
The darkness of the world fosters hatred:
"But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes."
(1 John 2:11)
It is because God is Light without any darkness, and the world is full of darkness, that John says and then exhorts his readers: "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" (1 John 2:15).
"If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen."
(1 John 4:20)
John sets all of these applications up by stating the core truth and message of 1 John 1:5. By affirming the positive God is Light and then denying the negative and in Him there is no darkness at all, John is stressing the point that Light and darkness have no fellowship together.
Light and darkness cannot exist together in this framework. Saying that God has no darkness at all is to say that darkness is not of Him. Light casts out darkness. And darkness cannot exist wherever light shines. Light produces love. The darkness produces hatred.
Believers must continuously decide between fellowship with the Light and fellowship with the darkness: "No one can serve two masters" (Matthew 6:24a). If anyone wishes to have fellowship with God, he must leave the darkness and choose to walk in the Light by serving one another in love. This is the process of being sanctified in our daily walk, which is God’s will for us (1 Thessalonians 4:3). To walk in fellowship with God requires walking in the Light as He Himself is in the Light. Walking in the Light is the same thing as walking in fellowship with Him.
To have fellowship with the Light means to trust and follow God and to walk in His ways by faith. It means trusting that His ways are best even during difficulty and suffering. It means continuing to trust God and continuing to obey even when it would be easy to disobey to acquire temporary gain or relief.
Jesus promises great reward for those who endure with Him (Matthew 19:28-29, 24:45-46, 25:21, 25:34-36). He encourages His disciples to diligently seek His kingdom and to enter by the narrow gate (Matthew 6:33, 7:13-14). While the faithful will be rewarded by being given a seat at the Messianic banquet, the unfaithful sons of the kingdom will be denied fellowship and cast out (Matthew 7:21-23, 8:11, 25:30).
The picture Jesus uses in Matthew 8:11-12 is of an evening banquet where faithful Gentiles (like the Roman centurion Jesus commended for his faith) will be honored in His kingdom by being seated at the head table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The head table would be situated at the center of the tent, and have the greatest light. The “sons of the kingdom” who did not exhibit such faith will not even get to attend the banquet; their place will be the "outer darkness." An application of this parable is that believers who walk in the world’s darkness will gain the rewards of the world (darkness) and miss the rewards of the kingdom (light).
John teaches a consistent message throughout 1 John about having fellowship with God and enjoying the fullness of eternal life. Both Jesus, in the passages about rewards in the messianic banquet, and John, in this epistle, are describing the Prize of Eternal Life. The Prize is different than the Gift of Eternal Life.
The Gift of Eternal Life is freely offered and received by grace through faith in Jesus Christ as God’s Son and the Messiah (John 3:16, Ephesians 2:8-9). The Gift includes being born into God’s eternal family and not being condemned to eternal separation from God for our sins. The Gift of Eternal Life is entirely dependent on the finished work of Christ on the cross and His resurrection. It depends not on our deeds. All sins—past, present, and future—were nailed to the cross with Christ (Colossians 2:14).
The Prize of Eternal Life is rewarded to believers (who have already received the Gift) for choosing to follow Jesus by faith to overcome life’s trials in His strength and for His namesake. The Prize includes possessing our inheritance, which is to enter into and take our divinely appointed positions reserved for us in God’s kingdom. When we possess our inheritance through a walk of faith, overcoming as He overcame, we inherit our divine destiny (Revelation 3:21).
But the Prize is not limited just to the age to come. The Prize includes enjoying fellowship with God in this life by faith. A substantial part of the Prize is to enjoy the peace of Christ (Philippians 4:6-7). It is to enjoy walking in fellowship with Christ and with one another, finding unity rather than division with others (Galatians 5:13-15).
The Gift is received once and for all the moment a person believes in Jesus. The Prize must be chosen and pursued each day (Galatians 5:16-17). John is mostly writing about the Prize of Eternal Life in this epistle because he is telling believers how they can maximize their joy and enhance their experience of eternal life through fellowship with God.
If we are to experience this fellowship in this life, it must be regularly chosen. We must choose to live and walk in the Light and not in darkness if we are to have fellowship with God and those who are in His kingdom.
And the core reality that frames this choice is that God is Light and in Him there is no darkness at all. All that follows from John’s epistle flows from this message: God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.