1 John 2 Commentary
Saints shouldn’t sin, for starters. But if they sin, they have an advocate with the Father – Jesus Christ. Sin isn’t cheap. There is a legal process behind each repentance.
The saint who sins is guilty; no question about this fact. Forgiveness is only possible because of the legal representations made by the Righteous One – The LORD Jesus Christ.
John suggests a repentance that happens in real-time for the saint. Yes, there is one that happens at the beginning which admits one into the family of believers. But there are several instances of repentance during the saint’s walk with Christ – it could be thought of as a maintenance fee!
We have several references to the term “remain” in this chapter. Maintain your position, hence maintenance. Maintenance is achieved through the legal effort of the Advocate.
But don’t think of the saint as a defaulter. By design, he is never high-maintenance. An occasional stray thought is quickly regretted and repented. A wrong footing in the forbidden land is quickly reversed in tears.
Their sins have been forgiven. They have known the Father from the beginning. They are strong and have overcome evil. John’s poetic mind has put together the perfect picture of the saint! His audience is on God’s side. Never mind the pretenders who never “belong to us”.
Love God, that’s John’s message. Love each other – a new command from the Master. But never love the world or anything in the world. “Anything” includes money. If love means obedience (If you love me obey my commands), then we suspect loving money may mean obeying the evil demands of money.
Money talks. Don’t obey it. It’s a god with a loud mouth. The saint should know the difference. The lust of the flesh (feelings), the lust of the eyes (good phones, cars…), and the pride of life (status, fame…self-importance) – come not from the Father but from the world.
More resources visit http://www.lovingscripture.com
LOVING SCRIPTURE 