1 John 2:1-2

Yesterday we held our sword fighting group and had about 12 boys show up. No dads stayed, again, but that is okay...I was able to join in the fun and at this point I think I'll just plan on having a great time with the boys every time! :)

Well it was a surprise that it has taken this long, but we had one of the boys wounded by a spear thrust that led to a visit to the ER and four stitches! The cut was right above the eye so it was a completely accidental hit (head shots are not allowed)! This happened right at the end of the gathering and the young man is fine and now holds bragging rights (who else can say their scar comes from a spear thrust?).

Below is the lesson we had at midpoint...I planned to teach through verse 6 but you know how those things go!

1 John 2

Throughout this book we see the theme of love, of why we love, and of how our spiritual life should be if we claim to know the love of God. In the first couple of verses we will look at today, we have the testimony of John regarding the most beautiful act of love ever known, the work of Christ on the cross!

Read 1 John 2:1-2

We see here in verse 1 that Jesus is our Advocate before the righteous anger of God.

What is an advocate? (discuss)

So what does it mean that He is our Advocate?

What kind of advocate would you want?

See the end of verse 1...”Jesus Christ the Righteous”

You don’t want an advocate with a bad reputation right?

Wow look at verse 2)
What does the word “propitiation” mean?

1. The act of appeasing the wrath and conciliating the favor of an offended person; the act of making propitious.
2. (Theol.) That which propitiates; atonement or atoning sacrifice; specifically, the influence or effects of the death of Christ in appeasing the divine justice, and conciliating the divine favor. (source: Webster’s Dictionary)

Let us not deceive ourselves, we DESERVE the judgment and censure of the Father. El Shaddai, God Almighty, is a holy God. The stain of sin which we are born with is an offense to Him who is Perfect.

But this book tells us that Jesus, God in the flesh, chose to die the wretched death of the cross FOR US! Therefore, when the Father looks upon us, He sees the cleansing that was brought about by Jesus, whom the Word of God refers to as our propitiation.

Think about this: Jesus died because only He could pay the penalty for sin. And the Father demonstrated His love also by determining to send Jesus for this purpose. To save us!

In fact, we see the first prophetic words regarding Jesus way back in Genesis 3:15, with what is commonly referred to as the Proto-Gospel.

Allow me to take the soap box for a moment and mention the following: I have mentioned the above because I want to so clearly show you how much God loves us. Salvation is His work. Never underestimate the power of His love.

Yet, how do we thank our Lord? So many people, even within the church, think it is enough to believe in Jesus. They overlook the part about serving Him.

Remember James 2:19 "You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe -- and tremble!"

Think back to what we do when we are not in church. What kind of programs do we watch on TV? Are they honoring to Him? Think about the books we are willing to read, or the jokes we are willing to hear and to tell!

Do they fit the words of Philippians 4:8?

If not, why do we continue to watch, to read, and to hear and tell those things? Why do we resemble the world so much? Remember that not only is God holy, he calls us to be likewise.

In Leviticus 11:44 we read the following: "For I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy."

And in case someone were to correctly point out that this was a message to the Israelites in the desert, I want to point you as well to 1 Peter 1:13-16, where the Apostle says "Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, 'Be holy, for I am holy.'"

Where in the OT do you think Peter is quoting from?

Anyhow, more on this the next time we meet…I just want us to keep these thoughts as we continue in our study of God's Word.

Close in Prayer