-September 25, 2020-
Good morning, happy Friday,
-We Have An Advocate With The Father-
“My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”
(1 John 2:1).
God loved us so much as to send His one and only Son, His unique Son, His well beloved Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins. He took our place on the cross and bore our sins in His own body, and paid our sin debt in full. He then rose from the dead and ascended back to heaven and is now seated at the right hand of God.
Jesus Christ is our Advocate with the Father. His wounds plead our case. An advocate is defined as “one who pleads the cause of another, specifically: one who pleads the cause of another before a tribunal or judicial court; one who defends or maintains a cause or proposal; one who supports or promotes the interests of a cause or group.” We have so many different advocates in the world, such as attorneys, and advocates for all different kinds of causes, such as women’s rights, family rights, homeless rights, racial rights, animal rights, and a whole slew of other causes. An advocate represents others, defends them, speaks on their behalf to promote their cause and their rights and maintain them.
Jesus Christ is our Advocate. When we sin, He pleads on our behalf by showing His wounds. The devil is our adversary and is called the accuser of the brethren. The Lord defeats him each and every time. He has never lost a case nor will He ever lose one. There is no one else we could want on our side. He intercedes for us with the Father. In human terms, Jonathan, the son of Saul, tried his best to advocate for David to his father but even that didn’t work. Saul was out to kill David but the Lord was his Advocate and protected him.
John tells us “these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. If anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” God wants us not to sin, and we don’t want to either, but there times that we do. We still have the old nature and we can fall into sin. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” David was forgiven for his sins of adultery and murder; Jonah was forgiven for his sin of disobedience in his running away from his mission of preaching to the people of Nineveh; Peter was forgiven for denying Jesus three times. These are just a few examples.
There are two types of forgiveness in the Bible: the first type of forgiveness is judicial. God as judge forgives our sins once and for all through the death and resurrection of Christ. Our sins are washed in His blood. The second type of forgiveness is parental. God as our Father forgives us when we confess our sins and restores the relationship we have with Him that was affected by our sin. A son may do wrong and sin against his father, but he is still his son and the father is still his father. The father doesn’t banish him from the family. We are sons of God forever through Jesus Christ. The word restored is such a beautiful one.
Let us rejoice that we have the Lord Jesus Christ as our Advocate. He intercedes for us, defends us, represents us, and most of all loves us with an everlasting love. When we sin, let us immediately confess it, repent of it, and forsake it. We all know how we feel when we as believers sin and that intimate fellowship is broken. We also know the joy of being forgiven and restored.
Have a blessed day under the advocacy of Christ. There is no better security and comfort than being in close personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Stay safe and healthy.
Dean
Dean Allen's Daily Devotional 