My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. 3 We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. 4 Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.
Today’s passage is like a summary of the Gospel of John. For God so loved the world…. He is the lamb of God…..
If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.
John 15:10
You are my friends if you do what I command.
John 15:14
We are in desperate need of an advocate. Thank God Jesus came for the lost and the sick. He became the atonement of sin for us. We don’t have the fellowship of God with the purity of our works but by having an advocate with the Father.
One of the tests in the epistle for whether we are in fellowship with God is found in verse 5, Obeying His Word. We love God by obeying His words. Otherwise, we are just saying we love God while we truly don’t.
Are we living in Him? We must live as Jesus did. John knows what he was talking about. He saw how Jesus lived and is encouraging us to live the same way.
Yes, it isn’t easy but we must.
Yes, it isn’t easy but we have the Holy Spirit in us.
Yes, it isn’t easy but we have the same power that raises Jesus from the dead in us.
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