What does 1 John 1:7 mean?

Verse 6 spoke against walking in the darkness. Verse 7 offers the contrast, and calls believers to live according to God's ways. Again, we find connections to the Gospel of John, chapter 1. John 1:8–9 speaks of John the Baptist, stating, "He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world." Jesus was noted as the "light" and "true light." John the Baptist spoke about Him, calling people to repentance in preparation for His arrival. Now believers are called to walk according to Christ's ways.

The second half of this verse states what takes place when believers do walk in the light: fellowship and a cleansing from sin. Two applications are given. First, believers will have community and friendship with one another. Second, believers will experience forgiveness. Even though a person is forgiven (eternally) of sins when he or she first believes in Christ, Christians still commit sins and find themselves in need of forgiveness as believers. See verse 9 for more information on this. Even the apostle Paul noted his many failures, despite his desire to live right, and the many noble works he had done for God (Romans 7).

The implication here is clear: the mere presence of sin in one's life does not imply that the person is lost. Christ's sacrifice removes the eternal penalty of all sins, past, present, and future. Even more importantly, those who trust in Christ are forgiven even for sins they are not aware of. Those sins we become aware of, we should confess, and they will be forgiven. If we walk in obedience with what we have, God will make up for what we lack.