Day 9                                                  Propitiation                                                           1 John 2:1,2

1 ¶  My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

2  And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

             My father was not one to give spiritual advice.  He didn’t come to know Christ until much later in his life.  He did teach me how to drive.  I remember many lessons that he shared with me as he was observing me driving by the “Braille system.”  One lesson he shared,  “Watch their eyes.  Make sure that they are looking at you.”  That is a small piece of advice,  but it has saved me from having an accident a time or two. 

       In his first letter,  John is giving some Fatherly advice.  He first instructs them about the importance of holiness.  He knows that the ones he is addressing are sinful and will sin in the future many times.  As a father,  he wants them prepared for holiness,  but he also wants them prepared for what happens when they sin. 

          “If any man sins”  is not just a possibility.  It is not even simply a probability.  It is a certainty.  We will all fall.  When you walk you will stumble.  In fact a stumble is also a step.  Walking at times does include stumbling.  When you sin,  you must know that there is one in heaven who is watching and He is there to represent not your sinfulness,  but your neediness to the Father.  He will continually remind the Father that “He is the propitiation for our sins.”  The word propitiation means a “satisfaction.”  God is satisfied with the payment that Christ made for our sins.  That not only includes the sin of yesterday,  but it also includes all of the sins that we will commit on every tomorrow until the Lord returns or we go to be with Him.  His death paid for each lie, each lust,  and each fit of anger that we have thought or expressed. 

         A son needs the assurance that his father will never forsake him.  A son needs to know that there is nothing that can separate him from his father’s love.  In this case,  our fellowship is not dependent on a moment of sin.  Our confession brings that sin into the light and under the blood of Christ.  The Savior is always at the right hand of God and when God sees our sin,  He also sees our Savior.  The Savior always makes fellowship the next step after our sin.