“My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” (1 John 2:1-2 ESV)
Any skilled author will do his best to prevent misunderstandings. Because the author is trying to communicate something specific, he takes great care to craft his argument in such a way that is most likely to accurately transfer his intended message to the recipient. Not only was the Apostle John a skilled author in human terms, but he was inspired by the Spirit as he penned this first of his epistles.
John knows the natural way in which humans think. We tend to carry things to extremes, and in so doing, often miss major aspects of the message. As John concludes his previous thoughts on the universal sinfulness of man and the free offer of forgiveness to all who repent, he recognizes the possibility that his readers will take his statements to mean that personal sin is of no great significance because we all do it and there is full forgiveness. John rejects those who might dismiss a life of sin, as did the Apostle Paul, who addressed a similar situation in Romans 6 with the admonition, “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” (vv. 1-2).
John says, “I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.” This is the expressed purpose for his letter. Although it is not the only purpose, he desires that his epistle will strengthen his readers in their walk of obedience and resistance of sin. We are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, but as a result of that salvation, we are to be obedient children. In the same way that a child who loves his father seeks to live a life of submission to his father, we are to follow Jesus’ instructions to those who belong to him: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” (John 14:15).
It is a pervasive, yet damnable, false teaching that God’s grace excuses our sin. As John—and the rest of Scripture—affirms, God fully forgives our sin, but he does not dismiss it. Thus, as a father instructing his children, John pleads with his readers to make sure that, as those who have been freed and forgiven, their lives match their profession. The same errors against which John is arguing continue today in the form of antinomianism and so-called “free grace theology.” Yes, grace is free, but those who posit this teaching twist the biblical meaning of that grace into a license to sin.
This is a vital distinction, especially for those who are active in sharing the gospel. As we go into all the world proclaiming the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ, our proclamation must be attended by a proper understanding of obedience. God’s people should practice righteousness, as John will say later in his letter. The practice of sin is incompatible with the holiness to which God calls those who have been regenerated. We will never reach perfection, as John has just finished acknowledging, but the fact that our pursuit will never attain perfection does not mean that we should put an end to the pursuit. John is encouraging his readers with the indicative reality of who they are—those who have been brought out of the darkness and into the light. As such, they ought not walk in sin.
Yet, even as he issues this command, he proclaims again the glorious sufficiency of Christ’s life, death, resurrection, and perpetual intercession. He says, “But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” Nothing can uplift the one who struggles to follow the first part of John’s instruction more than this.
John is not excusing the sin of his “little children,” but he is emphatically rejecting the idea that their ultimate salvation depends upon their obedience. As we strive for obedience and against sin, we will inevitably fall into sin as the old nature continues to war against the new. When the former wins, our hope is not in a stronger will to obey, but in our appeal to “Jesus Christ the righteous,” who alone walked the path of perfect obedience on our behalf.
We ought not sin. Nevertheless, we will sin. When we sin, there is one who was and is “without sin” (Hebrews 4:15), who is able to “save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25).
Prayer:
Heavenly Father,
A life of sin is entirely incompatible with the life of holiness to which you have called those whom you have redeemed for yourself. Strengthen us through your Spirit to walk in obedience and not in sin. And as we pursue obedience, may we rest fully in the atonement and intercession of Jesus Christ the righteous, who has paid it all and set us free from sin.
In his name, amen.
Prayer Requests:
- Tuesday: Pray for missionaries using business as missions.
- Wednesday: Pray for the ongoing work of the Greater Lisbon Christian Academy in Portugal.
- Thursday: Pray for missionaries serving at Brilla Café in Spain.
- Friday: Pray for the staff and students at Logos Baptist Seminary in Brazil.
- Saturday: Pray for aviation ministry in South Asia.
- Sunday: Pray for missionaries serving in translation work.
- Monday: Pray for missionaries serving in Papua New Guinea.
Featured Serving Opportunity:
Nursing Clinical Faculty
Location: Togo
Nursing clinical faculty are needed to teach and mentor nursing students during their clinical rotations at ABWE’s two hospitals in Togo, Africa.
