There’s a book in the Bible called 1 John. It’s a letter from the Apostle John, written to believers in Christ. It is especially helpful to new believers, which John refers to several times as “little children,” but the letter is also helpful to believers who are examining themselves and want to be sure that they are indeed children of God. One of those evidences, as discussed in my previous post is the fact that a true believer will understand that “God is Light” (1 John 1:5), and will live and walk in that light, experiencing sweet fellowship with God and other believers. God intends for His children to have fellowship, not only with Him but with one another. These are non-negotiable to the followers of Jesus.

Perhaps the greatest blessing of walking in the light is that it brings with it the work of Christ by which He demonstrates power over sin in our lives. The very purpose of John’s letter is to charge God’s people to avoid sin. But he also declares that when we do sin Jesus has the power to advocate for us before God’s righteous judgement, and even more than that, Christ shed His own blood at Calvary to satisfy the requirements of God’s judgement for all mankind, and for all time. The sad truth is that no everyone will receive it.

My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And 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

In 1 John chapter two, John continues his teaching on the theme of fellowship. He wants to assure us that the fellowship we have with God is something we can never lose. In fact it is in this great book that we have some of the greatest assurances in all of scripture that we cannot lose our salvation.

In the first six verses of chapter two, John not only assures us that the demand of God’s righteousness has been satisfied by the finished work of Jesus, but he also assures us that even when we sin, and we all do, God still loves us and has made provision to restore the fellowship that is hindered by sin.

In verses 1 & 2 where there are three things John is explaining to those who are living in the Light:

The Purpose of the letter (verse 1)
John’s purpose for writing this letter is clear. It is a simple message: Don’t sin. He does not mean to imply that we will live in sinless perfection, but is writing to help us avoid those individual acts of sin which seem to beset us as Christians. He wants us to avoid even the smallest of things which would negatively impact the fellowship we have with God and with one another.

The personal advocacy of Christ (verse 1)
While the message is, “Don’t sin,” John realizes that as Christians there are going to be times when we stumble and fall, when we step back into sin. And when we do, “we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (verse 1). An advocate is “One who pleads the cause of another before any tribunal or judicial court” (Webster’s 1828). The humbling truth about Jesus’ work as our advocate is that He did not merely plead our case, He also took the judgement upon Himself!
1 Timothy 2:5 says that “there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all…” When we sin, and we do sin, God has provided a way for us to reconcile that fellowship. It is through Jesus Christ, who is the propitiation for our sins.

The propitiation of all our sins (verse 2)
The word “propitiation” in 1 John is defined as appeasement or satisfaction. It refers to both the source and scope of God’s forgiveness. The sacrifice Jesus made on the cross satisfied the demands of God’s justice. We are probably more familiar with the term “atonement.” Basically, it means the same thing. Sin cannot go unpunished; on the cross Jesus paid the price for our sins, and if we, by faith, place our trust in what Jesus did on the cross, He will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

Because Jesus was perfect and without sin, He was an acceptable sacrifice for our sins and His sacrifice was sufficient to pay the price, not only for our sins, but for the sins of the whole world, from the beginning, to the present and to the end or time. Does this mean that everyone will eventually be saved? Sadly, that is not consistent with the rest of scripture.

When we rightly interpret a passage of Scripture that seems to be in contradiction by comparing it with other Scripture, the truth becomes clear:

John 3:17-18: For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

Not everyone will be saved. Throughout scripture we have this testimony that salvation comes only to those who repent of their sins and put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord. 1 John 2:1-2 tells us that the blood of Christ was sufficient to pay the price for the sins of the whole world. John 3:17-18 confirms that salvation is available to anyone who believes. When Jesus died on the cross, His shed blood was powerful enough, sufficient to pay the price for all the sins of all humans, so that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10:13).

YOU are a “whosoever,” my friend! Surrender your SELF and yield to Christ as resurrected Saviour and Lord of your life.

I’m here to help you,

John C. Lawton
John@JohnCLawton.org