An Advocate and Atoning Sacrifice

Good morning class.

Question of the day: Can you share a moment this week where you experienced God's love through someone else or something?

This morning we are going to look at just two verses. They are two very important verses so I want us to take our time.

READ: 1 John 2: 1-2

2 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

1. "My dear children,"

This phrase is important why?

What is John saying here?

This is a loving term, not meant as an insult but a term of endearment. It acknowledges the authors age, while expressing his love for them. John is getting ready to say some very difficult things. Some things that NEEDED to be said, and he first let's them know of his love for them.

This speaks to the importance of relationship before telling the hard truths.

We have no business talking with people about their "condition" unless we have first built a relationship with them!

If that is true what should be our first priority?

One of the many dangers of social media is the way we feel comfortable in slamming groups and even individuals publicly without any personal relationship with said person or group.

A couple years ago there were some meetings held in the Washington area that were billed as a discussion about how to treat and "handle" the LGBTQ community and yet no one from that said community was invited to be part of the discussion. Hmmm

It is easy for one of two things to happen.

1. We don't build relationships and we speak hard truths about them and to them.

2. We don't build relationships and we don't say anything.

Common thread....

We must find a way to make building relationships with others a priority.

We unfortunately live in a society where we are more and more "connected" and yet at the same time we are becoming more and more isolated, with less and less true connection.

How do we build connection?

I want to challenge you this week to start at home!

Start by trying to learn something new about those who live with you. Try to spend some intentional time connecting.

How?

1. Ask questions. I love questions. Table topic cards are a great way to find questions to ask. But ask questions.

2. Put down your devices, and look at each other. OK I'm not talking about staring at each other, although that can be funny, but stop looking at screens and just look at each other. Too many times Chris and I find ourselves sitting beside each other with the TV screen on in front of us and both of us have our laptops or phones on our laps. SAD!!!!

3. Do something outside together. Go for a walk, weed a flowerbed, lay down on a blanket and look at the stars... Do something together outside.

4. Pray for each other. Rick Faber at NOSOCA does an interesting style of prayer on Friday night with the summer camp staff. They are all sitting around and he asks for prayer requests. When someone has a request, then he asks who would be willing to pray about that, and then they stop and pray. Then after the prayer he continues asking for praises or requests and when someone has a request they stop and pray about that request or praise. It is a powerful experience. Pray for each other, with each other.

5. Laugh together. Find something that will make you both laugh! A funny movie, or Youtube, or just stories about your day, but find a way to laugh! Laughter is so important! So healing! Laugh together!

2. "I write this to you so that you will not sin."

He writes what?

I think it is important to quickly read what he is referring to.

"This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all[b] sin.

8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us."

He writes this so that we will not sin....

I'm confused.... He writes that we have all sinned and if we say otherwise we lie, and yet he is writing so that we won't sin.

Interesting....

If you were to take the last part of chapter 1 and break it down.... what is the "sin" here?

The sin is in not understanding our condition and what Jesus Christ has done for us.

John is speaking to a group that has forgotten the truth about Jesus. Gary Burge writes in the NIV Life Application Commentary, "When John talks about avoiding sin, he may be referring specifically to the error of denying the reality of God's truth about sin."

I believe this is quite strongly supported by continuing on in the passage. John continues, and his focus is on Jesus and what he has done for us.

3. "we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One."

Advocate or parakletos means, "one who is called alongside as an aide or counselor, especially in a legal setting."

This word parakletos is also used in describing the Holy Spirit.

Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to help us, to guide us, to comfort us, to be what he was to those He interacted and was in relationship with while her on this earth. He gave us the Holy Spirit to be with us. Here John is telling us that if we sin, Jesus is here with us. He is standing beside us. We are not alone.

About 15 years ago I had a small accident where the car in front of me slammed on his brakes and I was unable to stop before running up under the bumper of the pickup in front of me. It turned into a big lawsuit which according to the attorney representing me was a scam they had seen many times. I will never forget sitting in that court room as the pick up truck driver describe me as having ruined his life. I remember how comforting it was to be beside someone who knew the system, knew the case, had researched, and who was there for me! It was comforting for sure. I didn't feel alone, or on my own, but taken care of.

So Jesus is our advocate! This is awesome and important but it isn't all! He isn't just an Attorney working on our behalf. He isn't just sitting there pleading our case and trying to get the judge to have mercy. Jesus is that but so much more.

4. "He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins"

Atoning sacrifice or hilasmos

Another unfamiliar word and this one gets complicated. There is even controversy about this word and exactly what it means.

Hilasmos is not used in the New Testament anywhere else except in a 1 John 4:10. It is used in the Old Testament. A hilasmos was a sacrifice given to placate an angry God.

We could spend a long time on this one word but we won't.

The important point here is that Jesus is both the parakletos and the hilasmos. He is both our advocate and the atoning sacrifice for us!

He is not just a lawyer who is sitting beside you, (as wonderful and as important as that is,) but he is also the one who has already paid the price and taken care of things!

5. "and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world."

I have to admit, there is apart of me that wrestles with this last sentence. I know that right or wrong, I have been raised in this amazing church that at times has come across as the churches that John is speaking to. It has come across as a church that really believes in our "rightness" and a bit of exclusivity because of the "message" we have. We do have a special message to spread to the world, I believe that, but just like the churches of John's time, if we loose Jesus and what He has done in the process, and if we take this special message and turn it into something that makes us out to be something special, or a clique then we NEED this message! WE NEED this book! WE NEED this message.

What Jesus has done is not only for our sins but for the sins of the whole world! Do we really believe it.

Why is this so important to get?

JESUS!

We must get what Jesus has done! We must understand it and know it, otherwise it becomes about our rightness, or our superiority. Understanding what He has done for us puts us all on the same playing field. It puts us all in the same boat.

John was talking to a group that had become obsessed with rightness, and hierarchy, and John right here at the beginning of his letter is pulling that rug out from under them. He is saying, "Nope you aren't perfect! Nope you aren't better!"

John is also laying the foundation they need to hear the rest of his letter!

Jesus is and must be our foundation!

If we miss Jesus we SIN!

If we miss Jesus, it doesn't matter how "right" we think our message or our lifestyle is, we have NOTHING!

Understanding what Jesus has done for you is the foundation of Light and Love.

Don't worry, this book doesn't go on to say, that it doesn't matter what you do. John isn't saying that because we are sinful and because Jesus did what He did we are free to live our lives however we feel. It isn't that at all. He is laying the foundation for us.

He is reminding us that if we forget about Jesus than nothing else is worth anything!!!!

This week, I want to challenge you to also spend time connecting with Jesus!

I have challenged you to do this before, but it never hurts to repeat.

I am asking for you to do three things everyday this week.

1. Read 1 John 1-2:2.

2. Pray, asking that the Gospel be made real to you!

3. Listen to one song a day that speaks of the Gospel. (if you need some suggestions for songs I have listed a few below. )

Do these everyday! Let's do it together as a class in preparation for the rest of the book of 1 John.

Let your focus this week be Jesus and what He has done for you!!!!