For our Scripture reading tonight, let's turn together to 2 Corinthians chapter 5. 2 Corinthians chapter 5, verses 11 through 21, which serves as background for the text, which we find in 1 John chapter 2. First of all, 2 Corinthians chapter 5, 11 to 21. Hear now the Word of God. Since then we know what it is to fear the Lord. We try to persuade men. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience. We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to take pride in us so that you can answer those who take pride in what is seen rather than in what is in the heart. If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God. If we are in our right mind, it is for you. For Christ's love compels us because we are convinced that one died for all and therefore all died. And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and was raised again. So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old is gone, the new has come. All this is from God who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. That God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors as though God were making His appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. And turning to 1 John 2, 1 John 2, considering the first six verses of this chapter, as we continue our series through the book of 1 John. You recall that John had just reminded them that whoever says that he is without sin or whoever says that he has committed no sin is a liar and the truth is not in him. And he also said that if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. And then we begin at verse 1 of chapter 2. My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense, Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for the sins of the whole world. We know that we have come to know Him if we obey His commands. The man who says, I know Him, but does not do what He commands, is a liar and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys His Word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in Him. Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did. Beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, what is your identity? What is it that identifies you? What are you identified with? You know that certain clubs or organizations or groups often have something that identifies the members of that group as being a part of that group. Maybe it's an article of clothing like a t-shirt. Maybe it's something else that identifies them. Gang members may wear a common bandana or have a common tattoo or have a particular symbol that they spray paint on other people's property to let everyone know that they are a part of this particular gang. A number of us here have license plate frames or sweatshirts or t-shirts that identify us with Calvin Christian School. Cadets and Gems have t-shirts, have shirts that identify them as part of those particular groups. Law enforcement officials are identifiable by their uniforms or their squad cars. The same is true with military personnel. Even if you go to a fast food restaurant like McDonald's, you can tell who it is that works there because they're identifiable by their uniform. But what about Christians? Is there something that identifies us to the world as being a part of the family of God and having fellowship with Him? You recall that John has introduced us to the truth of having fellowship with God, but there's also another truth that goes along with this as we considered last week. In verse 7, he made it clear that fellowship with God includes walking in the light even as He, even as God is in the light. And in the text before us tonight, John carries that idea a little bit further as we consider this Word of God, fellowship with God, demonstrated or evidenced by walking in the light. First of all, it is a walk made real by another. Secondly, it is a walk according to a particular standard. And third, it is a walk following a perfect example. Now, I must confess tonight that I've violated one of the things I was taught in seminary, which was when you announce a text, as I have done, verses 1 through 6, but then don't preach that text, you've lied to your congregation. Well, I need to tell you up front that I'm lying to you because we're only going to consider point 1 tonight. That's all we're going to have time for. And the Lord willing, well, point 1 then talks about the foundation of having that fellowship with God. A walk made real by another. And the Lord willing, next week, Sunday night, we'll consider the other two points, the other four verses of this text which get more into detail about what that walk looks like. So just point one tonight. Peter says that believers are those who have been called out of darkness into His wonderful or marvelous light. And John had reminded us a few verses earlier that it is impossible to walk in the light and walk in darkness at the very same time. It is an either-or, not a both-and situation. Remember again, John is not saying that believers are perfect, which he also points out in this text, but believers don't live in continual and habitual sin. They don't live lives that are in slavery to unrighteousness. That's included in what he means with regard to the first part of verse 1. My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. You see, John has a fatherly love for the believers he addresses, and it's as if he is shaking his finger at them and saying, You may not sin. I just reminded you, he says, that those who say that they are without sin, or say that they have not committed any sin, are liars. They deceive themselves. And lest some should think, well then, what's the big deal? Or it's not worth it. Or I may go on and sin that grace may abound. He says, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. That's John's idea. That is to be the attitude, the goal of the believer, not to sin. God's people are to put on the breastplate of righteousness and stand guard. The very fact that believers walk in the light means that they fight with all their might against sin. That's a given. That's to be natural for the child of God. But John makes it clear that the believer's walk in the light is a walk made real by another. And before giving positive proof of this, he speaks of our need in a negative way. But if anybody does sin, I write this to you so that you will not sin, but. if anyone, anybody does sin. You see, the ugly truth is sin is not simply a possibility in a believer's life. It's an actuality. And again, John is not talking about the continual habit of sin, but he's talking about acts of sin that we commit. And by the very fact that believers do sin, proves that our ability to walk in the light doesn't come from ourselves. It is the work of. it is made real by another. Again, beloved, that's the beauty of the Christian faith, which is the biblical faith. Not only does it show our need, but it also provides a way out. It is the only religion that provides a remedy for our desperate need. Listen to how John describes that other. Beginning in the middle of verse 1, But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense. Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for the sins of the whole world. Jesus Christ is the Righteous One. He is the One who speaks to the Father in our defense. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins. All of these things. This is Christ's three-fold qualification, which is to be to our benefit. Now, the NIV translates the Greek using what is called the dynamic equivalent. Some Bible versions literally use the word advocate in the place of the phrase, one who speaks in our defense, and propitiation for the atoning sacrifice. Dynamic equivalent is taking those words which could or should be in the text and giving their meaning to help us understand them a little bit better. But in other words, Jesus Christ is the righteous one. He is the advocate. He is the propitiation. But there is an important order here. Because Jesus Christ is the righteous one, only He could accomplish the atoning sacrifice. And because He has accomplished the atoning sacrifice, He alone has the right to speak to the Father in our defense. In other words, His defense of us depends upon His atoning sacrifice and His atoning sacrifice depends upon His righteousness. That's where it all must lead. That's from where it all flows, His righteousness. But John begins with Christ speaking to the Father in defense of the one who has sinned. Now we need to understand that John is writing here to believers. He's writing to those who are born again. Those already justified before the sight of God. Those already saved. And therefore, he is not saying that if a believer sins, that he needs to be saved all over again. The guarantee of salvation and eternal life belongs to every truly repented sinner who walks in the light. Indeed, the believer's sin hurts fellowship with God, but it does not destroy our sonship. It does not wipe out our adoption. The father-child relationship continues. Christ's sacrifice is forever secure. And that's our comfort congregation because of our comforter. The same word for one who speaks in our defense, for advocate, is also translated in Scripture as comforter or counselor speaking of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit speaks to us on behalf of Christ. Assuring us of being forgiven as we have sung so much already again tonight, even today. Also assuring us of our salvation, but also giving us the comfort of having an advocate who speaks to the Father on our behalf when we do sin. Paul describes this beautifully in Romans chapter 5, in verses 6 through 9. He points out that we are saved from the penalty of sin by Christ's death. And in verse 10, He points out that we are saved daily from the power of sin by His life. Romans 5, 6-10 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through Him? For if when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life? The Holy Spirit is also our comforter to encourage believers in the midst of a world that rejects Christ, to continue to stay the course, to stand firm. He continues to teach us about the sovereignty and the beauty and the majesty of God. He continues to train us and lead us in the way that we are to go. He continues to remind us of the truth of Jesus Christ and His saving work on our behalf. The Holy Spirit of God works on this earth in the life of the redeemed, but Jesus Christ works in heaven on behalf of the redeemed. Now boys and girls, we're talking about a courtroom, the courtroom in heaven. In a courtroom, there are always lawyers or attorneys. The Greek word here has the idea of one who offers legal aid or one who speaks on behalf of someone else. That doesn't have to be in a courtroom. Your older brother or sister might very well speak on your behalf, be your advocate, depending on the situation. But an advocate, we can say, is a defense attorney who defends one who is accused of a crime. Sin is a crime against the Holy God. and believers who are still sinners have an accuser, namely Satan, the devil. In Zechariah 3, we find that beautiful story about Joshua the high priest with filthy clothes that are taken off of him and he is then clothed in rich garments. We consider that a verse from there for our assurance of pardon this morning. That story describes what happens in justification. But the first verse of Zechariah 3 says, Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, again with filthy garments that represented his stain of sin, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. And as well in Revelation 12 we read about the woman, the child, and the dragon. The dragon is the ancient serpent called the devil or Satan. And after he is hurled down to earth, verse 10 says, Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ for the accuser of our brothers who accuses them before our God day and night has been hurled down. Beloved Satan, as it were, stands as a prosecuting attorney making the case against God's people. And if we are honest, we must confess that his case isn't hard to make. as we consider ourselves apart from Christ. His case isn't hard to make. We ourselves, with eyes opened by the Holy Spirit, see and recognize our daily sin. And Satan says, look, the evidence is clear. It's an open and shut case. And Satan may even appeal to the very Word of God, which says the soul that sins, it shall die. The crime and the punishment is all spelled out in black and white. There should be no question. And the devil may even work, beloved, to torment you and me by trying to tell us, you don't deserve to be saved. You don't deserve pardon. You're not good enough. But we believe. And we have the confidence that our sins are forgiven, past, present, and future. And that's because of our advocate, the one who speaks to the Father in our defense. Now, we need to understand that unlike many modern-day defense attorneys who say that their clients are being falsely charged, who say that they didn't do whatever they are accused of, Christ does not declare our innocence. But He really confesses our guilt. He really confesses our guilt. In the place, in our place, you see, He presents the innocence of another, of a substitute, of Himself. The ground and basis of Christ's speaking in our defense is His sacrifice. The text says He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Again, the Greek word here can be translated propitiation. That's one of those biblical theological words that we say, what in the world does that mean? But there's another theological term that goes side by side with propitiation and that's expiation. Now, strictly speaking, very simply, expiation is talking about the removal of the guilt of sin and propitiation is talking about the removal of God's wrath or anger because of sin. Now, to complicate things often in Scripture, the word propitiation has double duty. It's used for both. To mean the removal of guilt and the removal of wrath. And the question is, what does it mean here? Our Bibles use the phrase atoning sacrifice for our sins. And that obviously draws our attention to the Day of Atonement that we find especially recorded in Leviticus 16. There's so much we could consider with regard to Leviticus 16. But it particularly draws our attention to two goats. One served as a sin offering to the Lord. It was killed. Its blood was shed to symbolize payment for sin and the pacifying of God's wrath. The other goat was the scapegoat. The high priest was to lay hands on it and send it out into the desert, which symbolized the sins of the people being carried away. It symbolized the guilt being removed. The Day of Atonement with the sacrifice of atonement symbolized both the removal of man's guilt for sin and with the obstacle between the believer and God removed, then God's wrath is also removed. And therefore, fellowship can be restored. And I don't believe that we do any injustice to this text by understanding Christ's atoning sacrifice here as both. The complete package. But notice, the text says Jesus is the atoning sacrifice for our sins. He is the propitiation for our sins. You see, the high priest made propitiation for the people in the sense that he was the propitiator. And in order to do that, the high priest had to have a sacrifice in hand. A sacrifice, an animal sacrifice, which was the propitiation. But the difference is that Jesus Christ is not simply the one to make propitiation for us. He's not simply the propitiator. He is the propitiation. He is the one and only sacrifice. The blood of bulls and goats only pointed to His blood. Only the shedding of His very own blood could actually be the payment for our sins. Our Lord gave Himself. He gave. He is the high priest. He is the sacrificer. He is the propitiator. But He gave Himself. He is the sacrifice. He is the propitiation. And He stands before His Father in Heaven as our advocate and he doesn't claim that we are innocent, but he presents the sacrifice of himself and says, I became guilty for them. As Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5, He who became sin, I became sin for them. I served the time, eternal hell, for them. The payment is complete for them. Beloved, this is the testimony of Scripture. Isaiah prophesied about this long ago. But He was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed. And a little later, for He bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors. And again, Paul says in Romans 5, verse 8, but God demonstrates His own love for us in this. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. And the writer of Hebrews also makes it clear that Jesus Christ has the authority to serve as our advocate and intercede, speak to the Father on our behalf. And he tells us why in chapter 7, verses 25-27. Therefore He is able to save completely those who come to God through Him because He always lives to intercede for them. Such a high priest meets our need. One who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, He does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when He offered Himself. And a little bit later in Hebrews 9, verse 12, it says, He entered the most holy place once for all by His own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. Congregation, when we stop to consider the blood that Christ shed for all of our sins individually and corporately then it's no wonder that John can say I write this to you so that you will not sin. We cannot begin to understand and fathom the punishment that Christ suffered for our sin and praise be to God that we can't fathom that. But each forgiven sin is to make the next sin more difficult to commit. you see for us by God's grace it's new life in Christ we are a new creation as Paul says walking in the light of the truth of the word of God enjoying fellowship with him and that includes our comforter the Holy Spirit being busy applying Christ's saving work to our hearts and lives Hebrews 9 verse 14 says how much more than will the blood of Christ who through the eternal spirit offered himself unblemished to God cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death so that we may serve the living God. Beloved, we are so rich. That's what one of you said to me this morning after we considered baptism and the beauty of God's promise. We are so rich. We take that for granted. But we have eternal riches that can never be taken away from us. The blood of Jesus Christ which wipes out all of our sin. And we are given new life in Him. And we have fellowship with none other than Almighty God. Paul speaks of restored fellowship with the Father in Ephesians 2 verse 13 when he says, But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. Beloved, this is the result of Christ's saving sacrifice. And what is then the extent of that sacrifice? Well, John adds, and not only for ours, but also for the sins of the whole world. Now, as you can imagine, this verse is understood differently depending upon one's spiritual background. Maybe some of you have come to understand this differently throughout your life. But very simply, John is not saying that Jesus has paid for the sins of every single person in the world. Some would like it to say that. And indeed, it should be our desire that all would believe. But the Bible is clear that not all do or not all will believe on Him. And Jesus Christ, the Bible says, did not die for every single person. In John 17, His high priestly prayer, Jesus prays, I am not praying for the world, but for those who have given Me, for they are yours. And then a little later, He makes it clear that He wasn't only praying for His disciples, but He was indeed praying for all believers. I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their message. Indeed, there is no other salvation than Christ possible for the world. That is, there is no other option. There is nothing else that will do. And as we're familiar with the saying, His atoning sacrifice is sufficient for the whole world. If God had chosen to save every single person, Christ would not have shed one more drop of blood. But it is only effective for those who hear the Gospel throughout the length and breadth of the world by the grace of God and become His disciples. Congregation, who is it that may have confidence that Jesus Christ speaks to the Father on their behalf, defending them with His own precious blood? As Paul says in Romans, whoever calls on the name of the Lord. But there's one more qualification that we need to consider, a qualification which qualifies Jesus to be the advocate and to be the propitiation, the qualification that ties it all together and that is because He is the Righteous One. Only one who is perfectly righteous could keep the law of God perfectly in our place and only one who is perfectly righteous could be our substitute and take our punishment for sin. Jesus Christ could be the sacrifice for our sin because He didn't need a sacrifice for His own sin. And the reason that Christ is able to successfully defend His people in the court of heaven is not because He is a great speaker with all the right things to say, not because He is the great debater, not because He was a good moral example. All these things are true, of course. But He is able to successfully defend His people in the court of heaven because He is the one and only righteous one who has done all that is necessary to clear our names. He was righteous in our place. And therefore, not only is our sin forgiven, but His righteousness is freely given to His people in order that we might once again have fellowship with the Father. Beloved, God's people walk in the light because our Lord Jesus Christ rescued us from the darkness of sin. And even today, for those who do sin and confess their sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive their sins because our Savior stands before His Father with His sacrifice of Himself always before His Father's eyes. And He defends His people. He says, I already paid for those sins. They are free. They belong to Me. Those who reject the Lord Jesus Christ reject any hope of being reconciled with God. They reject any hope of being saved from punishment for their sin in the depths of hell. The world doesn't understand this. But they must be told. Beloved, where do you place your hope? You see, only Jesus Christ is our solid rock. Only He is our sure foundation. Only He can and will defend us before His Heavenly Father because of who He is and what He has done. We have fellowship with God and walk in the light of His truth only because of another Jesus Christ who has satisfied all righteousness in our place and paid for our guilt. He has purchased us. And therefore, our identity is that with body and soul, both in life and in death, we belong to Him. May the world see that we are identified with Christ. Amen. Shall we pray? Dear Heavenly Father, today has been a day once again as we have considered Your Holy Word. A day in which You have reminded us so vividly and so powerfully of why we enjoy fellowship with You. Of why we have all of our sins forgiven. Of why we have the hope of eternal life, salvation full and free. And that is because of another, only one other, Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. Indeed, O Lord, we praise You as we consider the fact of what it is that we have deserved. We deserve to be cast away from You forever. We stand in awe of Your mercy and Your grace that You have chosen a people for Yourself and even more so that You have revealed Yourself to each one of us personally that we might be included in the company of the elect unto life eternal. O Heavenly Father, may we never become arrogant in this life. May we never become proud and thinking that all that we enjoy, we enjoy because of ourselves. But may we always remember that all that we have is a precious gift from Your hand, especially salvation, full and free. Hear our prayer for Jesus' sake and in His name. Amen.