But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.
Roberts pointed out that John's teaching here "implies that only the sinless can have fellowship with a sinless God," adding that this involves a contradiction between our own "admitted sinfulness and the affirmation that we do have fellowship with God (1 John 1:3)."[33] Roberts resolved the "contradiction" in the considerations of: (1) Christ's propitiation for our sins; (2) the cleansing action in view in this verse; and (3) the intercession on our behalf of Jesus Christ our advocate.  Here indeed is the achievement of that absolute perfection required of all who hope to enter heaven, as announced by Jesus Christ in the sermon on the mount  (Matthew 5:48).  The whole doctrine of Perfection requires a great deal more attention to it than is evident in current Christian literature.  For a further study of it, see in my Commentary on Galatians, pp. 130-133.  For those who walk in the light, the continual, ceaseless and effective cleansing through the blood of Christ is the means of their continuing in a state of absolute perfection.  This cleansing, however, is not necessarily automatic.  "It is based upon confession, penitence, renewal (1 John 1:9), and keeping his commandments (1 John 2:3)."[34] Even beyond this, however, the cleansing effect of Jesus' blood is operative unconditionally in instances of the believer's unawareness of sins that lie hidden from himself.