My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.
And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.
1 John 2:1-6
In light of His great love for us, we should not sin. We do not abstain because of fear of torment. We abstain because of our love for Him. Precious Jesus is our Advocate. Why would we want to sin against such a beautiful, compassionate One? This appeal speaks to our hearts and when we see Him clearly, sin loses its luster.
Our love manifests in obedience. When I love someone, I do all I can to avoid hurting them. This relationship between imperfect humans and a perfect God is peculiar, because He is the one who sustains everything. So our challenge is not to strive to obey because our self-righteousness pleases Him. Obedience flows out of trust. When we disobey, we place trust in ourselves and commit the sin of pride. Our trust and focus then turn inward, away from Jesus. Our faith in His goodness falters as we shift our gaze from His cross to our faults.
Praise Him, there is no sin His blood is powerless to wash away! His sacrifice swallowed up the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2). So let us walk as children of Light because that is what we are. May our actions reflect the reality of what Christ has finished in us.
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