Sermon Tone Analysis

Intro

Do you ever feel like you’re not good enough?

You feel burdened, beaten up over failure or perceived failure—you can just never do anything right!!??

I want you to know that you are in good company, and that you will find your greatest hope in remembering what Jesus Christ has done for you.

You’re in good company because John is continuing his letter to “my little children...” Do you see the tone with which he writes?

This is a tone of love and compassion.

Look at how he views them.

Then he tells them he is writing “these things” for this the purpose that they might not sin.

These things he has been teaching are genuine fellowship with God, what walking in the light is, revealing the condition and behavior of sin that plagues every person.

He wants them to know all of this so that they might not sin.

But if anyone does sin… Here is a recognition of the spiritual warfare which with every person struggles.

This is the reality.

There might have been those who were hearing this letter who were in sin and feeling the guilt of their sin, they were wrestling with accepting the promise of God’s forgiveness that John just wrote about and now they are at that point where they are wondering if they are ever going to be able to live up to this calling in Christ.

Maybe you feel the same way.

What John reveals about Jesus’ ongoing work for you even right now at this moment should be the most encouraging work you’ll ever hear about.

It will remind you that your faith in Christ is an ongoing relationship where He is faithfully completing that good work in you.

God is active in your life daily even if you’re not thinking much about it.

Today I want to talk about propitiation, a word we probably don’t use much but is a robust theological word.

And I want to talk about this great promise: Jesus Christ is your advocate!

An advocate is “a person who speaks or writes in support or defense of a person, cause, etc.” (dictionary.com).

We have advocates for many things in life: health advocates, disabilities advocates, legal advocates.

But little children, if anyone does sin, “we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”

I want to tell you two facts this morning: why we need an advocate, and why Jesus can be our advocate.

WHY WE NEED AN ADVOCATE

At the end of verse 1, the advocate is named and ranked, so to speak.

It is Jesus Christ the righteous, and He is with the Father.

“He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.

After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,” (, ESV)

“But from now on the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God.”” (, ESV)

(ESV)

“What then shall we say to these things?

If God is for us, who can be against us?

He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect?

It is God who justifies.

Who is to condemn?

Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?

Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?

As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

(, ESV)

31 What then shall we say to these things?

If God is for us, who can be against us?

32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect?

It is God who justifies.

34 Who is to condemn?

Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?

Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?

36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We know that Jesus Christ ascended back to heaven and is now at the right hand of the Father.

At the same time, tells us that Satan is the accuser of the brother.

He is constantly coming against Christians.

He is accusing us before God the father by holding our sins against us.

At the same time, tells us that Satan is the accuser of the brethren.

He is constantly coming against Christians.

He is accusing us before God the father by holding our sins against us.

Satan is unrolling his endless scroll of charges against us.

Maybe he’s talking about you right now.

Maybe he’s talking about me.

He’s reminding God of our past sins.

He’s highlighting our present sins.

He’s questioning our motives.

He’s suggesting and speculating and slandering and accusing.

He’s saying smooth, believable things like, “Does Job fear God for no reason?

Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side?

You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.

But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face” ().

We cannot defend ourselves.

Mainly because Satan is right — we have broken God’s law excessively and we deserve severe punishment.

And because even though there are some areas where Satan’s accusations are false (like he falsely accused Job of having selfish motives), we aren’t there to defend ourselves.

This is why we feel so beaten up, this constant warfare.

This feeling that we are never enough.

Because Satan is accusing us still of our sin, trying to hold it over us and paralyze us from being effective in the work of God.

Satan is unrolling his endless scroll of charges against us.

Maybe he’s talking about you right now.

Maybe he’s talking about me.

He’s reminding God of our past sins.

He’s highlighting our present sins.

He’s questioning our motives.

He’s suggesting and speculating and slandering and accusing.

He’s saying smooth, believable things like, “Does Job fear God for no reason?

Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side?

You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.

But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face” ().

And we aren't there to defend ourselves, but even if we were, we have nothing to stand on without our Advocate.

This is why we need an advocate.

Because we are constantly being accused by Satan and we need someone who is worthy enough to stand before God in our defense.

The Greek word for advocate is παράκλητος paráklētos (par-A-clate-ose), which you might recognize if you're familiar with the older language of the King James version.

It's a form of the word Paraclete, which is used in by Jesus referring to the Holy Spirit.

Jesus said that he would send another helper, and that word "another" means one of equal quality.