Knowledge and obedience
My little children, I am writing you these things so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ the righteous one. He himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for those of the whole world. 1 John 2:1-2 CSB
John closes out his opening main point in chapter 1 with these two verses here in chapter 2. From the previous chapter, we saw that once we know we are in Christ, it follows that we will obey Him, continuing to walk in His light, following after Jesus’ example, doing our best to not sin. But because no one is perfect except God, believers will end up sinning in their lifetime. Thankfully, Jesus is forgiving whenever we repent of our sin. We saw this in 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” We should not take advantage of this, but instead, be motivated by His love to continue to be obedient and give our best for His glory. This is all summarized here in these two verses. As a small note, John deeply cares for his readers, seen in how he addresses them as “my little children.” The purpose of his letter of encouragement here is the following sentence, “I am writing you these things so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father--Jesus Christ the righteous one.” An advocate is one who speaks on the behalf of another, such as a defense attorney before a judge. Jesus Christ is our advocate before the Father, who’s death on the cross was the “atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for those of the whole world.” Now, does this mean that everyone is instantly saved? No, as can see in John 3:16, “For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” There must be a decision made. The option for salvation is open to everyone, but the choice comes down to the individual to make on their own. The atoning sacrifice at the cross is universal but the efficacy will be for those that surrender their lives to Christ. They have acknowledged their sinfulness before God and it is only through the shed blood at the cross by the Lord Jesus Christ that sins are cleansed. I know I am a child of God not because I’m perfect and righteous but because of the testimony that I “have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ the righteous one” (1 John 2:1). I am thankful for what Christ has done and provided and that is the reason that by His grace, I will walk in His light.
Blessings,
Isaac De Guzman
