READ: I John 2:1-2 John is explaining the function of Jesus for us as Christians.

He is already assuming the readers salvation through Jesus. Jesus is the only way and the only Savior as John teaches in Chapter 1. Now he is explaining that after we have accepted Jesus as Savior he continues to work on our behalves. Verse one expects us as Christians to stop sinning but at the same time understands that we will continue to sin. Ongoing or repetitive sin can be a great discouragement to a Christian as a feeling of persistent failure begins to develop toward your relationship with God. ~ Do you ever find it difficult to continue to have patience, either with yourself or others, when dealing with an ongoing or repetitive sin? John is explaining to the church that there is grace for us when we sin. We can go to God through Jesus, ask for and receive forgiveness of our sin, and continue to follow Jesus. Jesus does not deny our sin but makes the argument that we have believed in and received him and his sacrifice as our own. Because of this we have received his righteousness as our own and when we come to God through Jesus the advocate, God sees us as he sees Jesus. We see this idea explained another way in Galatians 3:26-27 (clothed with Christ) Think about the image of clothing. We still use clothing to distinguish groups of people. Sports teams wear the same uniforms, people in the military wear uniforms, police men & women wear uniforms, doctors wear scrubs or white coats, etc. Clothing groups of people in similar ways helps us to know who is on the same team, who is in charge in a situation, who can help us. Think about this: If you were taken to the ER and a guy in Bermuda shorts and a tank top came into your room and began examining you, would you feel confident? Probably not! Even if this guy was the best in his field and the perfect person to help you, because he was not clothed properly you would not trust him the same. We expect certain people to be clothed in certain ways. A Doctors uniform tells us we can listen to him or her because they have the right qualifications to help us. This is the idea of being clothed with Christ. When we as Christians approach God with a need for forgiveness (or anything else) we are coming with the uniform of Christ on. We have on the right clothing to come before God. This immediately tells God that we belong to him. We have a right to approach. We are a member of the family. We have been qualified by Jesus. Clothing us in His righteousness is one way the Jesus advocates for us. Lets look closer at the role of an advocate.

Advocate - One that pleads the cause of another; One that defends another; One that supports or promotes the interests of another. We see the office of advocate in the priests of the Old Testament. They were the gobetweens for people. They had strict codes of behavior and preparation to go through before they could approach God on behalf of the people. And underlining the idea of clothing again; priests literally had garments that had been made to specifications given by God that they put on before they entered the temple to make sacrifices for the sins of the people. They took the peoples sin, approached God with it, made the appropriate sacrifices and then asked for and received Gods forgiveness on behalf of all of the people. The priests performed this work repeatedly, year in and year out. They were pictures of Christ and what he would do on the cross with finality. This is why Jesus is sometimes called our High Priest in the New Testament. We see this in: Hebrews 1:3 (Jesus is portrayed as seated at the right hand, having finished his work) Hebrews 4:14-16 (high priest on our behalf, approach boldly) Hebrews 8:1-3 (high priest who serves in the tabernacle) Jesus role as advocate mirrored the role of the high priests as advocates. However, he finished the work that they had to repeatedly perform. Your actual salvation does not need to be constantly re-done even in the face of sin. Instead, being convicted of sin, repenting of sin and receiving forgiveness for sin is a constant process in the life of a Christian which is what John is saying in verse one. Exploring the advocate role of Jesus a bit further: Romans 8:31-34 (interceding for us and for us) Ephesians 1:20-22 (he is seated with all things under his feet) After Jesus death and resurrection he spent some time on earth with his disciples. He then ascended into heaven and is shown and referred to afterward as seated at Gods right hand. This is significant in that is shows a couple of things: 1. Jesus has Gods complete favor and power. The right hand was a place of significance. By seating Jesus at his right hand he is placing all of his own authority and power on Jesus. This is the physical symbol of His words at Jesus baptism, This is my son in whom I am well pleased. Jesus is seated. This is significant in that it shows his work is finished. He does not need to do anything further to provide us with what we need.

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All things are under his feet. This is significant as it shows that there is nothing in all of creation, heaven or earth that is more powerful or has more authority than Jesus Christ.

Have you ever wished you had someone on your side? Have you ever been in a situation in which you felt you were all alone? Have you ever needed and longed for someone to come to your defense or speak up on your behalf, to take your side? Now consider all weve talked about. Jesus has advocated for our salvation by becoming the righteous sacrifice. Jesus continues to advocate for us for forgiveness of any sin we may commit as well as for any other need we may have. He is forever for us! Jesus intercedes on our behalf with God and moves on our behalf in all power and authority. He is always, constantly and consistently on our side. In light of this: ~ What does is it mean to you to have an advocate? ~ Will thinking of Jesus as your advocate change the way you approach God?

In verses 1 & 2 John is teaching that because we are Christians and know Jesus, he is our advocate. In verses 3-6 he begins to deal with an issue that is important to all Christians; how do we know who is really a Christian and who isnt? READ: I John 2:3-6 Remember the Ephesian culture was very similar to our own. Every religion and belief system was tolerated. Most people worshipped many gods or mixed religious teachings to their own liking. So, when Christianity came along claiming one God and one way it was a radical departure from the status quo. And it was a constant temptation for new Christian believers to add Jesus to their already existing religious practices. This is why John says, The man who says I know him but does not obey him is a liar.

The hallmark of a Christian life, a true follower of Jesus is obedience. Jesus himself taught this: Matthew 28:20 - (The great commission, Jesus instructs them to teach obedience) Luke 11:28 - (blessed are those who obey Gods word) John 14:23-24 - (if you love me, you will obey me) John makes a defining statement in verse 4 when he calls someone who claims Jesus but does not obey him a liar. Claiming Jesus is easy. Who wouldnt want to follow him? He was miraculous, he taught love, he forgave, he died for people who spit on him. Jesus is an admirable figure. However, claiming him alone just doesnt cut it when it comes to real Christianity. Real Christianity is not proved with words it is proved with actions. ~ Do you see any of this claiming to know Jesus going on in our own culture? ~ Have you known someone who claimed Christ but their obedience to him didnt seem to match their words? ~ Do you ever feel pressure to accept someone as a follower of Christ based on their verbal claim even though you are sure their actions dont add up? In light of the first two verses of the chapter John is not now teaching that perfection is required of the Christian. Our obedience will not be perfect. But our obedience should be EVIDENT. Learning to obey God and his word is literally a life-long process. And during that process, a Christians obedience should grow and stretch.

Think about your kids for a minute. Children grow and develop at different rates. For the first couple of years of your childs life, their physical growth and development is astounding. Growing out of clothes every few months is the norm. Then, they reach a point where that physical growth becomes a little slower and their mental growth begins to expand. Counting, numbers, letters, ordering objects, games, etc. all become parts of your childs routine. At some point their emotional growth begins to kick in. They can identify with anothers feelings and show compassion or fairness. Growth in any of these areas is a sign of health in your child. But what if your childs growth was stunted in some way? If the same clothes fit them at 15 that fit them at 5 something is wrong. Or if they are unable to identify colors or recognize letters when they should. Instead of spending your time carpooling

and running them to dance or soccer or piano you are going to spend your time in doctors offices and hospitals trying to find the cause of the delay or the deformity. It would be a sad state for your child. You would not want it for them. You want to see growth in your kids because it is evidence of health. The same thing is true of us as Christians. Our obedience should not look the same after 10 or 20 years of following Christ as it did when we first were saved. Our obedience should stretch and grow just as our childrens physical bodies do. This is a sign of health. And just like when our kids bodies grow, there may be some growing pains along the way. We are not always pleasant when we are growing or being stretched but we are HEALTHY! ~ Do you think obedience is a popular truth? ~ Why do you think so many people fail to recognize that refusing to obey could be the very thing stunting their growth as a Christian? ~ Verse 6 instructs that we must walk as Jesus did, what do you think this means? God does not consider everyone who claims to follow him an actual follower. And conveniently, he gives us the measuring stick of obedience for our own lives as well as to discern false claims of Christ. READ: I John 2:7-8 John is making sure his readers understand that obedience to God is nothing new. It has not been invented by John or the other disciples as a means of controlling the church. We have already seen that Jesus himself taught obedience and if you go all the way back to the Old Testament you see obedience to God as non-negotiable. The beautiful new truth is that you are not alone in trying to obey. Now you have an advocate, Jesus, who gives you the power and ability to do what pleases God. Philippians 2:13 - (God is at work in you to accomplish his purposes) John returns to his image of darkness and light in verse 8 making the case that because Jesus the light has come, the darkness of the world is fading away. This can be taken in two ways. 1. John is speaking in a large sense about the gospel of Jesus spreading throughout the world and conquering darkness wherever it is preached and received.

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This can be taken in a personal sense as an image of the growth and progression of your faith and obedience to Christ. The darkness of sin and your old ways of behavior and thinking are gradually but steadily giving way to the newness of Christ in you.

~ How have you seen this principle of gradual growth take place in your own life? ~ How are you different now than you were at the time of your salvation? READ: I John 2:9-11 John is now giving another tried and true test for Christianity - our attitude toward others. He has already dealt with the greatest commandment as Jesus gave it: Matthew 22;37-38 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. when he taught on obedience. Now he is dealing with the second part of Jesus teaching: And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. Verses 9-11 are not necessarily dealing with forgiving someone who has offended or cheated or hurt you. Instead they are dealing with a prevailing attitude of hatred for or prejudice against an individual or group of people.

The church in the New Testament, as now, was a mixed group of people. People who would never otherwise meet together were now to consider each other family. People from every walk of life in a given community were in a congregation together. Every individual congregation would be made up of some who were rich, some who were poor, some who were highly educated and some who were not educated at all. There were those who had come from backgrounds that were downright shameful and those who were considered people to know. There were people who had been taught a lifestyle of depending on others for help and those who were independent and hard working. There were multiple races and even slaves and slave owners in the same congregations. The thing uniting all of these folks was Jesus and obedience to his teaching to love each other.

This teaching goes down hard sometimes as all of us have some prejudices. You may like to consider yourself prejudice free but it is a human condition and NOT limited to racial prejudice, though it includes that. Consider this: if you are hard working and have sacrificed to find success, it may not be easy for you to accept as an equal brother or sister someone who lives off of others and feels no shame in that. Or, if you are uneducated and have made your way using your wits you may consider someone with degrees and letters behind their name as a prideful know it all and it might be hard for you to accept that person with love. Most of these prejudices exist in us without us being aware of them. They are cultural. We may have even learned them in our family homes. Without effort to do the opposite, we just naturally look down on someone who does not come from the same system that we do. But John is teaching that this kind-of hatred cannot exist in the church. If someone continues to persist in these prejudicial attitudes they are not a true follower of Christ. They are still in darkness and are going to stumble about trying to be a Christian. ~ Can you think of any natural prejudices that exist in our culture at large that could easily be in the church? ~ Have you ever had to face a prejudice in yourself that the Holy Spirit revealed to you? This issue then also becomes one of obedience. We must love our brothers & sisters in Christ. We cannot excuse our hatred or prejudice away by saying things like: Ive always been this way or my dad (or grandpa, or mom, or whoever) always said or some people you just cant trust or I love others, just not them.

Loving any and all brothers & sisters in Christ is another measuring stick to test true Christianity. Recognizing an attitude in ourselves that despises a group of people or an individual requires us to repent. Then, we must treat our fellow Christians with the love of Christ even if it takes awhile for our feelings to catch up. Treat them as the Bible instructs us to treat each other before you feel like doing it. Then continue to submit your feelings and attitudes to Christ so his power can begin to change you. ~ Do you think that this teaching means God expects us to like everyone the same regardless of personality quirks & differences? Looking again at verse 11, John uses the image of stumbling about in the dark to explain what a persons spiritual life is like if they are full of hatred for other Christians.

He seems to be portraying a person who is trying to make progress but is confused, befuddled and mixed up instead. Just as refusal to obey can stunt growth in a person so can hatred. Johns teachings on obedience and hatred are tests of true Christianity. They allow us to accurately discern true followers of Christ from those who are not even though they might claim to be. After all of this teaching on how to know who isnt right, John takes a few verses to encourage the church. READ: I John 2:12-14 These verses are written like a poem or possibly a song. They bring to mind a Psalm. It is interesting to note a couple of things about these verses. 1. There are three categories of people in the church John writes to: dear children, fathers & young men. He is probably not addressing actual people or the people these descriptions fit. Instead he is addressing people who are at differing stages of their development in Christ. Dear children would equal the newly converted and those still young in their faith. Young Men would equal those who have learned the basics of Christianity and are making progress in their faith. Fathers would equal those mature in their faith and possibly even other leaders in the churches. This is a unique way to show different stages of growth that we all go through. John wants to encourage all of the believers no matter what age they are. He is pointing out to them how far they have come. He places this encouragement after many strong, no middle ground teachings. This is a picture of Gods nature. Even when we are in need of discipline or correction, when it is over he longs to refresh and restore us as his own.

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~ What do you find especially encouraging?