My little children, I write these things to you so that you may not sin. If anyone sins, we have a Counselor with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous. 1 John 2:1 WEB
As Christians, we have a Counselor in the Holy Spirit to help us in understanding the will of God and avoiding sin. Here, John refers to Jesus as a Counselor. In this sense, Jesus is our intercessor. He is our advocate between us as sinful men and God our Father. To be clear, John teaches that Chistians should not sin. But, in the case that a believer does sin, he reassures the faithful that Jeus still intercedes on our behalf.
It is the grace of God and not our actions that saves us from sin. However, Jesus calls us out of the world to live in the Spirit and reject sin. The Lord teaches in Matthew 7:21, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. WEB” And of course, God desires that we repent and live as Christ lived free from sin.
Should We Continue to Sin?
This message that we have a Counselor in Christ is not permission to sin. It is encouragement for any believer that on occasion backslides into sinful behavior. The grace of God is not overwhelmed by our error when we sincerely admit our fault and repent. Paul teaches in Romans 6:1-2, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? May it never be! We who died to sin, how could we live in it any longer? WEB”
When confronted for her sin of adultery, Jesus defended a woman lost in sin. After forgiving her, Christ instructs the woman in John 8:11, “Go your way. From now on, sin no more. WEB” Similarly, after finding a man he healed at the temple, Jesus said to him in John 5:14, “Behold, you are made well. Sin no more, so that nothing worse happens to you. WEB” This statement indicates that there are negative consequences to continued sinfulness.
Keep His Commandments
And so, after finding salvation in Christ, should we continue to sin? The answer is simple, no. If we do find momentarily relapse into sin, the good news is that we have a counselor that intercedes on our behalf with God. We have a counselor that defends us against the accusation of sin. We have Jesus to reestablish righteousness in our hearts and our right standingn with God.
John continues to teach on the righteousness of Christ and the sincerity of those who claim to follow him. Although a true believer falls short and may sometimes sin, living an unrepentant sinful lifestyle is a sign that the truth of Christ is not in a person. John writes in 1 John 2:3-4, “This is how we know that we know him: if we keep his commandments. One who says, ‘I know him,’ and doesn’t keep his commandments, is a liar, and the truth isn’t in him. WEB”
Prayer: ‘Father God, thank you for the truth of your holy word. Thank you that we have a Counselor in Jesus Christ. Guide me with your Holy Spirit to do your will. Give me strength and wisdom to follow your commandments. In Jesus’ name – Amen”
Yesterday’s Devotional: I Am Sending You
