We have come to a part of the message of the first epistle of John which has an extremely appealing message which all of us would like to be for us. Everyone may receive this message but we must make sure that our name is on the envelope. Otherwise, the message will go to someone else. This is part of the message which everyone would like to say, This is for me. The message is, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” (1 John 1:8-10 ASV)
Even though most of us do not want to sin, from time to time we do sin. None of us can deny that we are sinners. If we do deny it, “the truth in not in us” and we make God “a liar and his word is not in us.” We sin because we are morally weak. The Apostle Paul expressed that weakness for us when he said, “For the good which I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I practice.” (Romans 7:19 ASV)
When we sin we always destroy our inner peace. In addition to that, many times our sin also alienates our closest friends and often the members of our family as well. Above all, our sin always cuts us off from the fellowship of God. We must get forgiveness for our sins to be restored to fellowship with God and to have a happy relationship with our loved ones. In 1 John 1:9 we are told, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:8-9 ASV)
According to this, some people have the privilege of only acknowledging their sin to God in order to be forgiven. This is one of the greatest messages of the Apostle John’s first epistle. But, we must be sure who it is to whom this was written. If our name is not on the envelope, we cannot say that the message of the letter on the inside is for us.
John has made it very clear to whom this was written. First of all, he wrote to those for whom Jesus was their Advocate: “My little children, these things write I unto you that ye may not sin. And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” (1 John 2:1 ASV)
Every sinner must have an advocate who can plead his case before the divine bar of judgment of his sins cannot be forgiven. Only the person who obediently follows Christ has the Advocate, Jesus Christ the righteous.
The word Advocate is a legal term which means literally, “One called alongside to help.” Thus, Jesus becomes the attorney for the one who is willing to acknowledge him and follow him.
Jesus Christ is called, “Jesus Christ the righteous.” Jesus is qualified to be our defense attorney because he is righteous. He bases his plea, not on the innocence of his clients but upon the efficacy of the propitiation which he has made on our behalf. Everyone who sins becomes entangled in two legal problems, neither of which the one who sins can solve. First, when we sin we become indebted to God. This happens because God has a right to our service and our praise. The prophet David has told us, “Know ye that Jehovah, he is God: It is he that hath made us, and we are his; We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.” (Psalms 100:3 ASV) Because we are his he has a right to ask us for service and praise. Whenever we have not given him what he has asked we have become indebted to him.
For example, God wants every human being to always tell the truth. Scripture tells us, “Wherefore, putting away falsehood, speak ye truth each one with his neighbor: for we are members one of another.” (Ephesians 4:24 ASV) Speaking truth is a service to God. He expects it of us. When we lie we do not give God the service he expects from us. Once a person has lied, he can do nothing to reverse it. If he tells the truth from that moment on, he is only doing what God expects him to do. He has done nothing extra which could make up for past sin. Therefore, we cannot pay our own debt which we owe to God.
But debt may be transferred. If someone else is able and wishes to pay our debt, it is perfectly legal and acceptable. That is what Jesus did for the whole human race. He paid the debt. For those who have Jesus as their Advocate, he pleads that in spite of our guilt we are not to be condemned because he paid the debt to God.
But when we sin not only do we become debtors, we also become criminals. Though debt may be transferred to someone else, we are always responsible for our own crimes. That is why Scripture says, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die:” (Ezekiel 18:20 ASV) If we want Jesus Christ to be our Advocate, we must first take care of the criminal aspect of our own sin. It cannot be transferred. But Jesus has made it possible for us to die with him spiritually. Scripture says, “Faithful is the saying: For if we died with him, we shall also live with him.” (2 Timothy 2:11 ASV)
When we believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God we die to our old assumptions which took us away from God. Those old assumptions may have been that God does not exist or that if he exists he does not care about man. When we openly acknowledge Jesus we die to our old declarations of allegiance. From now on we will be subject only to God through Jesus who is the Christ. When we repent we die to our old rebellion against God. Before we die to our rebellion we “turned every one to his own way.” (Isaiah 53:6 ASV) But now we no longer put self first. From this point we put God first. When we are baptized we die to our old life style. From the water of baptism we are raised “ so we also might walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4 ASV). Every decision about conduct is from this point determined by having “the mind of Christ.” (I Corinthians 2:16 ASV)
At the point at which we have died to our old life of rebellion against God, Jesus becomes our Advocate. Then, from that point on, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:8-9 ASV)