Active Theology

“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.” (1 John 2:1-2, ESV)

It always helps to have someone in your corner, doesn’t it? There are boatloads of money raked in daily by those promising advocacy. Fiduciaries pride themselves on working for the customer’s best interest and not their own. Insurance companies have advertisements like, “Nationwide is on your side.” Like anyone, I too have benefited from friends in high places. When I was in college, I had a good relationship with our campus pastor. We often had good talks and enjoyed each other’s company. A few years in, I got in big trouble for breaking some school rules and was on the brink of expulsion. Little did I know that my friend advocated for me the whole time. As a result, I was not kicked out but was given a second chance. I didn’t get it right. Far from it. But I had someone who cared about me who pleaded my case, and it worked!

In 1 John 2:1, the beloved disciple understands that we don’t always get it right. John says, “I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.” He admonishes his churches not to stray from God’s commands because the commands demonstrate love. But John knows as well as anyone that it’s not that easy. That’s why he goes on to say that even when we do sin, “we have an advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous.” We have a way in, through our advocate. Just sing “Jesus Christ is on your side.” (Yes, I cringed while typing that as much as you may have reading it). A little kid rides a trike, but when she grows up a little, she goes out with mom or dad and has a go at the bicycle, knowing she has someone to fall back on.

However, not just anyone could be the help we need. When we look at the word for advocate that John uses in Greek, it is the word parakletos. It’s the same word John uses in his Gospel for the Holy Spirit in Jesus’ priestly prayer in John 14-17. Here in 1 John, it has the meaning of a legal helper or an intercessor. Imagine getting in legal trouble but you have a lawyer friend who represents you. That lawyer would need two things to be helpful for you: legal expertise and to care for you. 

Jesus fits these two categories in spades, analogically speaking. John goes on to clarify Jesus’ qualifications that “He himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world”. So, Jesus has the “legal” clout to advocate for us in his righteousness and relationship to the Father. Not only that, but he cares for us too. Later John also comforts his readers saying that, “We love because He first loved us” (1 Jn 4:19) so we can rely on and abide in His love. So, there it is — we can live unafraid because we have an advocate before the Father even when we do sin.

But how might this passage change the way we go crashing into our Mondays – knowing that we have the ultimate advocate in our corner? So much of our fear and stress going into our work weeks is about how we might respond to challenges outside of our control. “What if I mess up the pile of to-dos put on my desk at the last minute?” “What if our best client pulls out of the deal?” We can’t control what comes our way, but we can control how we respond. We can only control what we do. And to that, John says, “I write this so that you do not sin.” In chapter 1, he advises his beloved congregations to walk in the light as God is in the light. Be encouraged, beloved, because we aren’t completely out of control. Christians are empowered to choose right and not sin. We have that option.

But ultimately, we will make a lot of mistakes, some of them more important than others. We will get it wrong, and sometimes very wrong. However, from an eternal perspective, we have a Savior who doesn’t just sit idly but intercedes on our behalf to the Father. Our mistakes are covered. Now I know what you are thinking: True, we will sustain the consequences of many of those mistakes, like missing emails from our boss or our botched conversations with our parents. Yes, Jesus often doesn’t bail us out of those immediate mess-ups, but maybe the intercession of Jesus can change our whole orientation to how we face so many of our daily responsibilities in the first place.

Knowing that we have a heavenly advocate helps us live our earthly lives more boldly and with more intention. We can ditch the tricycle and hop on our bikes knowing the Lord is with us step by step. This week, allow the parakletos, the Spirit, to comfort and embolden you as you rest assured that the parakletos, the Son, is advocating for you in heaven. We have someone to fall back on.

Pray: Lord God, thank you for the gift of your Son who advocates for us. Dearest Jesus, we could never deserve or repay the debt that you paid for our sakes. We ask that this week, you would encourage us and embolden us to live as a forgiven people. Help us live lives where we do not sin, but if we do, we know that we are safe in the care of Christ. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

Song: “Advocate” by Rend Collective