“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. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.” (1 John 2:1-2)

It is the aim of the Christian life to live in perfect relationship with God following Jesus and doing God’s will. That is to live like Jesus without sin. It is with the care of a teacher; John would express this aim to those who will read his first letter. “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin.” (1 John 2:1) While this is our aim, we still have with us our sin nature and we do still struggle with sin. In the opening of the book John states, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8) While this is true, the aim is still the same.

The wonder of the Christian life is we are following Jesus who did live a sinless life in perfect relationship with His Heavenly Father. “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.” (Hebrews 4:15) He is also the sacrifice, who took our sin upon Himself. This is why Jesus; the Son of God was born as a man. “Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.” (Hebrews 4:14-15) Death is the result of our sin. To win victory over death, the sinless Son of God and Son of man had to die and then rise again. “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.” (1 Corinthians 15:20-21)

Through Jesus’ victory over sin and death, He becomes for us an advocate before our Heavenly Father. He stands on our behalf in the presence of the Father as our priest who has also brought about our justification. “He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.” (Romans 4:25) Through Jesus’ sacrifice we have been justified and are no longer under condemnation. Jesus, as our advocate, comes before the Father interceding for us. “Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.” (Romans 8:34) His desire is that we become more like Him. The more we become like Jesus, the more we demonstrate His love to others. “If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so, we know and rely on the love God has for us. “God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus.” (1 John 4:15-17)

When we walk with the Living Word of God, we know we have an advocate who is interceding for us that we will be more like Him.

In the Love of Jesus,

Michael Block