Our Advocate

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. — 1 John 2:1-2 NLT

An Advocate is one who comes alongside another person in times of need in order to speak for or help them. In legal terms, this can be a lawyer or a barrister who is professionally qualified to plead the cause of another in a court of law. 

I take some interest in courtroom TV dramas such as Suits, Perry Mason, Bull, The Lincoln Lawyer to mention a few. I’m often fascinated by how both the prosecution and defence attorneys present their cases, twisting and picking holes in the witnesses’ statements. Victory is not often based on evidence but on how prepared and “smart” the prosecuting and defence attorneys are.

The work of Jesus as our Advocate is synonymous with the work of the Holy Spirit in us. They both come alongside us to help us in our times of need and trouble. The name Jesus Christ communicates that He can sympathise with us and anointed by God to plead the case of someone who has sinned. The fact that He is “the Righteous One” means that He is pure, holy and without sin. This also means that He Himself has no need of an advocate, and so He is perfectly qualified to represent us.

God has graciously made provision for us in the event that we fail and miss the mark. This is expressed in the verse, “…if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous…” As stated above, an advocate, just like the Holy Spirit, is one who comes alongside another person in times of need to help them. This is exactly what the Lord Jesus Christ does for us when we sin. He immediately comes to our aid to restore us to fellowship with Himself and the Father.

All sinful act is contrary to the nature of God. When we truly and fully grasp the truth that “…God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all’ 1 John 1:5 (NKJV), we will be careful to avoid sinning. But the reality is that, even the most determined believers still find that they now and again struggle with sin. The apostle John, however, reassures us that we have an Advocate, Jesus Christ, the Righteous who pleads our case before the Father.

I find the verse, “… if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father…” very interesting. God is still our Father even if we sin. Though sin breaks fellowship with the Father, it does not break our relationship with Him.

When a person is born again, he or she becomes a child of God. And from that time onwards, God becomes his or her Father, and nothing can ever break or affect that relationship. We cannot undo a birth. A son or daughter may bring shame and disgrace to their father, but they are still a son or daughter by the fact of their birth.

We have this confidence that the blood of Jesus covers every charge that Satan brings against us.

Stay blessed,

LaraLex