Bird's-eye view
In these two tightly packed verses, the Apostle John lays out one of the most glorious tensions in the Christian life. He begins with the high ethical demand of the gospel, which is nothing less than complete holiness, and immediately follows it with the gracious provision for our inevitable failures. The Christian life is a striving against sin, fueled by the knowledge that sin is a black and ugly thing. But it is not a life of terrified perfectionism, because our standing before God is not based on our performance. When we fall, we are not cast out. Instead, we find that a perfect defense has already been mounted on our behalf. We have a defense attorney, an Advocate, who is none other than Jesus Christ the righteous. His defense is not based on our excuses but on His own perfect record and atoning work. He Himself is the propitiation, the wrath-absorbing sacrifice, for our sins. This provision is not a small or limited one; it is cosmic in its scope, sufficient for the sins of the entire world, and therefore more than sufficient for the stumbles of the genuine believer.
This passage is therefore a foundational text for Christian assurance. It teaches us to take our sin seriously, but not to despair over it. Our hope is not in our ability to stop sinning, but in the finished work of our Advocate and propitiation. John writes so that we might not sin, but when we do, he directs our eyes away from our failure and toward our perfect representative in the court of heaven. The entire Christian walk is contained here in miniature: the upward call to holiness and the solid ground of grace upon which we stand when we falter.
Outline
- 1. The Believer's Relationship to Sin (1 John 2:1-2)
- a. The Goal: A Life Without Sin (1 John 2:1a)
- b. The Reality: A Provision for Sin (1 John 2:1b)
- i. Our Legal Representative: An Advocate with the Father (1 John 2:1c)
- ii. His Perfect Qualification: Jesus Christ the Righteous (1 John 2:1d)
- c. The Ground of Our Defense: A Wrath-Absorbing Sacrifice (1 John 2:2)
- i. The Nature of His Work: He is the Propitiation (1 John 2:2a)
- ii. The Scope of His Work: For the Sins of the Whole World (1 John 2:2b)
Context In 1 John
These verses are not written in a vacuum. John has just established the foundational nature of light and darkness. God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5). To have fellowship with this God, we must walk in the light. But walking in the light does not mean sinless perfection. Rather, it means living in the realm of truth, which includes being truthful about our own sin. John has just said that if we claim to have no sin, we are liars (1 John 1:8), but if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us (1 John 1:9). Chapter 2, verses 1 and 2, flow directly from this. They provide the legal and theological basis for the forgiveness he just promised. How can a just God forgive sin? He can because of the Advocate, Jesus Christ the righteous. How can He cleanse us from all unrighteousness? He can because Jesus is the propitiation for our sins. This passage, then, is the engine room of Christian assurance, explaining how fellowship with a holy God is possible for sinful people.
Key Issues
- The Nature of Christian Sanctification
- The Role of Christ as Advocate
- The Meaning of Propitiation
- The Righteousness of Christ
- The Scope of the Atonement ("the whole world")
- The Basis for Christian Assurance
The Courtroom of Heaven
The imagery John employs here is that of a celestial courtroom. The Father is on the throne as the righteous Judge. Satan, the accuser of the brethren (Rev. 12:10), is the prosecuting attorney, and he has a mountain of evidence against us. Every sin we have ever committed is a valid charge. Our case, based on our own merits, is utterly hopeless. We are guilty as charged. But then John tells us that we have a defense attorney, a parakletos, an Advocate. And this is no ordinary public defender. Our Advocate is the Son of the Judge, and His defense is not to argue that we are innocent, but rather to present Himself as the satisfaction for our guilt. He steps before the bench and does not plead our case, but rather pleads His own blood. He does not offer excuses for our sin; He offers Himself as the reason for our pardon. This is the central drama of our salvation, and understanding our position in this courtroom is the key to a life of grateful, humble, and confident obedience.
Verse by Verse Commentary
1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.
John begins with a term of tender affection, "My little children." He is not a distant theologian but a loving pastor. His purpose in writing is intensely practical and moral. The goal of grace is not to make us comfortable in our sin, but to equip us to fight against it. The entire message of forgiveness and cleansing he has just delivered is not a license to sin, but rather the fuel for holiness. He wants them to know the depth of God's grace precisely so that they will see the ugliness of sin and strive against it. Grace does not lower the standard; it provides the power to begin reaching for it. The indicative of God's provision is the foundation for the imperative of our striving.
And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous;
Here is the glorious pivot. John is a realist. He knows that despite the goal, his "little children" will sin. The Christian life is not a straight, uninterrupted line of perfect obedience. So, what happens in that moment of failure? Despair? Condemnation? No. At the very moment we sin, we must remember that our standing in court has not changed. We have an Advocate. The word is parakletos, the same word Jesus uses for the Holy Spirit in John's Gospel. It means one called alongside to help, a counselor, a defender. Our Advocate is "with the Father," constantly in His presence, representing our interests. And who is this Advocate? It is "Jesus Christ the righteous." His qualification to defend us is His own perfect, unblemished character. A crooked lawyer cannot represent anyone well in a righteous court. But our lawyer is Himself the standard of righteousness. He is not arguing a technicality; His very presence is our defense.
2 and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins,
The defense our Advocate mounts is not a verbal argument but a presentation of His own work. He Himself is the propitiation. Propitiation is a theological term that we must not soften. It means a wrath-appeasing sacrifice. Our sin has provoked the holy and just wrath of God. That wrath is not a petty temper tantrum; it is the settled, righteous opposition of a holy being to all that is evil. For God to be just, that wrath must be satisfied. Jesus is not the one who persuades a reluctant Father to be merciful. Rather, the Father, out of His great love, sent the Son to be the very thing that would absorb and exhaust His own righteous wrath against our sin. Christ did not die simply to show us God's love; He died to satisfy God's justice so that His love could be freely expressed in our forgiveness. There is no tension between God's love and His wrath; propitiation is the display case of His love.
and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.
This clause has been the site of many a theological battle, but we must let John's pastoral purpose guide our interpretation. He is writing to bolster the assurance of believers. How does this phrase do that? It shows the infinite sufficiency and objective reality of Christ's sacrifice. The atonement is not a small, provincial affair. It is a world-sized solution to a world-sized problem. The death of the Son of God has such infinite value that it is sufficient to save every person who has ever lived. It is a great ocean of grace. This does not mean that every person will be saved, because the Bible is clear that the benefits of the atonement are applied only to those who believe. But it does mean that the sacrifice itself is not the limiting factor. Christ's death was not a mere raffle ticket for every person, giving them a chance to be saved. No, it actually secured the salvation of His people. But it is so powerful, so objectively glorious, that it provides the basis for the free offer of the gospel to all men everywhere. It takes away the sin of the world. For the believer struggling with his sin, this is immense comfort. The sacrifice that covers you is not some limited, barely-enough provision. It is a world-covering atonement, and you are standing under its shelter. If it is sufficient for the whole world, it is most certainly sufficient for you.
Application
The practical takeaway from this passage is twofold, just like John's argument. First, take your sin with deadly seriousness. The goal is to not sin. Grace is not a pillow to rest your head on while you continue in your favorite transgressions. It is a sword to take up in the fight against them. When you are tempted, remember that John is writing these things "so that you may not sin."
But second, and just as importantly, when you do sin, you must learn to run in the right direction. Your natural inclination will be to run away from God in shame and fear, just as Adam and Eve did in the garden. But the gospel tells you to run to God. Run to the courtroom, not as a cowering defendant, but as a represented client. Look to your Advocate, Jesus Christ the righteous. Remind yourself that the payment for that very sin has already been made. The propitiation has been offered and accepted. Your sin is a real offense, but it is not the final word. The final word was spoken at the cross, and it was "It is finished." Therefore, confess your sin honestly, receive the forgiveness that was purchased at such a high price, and get back up and walk in the light. This is the rhythm of the Christian life: striving, stumbling, and being restored by grace, all for the glory of God.