What If I Slip?

After you become a Christian what happens if you slip and commit a sin? John deals with this subject in I John 1:5-2:2 " This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us. My little children, these things I write to you, that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." (NKJV) Look at the advice John gives. Notice three pieces of guidance John offers concerning believers that may sin.

I. The first piece of advice is to Stay Close to God. John tells us to "walk in the light."

A. God’s light helps us to walk upright and to live a Godly life. (vs. 7)

B. God promises to help us. He makes two promises.

(1.)If we walk in His truth we will have

fellowship with one another (vs. 7)

(2.)There is cleansing if we sin.(vs. 7)

Ill-Imagine you are at a track meet, and they’re lining up for the 100 meter dash. Everything’s fine except for one contestant. Instead of the regular shorts and track shoes, he’s wearing a snowmobile suit and galoshes.Now that’s probably not against the rules, but he’s not going to win, if he even survives the race. The clothes are a hindrance to his success.

Take an inventory of your life to see if there are any hindrances to your walk with God.

(Contributed to Sermon Central by Brian La Croix)

II.The second piece of advice is to confess your sin (1:9.)

A. The foundation for forgiveness is the nature of God.

(1.) God is faithful.

(2.) God is just.

(See Rom. 3:26)

B. The steps in confessing sin are three fold.

(1.) We must confess.

-Sometimes we try to cover (1:6,8)

(See Prov. 28:13)

(2.) We must act.

(See James 5:16; Mt. 5:23-24)

(3.) We must receive God’s forgiveness.

Sometimes we struggle to accept God’s

forgiveness.

(See Is. 38:17; Jer. 31:34; Micah 7:19; Ps.

103:12)

III. The third piece of advice is to depend on Jesus to defend you. Charles H. Spurgeon said "God will not be absent when His people are on trial; he will stand in court as their advocate, to plead on their behalf.”

John makes two points about the work of Jesus.

A. God wants to help us avoid sin. Jesus is there in case we sin.

Ill- When a ship goes out to sea, there are lifeboats on hand, not in order that the ship might sink, but in case the ship does sink!

Ill- We have a fire extinguisher in our home. The fire extinguisher is for safety, in case we have a fire.

In I John 2:1 John says Jesus is the "propitiation" for our sins. That means he is our safety in case we sin.

B. John tells us that Jesus is the propitiation for our sins but he is also our "advocate." That means he comes alongside us if we sin. Satan will try to condemn the saints. (See Rev. 12:10)

Ill- Billy Sunday, in a sermon he preached called, "Wonderful," communicated with his congregation the sufficiency of Jesus Christ by saying,

Christ for sickness, Christ for health,

Christ for poverty, Christ for wealth,

Christ for joy, Christ for sorrow,

Christ today and Christ tomorrow;

Christ my Life, and Christ my Light,

Christ for morning, noon and night,

Christ when all around gives way

Christ my everlasting Stay;

Christ my Rest, and Christ my Food

Christ above my highest good,

Christ my Well-beloved Friend

Christ my Pleasure without end;

Christ my Savior, Christ my Lord

Christ my Portion, Christ my God,

Christ my Shepherd, I His sheep

Christ Himself my soul to keep;

Christ my Leader, Christ my Peace

Christ has bought my soul’s release,

Christ my Righteousness divine

Christ for me, for He is mine;

Christ my Wisdom, Christ my Meat,

Christ restores my wandering feet,

Christ my Advocate and Priest

Christ who ne’er forgets the least;