Our Only Advocate
Notes
Transcript
Opening Illustration
Opening Illustration
“On day a young child named Thomas went to school all dressed up as Superman.
Well this caused a lot of commotion in the class.
Unfortunately, many of the students in the class started making fun of this young child for his outfit.
The teacher of the classroom asked the child,
‘Thomas why are you wearing this?
You’re not supposed to wear this to school.’
Thomas replied back,
‘Well, because my uncle is Superman,’
And the teacher responds by sarcastically saying ‘Oh okay’
She then pulls him aside and Thomas ends up getting in trouble for making up stories.
When Thomas’s mother found out about the bullying, she made a call to her brother-in-law.
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Her brother-in-law is none other than Henry Cavill, the actor who has recently played Superman in the films:
Man of Steel, Batman vs Superman, and Justice League.
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She asked if he could find time in his busy schedule to take the youngster to school one day.
Cavill happily obliged and walked with Thomas to his school in front of all his classmates...
Including those who teased him and undoubtedly a very foolish feeling teacher too.”
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Young Thomas claimed to know Superman...
This is a claim by many young children with vibrant imaginations...
But the difference here is that Superman actually knew Thomas.
Therefore, he was able to defend Thomas in front of his whole school.
Cavill was an advocate for his nephew Thomas.
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Today, we will focus on our one true advocate...
The one who advocate for us in Heaven.
And with that let’s take a look at our study for today.
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Please turn your Bibles to the 1 John.
We will be conducting our study in Chapter 2 and focus on verses 1 through 6.
Our message this morning called “Our Only Advocate”
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Opening Prayer
Opening Prayer
Before we consider our text, please join me in prayer...
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Let’s turn to our text for today:
Reading of the Text
Reading of the Text
1 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.
2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
3 And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments.
4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him,
5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him:
6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.
So, let’s look at our first point...
1) He Advocates For Us
1) He Advocates For Us
Verse 1: 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.
Here, John is giving the intention of his letter.
He is saying that the purpose of this letter is that we always aim not to sin.
However, we know that no one in sinless as John mentioned in the previous passages in Chapter 1.
So, he reminds us that we do not have a hopeless situation.
He reminds us that we have an Advocate with the Father...
And that Advocate is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
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Church, this truth that John is presenting is important to remember.
Not only that Jesus is an advocate...
But Jesus is our only real Advocate for us.
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Many false religions try to add other as advocates but they are false...
Mormon followers add Joseph Smith...
Muslim followers add Mohammad...
Catholics and Eastern Orthodox followers add Mary, the “Saints,” and Priests.
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But none of these individuals will do...
For they are all sinners too....
And all of them are in need of a Savior too.
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We need a sinless Advocate with the Father...
Someone whom Satan can’t accuse of sinning...
And that is found only in our precious Jesus.
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Remember what the Word of God says in Revelation 12:10:
10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God.
Satan accuses of before the Father day and night.
That is true whether we are a big sinner or a small sinner.
In fact, that is true even if we are considered righteous.
Look with me at the events recorded in the Book of Job...
Look with me at Job 1:9–10:
9 Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason?
10 Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.
Satan will find any reason to accuse us to God.
And that is why we need Jesus and the promises found in Scripture.
May the words of Romans 8:33–39 give you comfort:
33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.
34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?
36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,
39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
You see Beloved, Jesus is both our sinless Advocate and it is by His blood that we are washed and made brand new.
And this takes us to our next point.
2) He Washes Our Sins
2) He Washes Our Sins
Verse 2: He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
The word “propitiation” is not a common word we use in our daily conversations.
However, it is used in Scripture many times and we should understand its meaning.
So, “propitiation” in other words means “appeasement” or “satisfaction” or “to conciliate” or “to satisfy.”
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The sacrifice of Jesus on the cross satisfied the holy demands of God the Father’s wrath for the punishment of sin.
So, Jesus “propitiated” or “satisfied” God the Father.
Meaning Jesus is not just our only advocate but He is our only mediator between the Father.
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So, do not be deceived and think that you need any other mediator.
Joseph Smith can’t help anyone...
Mohammad can’t help anyone...
Mary, the mother of Jesus can’t help anyone...
John the Baptist and Peter the Apostle can’t help anyone...
Because all of them are sinners.
None could satisfy the wrath of God...
It didn’t matter if they where a cult leader...
Or if they were called blessed...
Only Jesus’ blood was enough to pay all our sin debt.
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Now look at the second half of this verse...
It says, “and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”
Some can misinterpret this believing it to mean that Christ paid all the debt for every individual...
The problem with this type of thinking is that it leads to the error of believing in universalism...
That is the belief that all individuals are saved and it does not matter what you believe or what you do...
But that type of doctrine is pure heresy.
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When John says, “for the sins of the whole world” he is saying a generic term that would have been understood in the 1st century as referring to mankind in a general sense...
So, he is not referring to every single individual…the MacArthur Study Bible says it this way:
“Christ actually paid the penalty only for those who would repent and believe.
A number of Scriptures indicate that Christ died for the world.
Most of the world will be eternally condemned to hell to pay for their own sins, so they could not have been paid for by Christ.
The passages which speak of Christ’s dying for the whole world must be understood to refer to mankind in general.
The word “World” indicates the sphere, the beings toward whom God seeks reconciliation and has provided propitiation.
God has mitigated His wrath on sinners temporarily, by letting them live and enjoy earthly life.
In that sense, Christ has provided a brief, temporal propitiation for the whole world.
But He actually satisfied fully the wrath of God eternally only for the elect who believe.
Christ’s death in itself had unlimited and infinite value because He is Holy God.
Thus His sacrifice was sufficient to pay the penalty for all the sins of all whom God brings to faith.
But the actual satisfaction and atonement was made only for those who believe.
The pardon for sin is offered to the whole world, but received only by those who believe.
There is no other way to be reconciled to God.”
For those who are reconciled with God, they are known by their obedience to God...
And this takes us to our next point.
3) Keeping His Commands
3) Keeping His Commands
Verse 3: And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments.
God is merciful...
It is not a complete mystery if we are saved or not...
We don’t have to wait until Judgement Day to know if we did enough good for God to let us into heaven.
Since we are not saved by our own merits we have other means to reveal to us our standing with God.
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So, we know that we are saved by grace through faith...
Scripture says this all throughout.
But how do we know we are saved?
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That answer is found in how we live our lives after we claim to be saved.
Since we receive the Holy Spirit the moment we are justified, we also experience regeneration and rebirth.
We become a new creation...
And as a new creation, we do something that is impossible to do without the Holy Spirit...
We keep God’s commands...
We obey the teachings found in the Scriptures...
The obedience does not save us but it is a by product of having a renewed mind.
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I pray this truth either gives you an assurance of your genuine faith in our Lord and Savior...
Or it convicts you to repent of your sins and turn to the only one that can save you, Jesus Christ.
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But you may be wondering...
What about those whom say they are born again but live a worldly life?
What about those who are “backsliding”?
Aren’t they saved no matter what they do?
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Well, John answers those questions very clearly in the next verse just in case his previous statements where not clear enough.
So lets look at our next point.
4) Deceiving Oneself
4) Deceiving Oneself
Verse 4: Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him,
Claiming to know Jesus is not the same as Jesus saying that He know you.
Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 7:13-23:
13 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.
14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
16 You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
17 So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit.
18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.
19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’
23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
Beloved, did you see that in the end of the passage?
Crying out to Jesus and simply calling Him Lord is not is not what saves you...
Saying you believe the Bible is true will not save you...
Listing yourself as a Christian on your Facebook profile will not save you...
Having perfect attendance at church and even inviting friends to church will not save you...
Walking down the aisle and saying the sinner’s prayer will not save you...
Uttering prophesy and casting out demons will not save you...
For all these things can be done while you still have a stone heart.
You can do all these things and still be a worker of lawlessness.
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In addition to confessing Jesus as Lord with your mouth you have to surrender to Him as Lord in your heart...
This is why I love no other verse in all of Scripture more than Romans 10:9-10:
9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
Jesus desires both your mind and your heart.
You are either all in or you are all out of hope.
Partial credit is not good enough...
Getting it half right is not good enough...
You are either all in for Jesus or you are a rebel and His enemy.
There is no middle ground.
There is no grey...
Only black and white...
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So if you claim to be a follower of Jesus...
Then I can promise you by the authority of Scripture...
You are making a practice of keeping His commands.
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Likewise, those of you who claim to be a follower of Jesus...
Yet, disregard His commands...
Well, by the authority of Scripture...
You are a liar...
And the truth is not in you...
So, I beg you...
Reconsider your life...
Reconsider your eternity...
Beg God to renew your heart...
Beg God to open your eyes and see His truth...
And He will change you...
That’s a promise from Scripture too.
As Jesus Himself said in John 6:37:
37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.
So, when God renews you mind...
You can’t help it but to walk like Christ...
And be more like Christ...
So, lets look at our final point.
5) Walking Like Him
5) Walking Like Him
Verses 5-6: But whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.
For those that keep God’s commands...
For those that have a relationship with Him...
The love of God is perfected or a better word to describe the meaning here may be “completed”...
So, the love of God is completed in that person.
God gives general grace to all His creation...
But for those who are His own...
He gives saving grace...
God has a general love for all His creation...
But for those who are His own..
He loves with a complete and perfect love.
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And for those individuals who Scripture calls:
Believers, Followers of Christ, Christians, and the Elect.
For His sheep they are marked by being those who walk in the same way as their Master.
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So, if you say you follow Christ then you will act Christ like.
If you are born-again you will talk like Christ.
If you are born-again you will think like Christ.
If you are born-again you will love like Christ.
If you are born-again you will walk like Christ.
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It only makes perfect sense, Church.
If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck.
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So, if a person talks like a Christian, thinks like a Christian, acts like a Christian, loves like a Christian...
Then he or she is probably a Christian.
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The negative of that statement is just as true.
If a person doesn’t talk like a Christian, doesn’t think like a Christian, doesn’t act like a Christian, doesn’t love like a Christian...
Then he or she is probably not a Christian.
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Beloved, how we live our lives really does reflect who our master is.
Other can see this as well and they are not being judgmental by pointing out the obvious.
Look at your life and see the truth...
What does your actions say about you..
Remember What James said in James 2:12-26:
12 So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty.
13 For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?
15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food,
16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?
17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!
20 Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless?
21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar?
22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works;
23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God.
24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.
25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?
26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.
If you have genuine saving faith then you will produce genuine good works.
But to claim to have faith and live wickedly is foolishness and a lie.
Obedience is always part of a believer’s life.
Closing Illustration
Closing Illustration
As this message comes to a close I want to share this.
“William Kyle Carpenter is the youngest living soldier to ever receive the Medal Of Honor.
Carpenter shielded his friend from a hand grenade that was thrown onto the rooftop they were based on in November 2010.
Both men survived thanks to Kyle.
Only 21 years old at the time, he without a second thought threw his body onto a live grenade resulting in him losing most of his teeth, his right eye, shattering his jaw and breaking his arm in a number of places.
Here is an excerpt from his Medal of Honor citation:
‘Lance Corporal Carpenter and a fellow Marine were manning a rooftop security position on the perimeter of Patrol Base Dakota when the enemy initiated a daylight attack with hand grenades, one of which landed inside their sandbagged position.
Without hesitation, and with complete disregard for his own safety, Lance Corporal Carpenter moved toward the grenade in an attempt to shield his fellow Marine from the deadly blast.
When the grenade detonated, his body absorbed the brunt of the blast, severely wounding him, but saving the life of his fellow Marine.
By his undaunted courage, bold fighting spirit, and unwavering devotion to duty in the face of almost certain death, Lance Corporal Carpenter reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service.’”
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Beloved, remember you were once in a vulnerable position too with a grenade called "God’s Wrath” right about to explode and damn you to an eternity in Hell...
But Jesus stepped in and took the on the full wrath of God the Father...
And because His sacrifice was accepted by God and death could not defeat Him...
We have a great hope if we surrender our lives to Jesus.
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If you are evaluating your life right know and realize that you are not in right standing with God than today is the day to turn to Him.
Don’t wait...
We are not guaranteed another breath.
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So, turn to Jesus and live!
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To God be all the glory.
Amen.
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Please join us for one more song from the Praise Band.