1 John 2:1 KJV
[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:
The word advocate means an individual who pleads the cause of another. A good example of an advocate would be a lawyer in a courtroom. He is one who publicly supports or recommends a particular cause or policy. Our text declares that we as Christians have an advocate. We have someone who is willing to plead on our behalf. This is not just anyone, but our text declares that it’s Jesus Christ the righteous.
The same word for advocate in this verse is translated comforter in John 14:16-17. What a joy to know we have the Holy Spirit to help us on earth and Christ to help us in heaven. The Spirit of God guides us from sin and Christ, our advocate, is there to help us whenever we have committed sin. God has given us every provision we need to live a life free from the bondage of sin.
In our previous devotions we learned that man at his best will sin. Even though we are saved, we are still sinners. We will continue to stumble and fall and sin as long as we live in this sinful flesh. Knowing Christ is our advocate gives us the strength to strive at not sinning. This is the admonishment John gives us in this verse. Our goal should first be not to sin. When we come short of this goal, we should remember there is hope. Our advocate is there to plead our cause if we will confess and forsake our sin. We do not have to despair, because we have an advocate.