Jesus Our Advocate and Propitiation for Sin

John writes as a spiritual father to “my little children,” urging believers not to sin because God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. The call is not to manage sin, excuse sin, or settle into sin because “everybody does it.” The text calls God’s people to take sin seriously, since sin is rebellion against God, transgression of his law, and a poison that never stays contained to one person.

John also knows the battle in the flesh is real. The Christian life holds together justification, sanctification, and glorification: God has made his people righteous in Christ, God is making them holy day by day, and God will one day free them from sin forever. Union with Christ means imitation of Christ. Those who say they abide in him ought to walk as he walked, seeking not sinlessness by their own power but a life that sins less as it becomes more like Jesus.

Jesus Christ the righteous stands as the comfort for every believer who falls. The text does not say believers had an advocate once upon a time, or might have one if they have not messed up too badly. Jesus is presently the Advocate with the Father. He stands beside guilty people before the righteous Judge, not arguing that they are innocent, but declaring that his righteousness has been credited to their account. Confession becomes a gift because it agrees with God about sin and brings believers again to the One who has already dealt with it.

Jesus is also “the propitiation for our sins.” His death fully satisfies the wrath of God against sin. The old covenant priest offered sacrifices again and again, but Jesus is not merely the one bringing the sacrifice. Jesus is the sacrifice, the perfect spotless Lamb. His blood does not ask God to overlook sin. His blood pays the penalty sin deserves and removes the guilt of those who trust him.

John’s words concerning “the sins of the whole world” declare that Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient for all humanity, yet salvation is received by those who believe in him. The gospel rejects the idea that all roads lead to God or that good works can make anyone righteous before him. Jesus alone is the righteous sacrifice, and faith in his finished work is the condition of salvation. The same sacrifice that gives believers rest also gives the church its commission: the whole world needs to hear that Christ has paid the debt sinners could never pay.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Take sin seriously, not casually Sin never remains a private little thing. Sin poisons the heart and eventually affects those closest to the person holding onto it. The Spirit exposes what has been tolerated so it can be called what it is: rebellion against God’s law. [89:24]
• 2. Jesus is the present Advocate Jesus does not stand before the Father only for a believer’s past failures. Jesus continually represents his people right now, even when sin shows up again in the battle of the flesh. His defense rests not on human innocence but on his own perfect righteousness. [67:57]
• 3. Confession agrees with God about sin Confession is more than feeling bad or trying harder. Confession admits that God’s standard has been broken and receives forgiveness as a gift. God’s faithfulness means that confessed sin does not have to become a permanent identity. [72:42]
• 4. Christ fully satisfied God’s wrath Propitiation means Jesus took the judgment that sin deserved. God did not ignore evil, and Jesus did not offer a partial payment. The cross is the finished payment that frees believers from living as though they must earn God’s favor. [79:12]
• 5. The whole world needs this gospel Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient for the whole world, but salvation belongs to those who believe in him. Good works, giving, serving, and trying hard cannot make a sinner righteous. The church therefore carries the news of Christ’s finished work to every nation, tribe, and tongue.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [47:34] - First John 2:1-2
• [50:59] - God Calls Believers Not to Sin
• [52:51] - False Teaching and Walking in Light
• [56:49] - The Call to Sin Less
• [61:36] - Union with Christ Means Imitation
• [63:08] - Jesus Our Advocate
• [66:05] - Guilty Before a Righteous Judge
• [71:39] - Imputed Sin and Righteousness
• [73:40] - Jesus the Propitiation
• [79:12] - The Courtroom Picture of the Cross
• [82:25] - Sins of the Whole World
• [85:43] - The Condition of Salvation
• [88:42] - Four Responses to the Gospel
• [92:32] - Call on the Name of Jesus

Bible Reading

1 John 2:1-2
“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. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.” [50:59]

1 John 1:5-10
“This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 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 cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” [56:49]

John 3:16
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” [01:25:46]

Observation questions

1. In 1 John 2:1–2, what two purposes or roles of Jesus are named for believers who sin? [01:03:08]
2. According to 1 John 1:5–10, what contrasts does John make between walking in darkness, walking in the light, denying sin, and confessing sin? [54:22]
3. What kinds of sins were identified as common struggles among believers, including both actions done and good things left undone? [52:03]
4. What words in 1 John 2:1–2 show that John both calls believers away from sin and recognizes that they will still need help when they fall? [01:04:17]

Interpretation questions

1. Why does John connect God’s complete holiness with the command for believers not to sin? How does this keep believers from treating sin as a minor issue? [58:13]
2. What does it mean that Jesus is an Advocate with the Father? In what sense does Jesus defend guilty believers without pretending that their sin did not happen? [01:11:49]
3. How does Jesus’ righteousness being credited to believers change the way they understand forgiveness and their standing before God? [01:10:43]
4. How should believers understand the statement that Christ is the sacrifice for the sins of the whole world alongside John 3:16’s call to believe in Jesus? [01:25:43]

Application questions

1. Where are you most tempted to excuse, minimize, or tolerate sin because “everybody does it”? What would it look like to call that sin what it is—rebellion against God—rather than making peace with it? [01:29:00]
2. Is there a sin pattern that you have treated as private, even though it may be affecting people closest to you? What could honest confession, repentance, and appropriate accountability look like this week? [01:29:24]
3. When you sin, do you tend to hide from God, punish yourself, try to make up for it, or run to Jesus? What would change if you remembered that Jesus is your present Advocate right now? [01:07:57]
4. Confession means agreeing with God about sin, not merely feeling bad about it. Is there something specific you need to bring honestly before God instead of explaining it away or blaming someone else? [01:12:42]
5. In what ways do you still live as though you must earn God’s favor through good behavior, serving, giving, or trying harder? How does Christ’s finished payment invite you to rest while also pursuing obedience? [01:31:14]
6. Who in your home, neighborhood, school, workplace, or circle of friends needs to hear that Jesus alone has paid the debt of sin? What is one natural next step you could take to pray for them or begin a gospel conversation? [01:31:46]