All right, we continue our sermon series, What's
in a Name? Jesus, Our Advocate. And so, like
I said in the beginning of service, I want to
ask, when you think of the word advocate or advocacy,
what comes to mind? Yes, Randy. A defense attorney.
All right, that's actually in my sermon. Very
good. Yeah, right here. A guardian. Absolutely.
Right? Not the baseball team. We don't like them,
but the guardian nonetheless. Absolutely. Others.
Someone who speaks. You guys are just all up
in my sermon. I appreciate that. Anyone else?
Someone from the balcony. A go -between. Okay.
Very good. Someone who walks beside you. Thank
you, new member Doug Coy. Thank you for that.
That's great. Anyone else? An advocate. An agent
or an agency, absolutely. We actually saw one
on stage last week. No, it wasn't me. No, it
wasn't. It was Cheyenne, right? We had 5 '2",
right? Wonderful advocate in Cheyenne because
what she is doing, what the mentors are doing,
what the entire ministry of TMC, Teen Mother
Choices, is doing is advocating for those teen
moms. You heard her. In the update that she gave,
helping her navigate a daycare that was trying
to take advantage of a young girl. Advocating,
giving her, didn't do all the work, but helped
her along the way. And we know that we know that
we know if Cheyenne got unleashed on that daycare
center, that that would have been figured out
as well, right? And so that, Colin, can I get
an amen? Amen, very good. They did not want that
mess. But understand what you heard. You heard
someone that was working outside of herself,
working outside of what she thought even years
ago she'd be doing, advocating for those that
need advocacy. And whether we know it or not,
that that is the call of every believer, because
that is a role and a distinctive that Jesus has.
And not only Jesus will get there. But Jesus
as advocate, we're going to be in 1 John, so
this a little later in the New Testament toward
the end, and then John 14. But before we dive
into God's word, a couple things about the advocator's
role. So Jesus' role as the advocate. The first,
he is an advocate as a defender. So we already
heard that, defense attorney, that he is a defender.
What does that mean? In ancient times, the advocate
in Greek, parakletos, right, that's going to
come back, was someone who stood beside another
to defend, to counsel, or to intercede. Isn't
that funny? Jesus is our defense, Jesus is our
wise counsel, and Jesus is our intercessor. So
everything you guys said, that is part of Jesus'
role in our life, that Jesus defends on your
behalf. Now that is really, really exciting.
And that should be really, really convicting.
Because really the question then is begged, what
do you need defense for in your life? I think
the answer is everything. That when we sin, when
we mess up, when we fall short, right, God isn't
saying it's okay. No, he's defending first in
us, trying to figure out why we do that, finding
out where the root of that sin nature is. And
then those in Christ, his righteousness covers
over us to the Father. We'll get to that in a
second. The Old Testament often depicts advocacy
in a legal sense. Job longed for an advocate
in Job 16, 19. Proverbs 31, 8 and 9 calls God's
people to defend the rights of the needy. That
Jesus makes it very clear that our role should
be to come to the aid of those who need it. The
least of these. So my first challenge for you
this morning, right in the beginning, who are
the least of these in your community? And how
are you seeing them? How are you uplifting them?
How are you meeting their needs? If you want
to know how to do that more, read Matthew 25.
Read the entire book of James. It'll take you
20 minutes at best. James very much depicts how
we should be the defender because Jesus is our
defender. Jesus, not only defender, but also
mediator. The high priest in the Old Testament
served as mediators between God and his people,
Leviticus 16. The Belgian Confession, Article
26, declares, we have no access to God except
through the one and only mediator and advocate,
Jesus Christ, the righteous. I want you to remember
those two words, the righteous, because that
plays a big part at the end. Unlike earthly advocates
who will fail us, Jesus is both our mediator
and the atoning sacrifice for sin. So he is the
mediator, the defender that went to the mat to
prove who he was in our life. No other world
religion, no other worshipped deity can say that
piece. That's what makes Jesus, in my opinion,
and biblically stand alone from anything else.
Whether world religion, foreign power, domestic
power, authority, it doesn't matter. Because
nowhere else in all of the world and all of creation
where every knee will bow and every tongue will
confess that Jesus Christ is Lord because he's
doubled down on all of these things. So I know
that sounds very legalistic. Sometimes at times
as a pastor I get called in to be a mediator,
whether it's between two groups of people, or
a husband and a wife, or a father and a son,
or an elder and an elder, or an elder and a deacon.
Part of my job is to be a mediator. There's a
part of me that really enjoys it, because it's
watching two people work through the road of
reconciliation, but if we were all doing our
part, I wouldn't be needed in that job. Because
we would all be able to get there, one and another,
but we know that that doesn't happen. We know
that pride gets in the way. Wanting that pound
of flesh gets in the way. And so sitting with
someone is just something we will not do. To
that I say, check your heart and your relationship
with Jesus. Because he is also the advocate as
comforter. The Greek word parakletos also means
helper and comforter, as we see in John 14. Now,
I just, because I'm a visual person, when you
think of the word comforter, what do you think
of? Let's all say it together. A blanket or a
comforter, right? That you can just wrap yourself
up in it. That's a very cozy place to be. It
should bring you a lot of comfort. This word
is used not only for Jesus, but like I said,
somebody else. The Holy Spirit. That the Holy
Spirit is called in the latter parts of John,
the paracletos, the advocate. Whom Jesus sends
as another advocate to guide and sanctify us.
I think that's so amazing. That Jesus has in
the plan, God, Father, Son, Spirit. Jesus says,
I must go up so the comforter, the paracletos,
can come down and guide you in truth. That the
reason we've grown in our faith, we've started
faith, is the sanctification of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is our comforter today. He is
our advocate today. Jesus, in his early ministry,
could only be physically present in one place
at a time. Fully God, fully man. And what we
see is through the work of the Holy Spirit, he
is with all believers, always and everywhere.
The visual representations of faith in our life
is because of the Holy Spirit. That the Holy
Spirit is in you. The Holy Spirit is one of the
most misunderstood aspects of the Christian faith.
But wait, we're going to get through a really
cool sermon series after Easter in the minor
prophet Zephaniah, right? 75 % of you just think
I made up that word. No, it's in there. Or that
person, minor prophet. We're going to do that.
We're going to go into the Summer of Psalms,
and then we're going to start our epic sermon
series in the book of Acts, Earth, Wind, and
Fire, the start of the church. And guess how
the church starts? What? You can't just repeat
what I just said, Al. How does the church start?
It starts with a big visit from the Holy Spirit.
Well, good. Seven of you are excited about it.
That's awesome. Heidelberg Catechism, question
answer 53, teaches this about the Holy Spirit.
It teaches us, what do we believe concerning
the Holy Spirit? First, he is together with the
Father and the Son, true and eternal God. Second,
he has given me personally so that by true faith,
which is a knowledge and a conviction, he makes
me share in Christ and all his blessings, comforts
me, remains with me forever. The Holy Spirit's
presence means you are never, ever alone. When
Jesus says, and I will be with you always to
the very end of the age, that is the presence
of the Holy Spirit. So in those corners of life
when the bank account is running dry and you
seem like you have no hope, the Holy Spirit is
there. Now, the Holy Spirit is not going to make
it rain with cash just to make you feel better,
but he's going to remind you and give you perspective
that you are a part of something bigger, that
God loves you and his presence never leaves you.
So that is Jesus, and that is the role of the
advocate. But as we dive into 1 John 2, this
is going to flesh out for us what Jesus as our
advocate actually means. So 1 John 2, 1 through
6, says this. My little children, I am writing
these things to you so that you may not sin.
But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with
the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous. He is
the propitiation of our sins, and not for ours
only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
And we know that we have come to know him if
we keep his commandments. Whoever says, I know
him, but does not keep his commandments is a
liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever
keeps his word, in him truly the love of God
is perfected. By this we may know that we are
in him. Whoever says he abides in him ought to
walk in the same way in which he walked. Now,
if your body's tensing up because you just had
insta -conviction, you're in good company. There
is no way to really read that. Claire, can you
go to the second slide of that? There is no way
to read this section. Whoever says I know him
but does not keep his commandments is a liar.
So we are a church of liars. We are a church
of broken people. We are a church that we see
the light, yet we want to step into the darkness.
Where other parts of 1 John says, if we do that,
the light does then not know us. Walk in the
light as he is in the light. It makes total sense
why we need an advocate. Because Jesus pleads
for us before the Father. Randy brought up a
defense attorney, and that is really where the
conversation goes. It goes to a courtroom setting.
Jesus stands before the Father on our behalf.
Unlike a human lawyer who argues based on merit,
Jesus' advocacy is based on his own perfect righteousness
and atoning work. You've heard me say it before,
I'll say it again. This is the gospel according
to Jim, and this is something that I really...
came to believe, but also just was the comfort
for me when we lost my sister years ago. That
I saw my sister up there in glory, Jesus coming
around her, putting his arm around her and says,
Dad, she's with me and is ushered into glory.
That is Jesus as our advocate. Heart of Her Catechism
question answer 60 affirms that though we are
sinners, God grants and credits me the perfect
satisfaction. righteousness, and holiness of
Christ as if I never sinned. Time out. But I
do sin. But you sin. But we sin. But when we
get up there, if we get up there and throw our
badge on and go, I've made it because I've done
all these things. I've taught in Lighthouse.
I served on council. I gave money. I helped this
and that. The father's going to say, I never
knew you. Until Jesus is a part of the discussion
and you have submitted your life to the king,
after that, his righteousness covers you and
God looks at you and sees his son. Because Jesus'
advocacy is rooted in his atoning work. It's
about Christ's work on the cross because our
work on a cross means absolutely nothing. I've
said it before, I'll keep saying it. If I died
on the cross for your sins, nothing would be
accomplished. But Jesus' death on the cross for
you and for me, his righteousness, his propitiation
of our sins. was taken on him on the cross. Not
just our sins, but the sins of the whole world.
Jesus is not only our defense, but the very reason
we are declared righteous. That's why I get so
frustrated when people just go through the season
of Lent and then try to not eat meat on Fridays,
or they give something up, or whatever. That
we need to take the season of Lent to really
ponder the work of the cross, because the work
of the cross means everything for you and for
me and for the church. Without the cross, there
is no church. Without the cross, there is no
salvation. Without the cross, there is no resurrection,
and therefore we have no hope. So Jesus is advocating
for us, and he advocates for those who walk in
obedience. 1 John 2, 6 says, Whoever says he
abides in him ought to walk in the same way in
which he walked. And this hit me like square
in the face. And I'm just going to read it how
I wrote it on Wednesday. His advocacy is not
an excuse to continue to sin or to continue in
sin, but is a call of holiness. So I could ask
the question, how many of you were holy this
week? And we might get some answers, we might
get someone chuckled, we might get someone leave.
But God's, Christ's advocacy for us is a call
to holiness. And holiness according to the word
of God. Not holiness according to your interpretation
of it. That Jesus tells us how to live holy lives.
Jesus tells us how we are to walk out what it
means to be a Christ follower. The Heidelberg
Catechism question and answer 86 states that
because Christ has redeemed us, we are called
to live in gratitude. Let's sit on that one for
a second. That we are called to live thankful
lives. We are called to live lives of gratitude.
Where it's not the I have to, but the I get to.
I've done that and we'll do that again at some
point. Ah, it's Sunday, I have to go to church.
Oh, my word, it's Communion Sunday. We have to
be here 15 minutes after we normally get out.
I had to sit through two sermons last week. No,
you get to. And here's the thing. Length of service,
a lot of you like to tell me about it and complain
about it. Please understand, it goes in one ear,
I pray for you, and then it goes out the other.
Because I think we do a pretty good job. Because
you know that if you double down on it, I'm going
to double down and go, so we can't give Jesus
90 minutes, huh? And then I get to run away.
And I would never do that to you, to your face.
But understand that our have -tos get to be I
get -tos. I have to do my one Sunday that I signed
up for nursery. I guarantee you it will be a
better experience if you take the have -to out
and go to I get -to. Because that changes things.
Elders, deacons, I have to come to a meeting
we now have because we don't have a congregational
meeting tomorrow. That's right, none of you but
Mark had Houston in the championship game anyway,
so it doesn't matter. Understand that it's a
perspective shift. Jesus' advocacy for our lives
means he doubled down and said, I am the be -all,
end -all. There is nothing... In your life, better
than me. We buy into that. Our perspective should
shift. Because not only is he advocating for
us to the Father, he is advocating for us today.
So this is where we're going to jump to John
14. John 14, 16 and 17 says this. I will ask
the Father and he will give you another helper
to be with you forever. Even the spirit of truth.
Whom the world cannot receive because it neither
sees him nor knows him. You know him for he dwells
with you and will be in you. Leave that up. There's
a paradox here, friends. That if we are in Christ,
then we get to see the work of the Holy Spirit
in your life, in my life, in the life of the
church, in the life of Christian community. Who
doesn't see it? The worldly powers, the worldly
authorities. A non -believer cannot claim the
work of the Holy Spirit because a non -believer
is denying the power of the Holy Spirit, which
we find out, right, is that kind of sin of sins,
if you will, is the denial of the Holy Spirit.
A believer that says or puts forth the words
from their mouth that they deny the work of the
Holy Spirit. That's a problem. Denying the work
of the Holy Spirit means you deny the power of
the Lord, which means you are at odds with the
word of God, the word of life. And to all of
my analytics, to all of my ones that like to
analyze and need C equals MC Jesus in your life,
this is where faith plays the biggest role. Though
we may not get to figure out all of the mysteries
and all of the things that God's word tells us,
we take it on faith. It's called the sovereignty
of God. You either walk in it or you don't. You
can't say, oh, God is sovereign until something
bad happens and now God's not anymore. It doesn't
work that way. God has been sovereign. God is
sovereign. God will be sovereign. And how does
he show us that sovereignty? By giving us new
life in him because of the death and resurrection
of his son, Jesus Christ. The sending of the
Holy Spirit, our advocate, our paracletos. Jesus'
advocacy does not end with his earthly ministry.
He continues to intercede for us at the Father's
right hand. We get from Romans chapter 8. He
has sent his Holy Spirit as our advocate on earth.
So what does it mean that Jesus is advocating
for you and for me in heaven? That even now,
Jesus pleads for his people. He gives us assurances.
When Satan accuses us, Jesus defends us, Revelation
chapter 12. Jesus' ongoing work in the heavenly
courtroom, picture this. Think of a courtroom
scene. Satan is the accuser, Revelation 12 .10,
bringing up our sins before God as God allows.
Jesus is our defense attorney advocating on our
behalf. But here's the thing. His argument is
not over how good Jim was. Or, you know what,
if we just do a pros -cons list of Jim's life,
that the pros outweigh the cons by like two.
So, you know what, it's just a numbers game.
That is not what Jesus is defending. His argument
is not on our own goodness, but on his finished
work on the cross. John 1, 2 says this. If anyone
does sin, we have an advocate with the Father,
Jesus Christ. And here it is, the righteous.
I love you. You tolerate me. We can't say that
about each other. I can't look at you and say,
insert person here, the righteous. Jesus, the
righteous, is the only one that gets that headship.
Why? Because we submit to that. He doesn't share
his righteousness with us to erase all the bad.
His righteousness is draped over us. And that
is what the Father sees. Jesus does not ignore
our sin. He acknowledges it. But then he presents
his righteousness in place of our guilt. Our
good friend, the Canons of Dort, helps us understand
and head to Article 8, affirms this truth. Christ's
death was of such great value and worth. because
the person who submitted to it was not only truly
human, but perfectly holy, but also the only
begotten Son of God. We already talked about
that one. This means that his advocacy cannot
fail. It is based on his divine nature and perfect
sacrifice. So if all that work is going on in
heaven for you and for me to be set apart when
we get up there, whenever that is, our only comfort
in life and in death, then it begs the question
from Romans 8, who is to condemn? Spoiler alert,
it's not us. Unfortunately, we do a good job
of condemning one another, not usually in public.
It's usually private or on the internet. But
who is to condemn? Jesus Christ is the one who
died. More than that, who was raised, who is
at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding
for us. This should give us deep reassurance
and comfort of faith. That when we have faith
in Christ, when we feel unworthy, Jesus pleads
our case. When we struggle with sin, Jesus intercedes
for our sanctification. And maybe you need to
hear this today, but when you feel abandoned,
Jesus is always the Father, ensuring that we
are never forgotten. And unlike every power of
the world, throughout history, Up to today, continuing
to tomorrow and forever until we're all called
home, or the new heavens and new earth as Evan
brought up, Jesus' advocacy is not temporary.
Everything on this earth is temporary, but Jesus'
advocacy. It is eternal. It is ongoing. So while
Jesus is advocating in heaven on our behalf,
the Holy Spirit advocates on earth. The Spirit
works in us. to convict us of sin, to guide us
into truth, and to seal us in Christ. So how
do we respond? We walk out as assured as we can
in who Jesus is. And friend, I know that's not
easy. I know there's going to be days of doubt
and questions. But just like Kara and I try to
do for our boys, even on those days when they
don't say they love us back when we drop them
off at school, we know they do, and they know
we do. Even when they drive us crazy and they've
done at least 30 laps around the house, because
that is a corporal punishment we have at the
Holland Donor House, I yell out to them I love
them every time they go around the front door
and I'm sitting with my feet up. Just kidding,
I don't do that. Carrie does. But we say we love
them and understand because I'm out there running
too. So not only does he love us, but he sees
us. He does not abandon us. He continues to intercede
for us and sanctify us. Friend, we burn our hand
on that hot stove of sin daily. That whole conviction
thing, that whole annoying voice in your head
when you get, don't go there. That's going to
hurt. That's going to hurt. It may sound like
a parent. Guess what it is? It's Jesus advocating.
It's the Holy Spirit sanctifying us, calling
us to trust in his advocacy and to live in, half
of you hate this word, but it's what we need
to do. We need to live in obedience. So what
does that obedience look like in your life? What
does that look like in my life? What trip -ups,
what stumbling blocks do we have that we need
to seek ways, not only around them, but to obliterate
them, to give us new eyes and a new head, to
see how we can work through those sins, those
temptations, before we fall? Resting in his advocacy
is the... One of the greatest things we can do
to have assurance of faith, to know that we're
on the right path. But pastor, there are days
I don't feel like it because of this, that, and
the other thing. Guess what? Those things are
all temporary. Finances, political power, struggles,
even your job, your role in your family, all
of those are temporary. Jesus' advocacy and his
love for you is continual, is constant, is forever.
So where do we go from here? For our head, for
our knowledge. Know the advocate. Do you see
Jesus as actively advocating for you before the
Father? And what is he advocating for? Confess
your sins, for he is faithful and just, will
forgive you your sins and cleanse you from all
unrighteousness. David cries out, create in me
a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit
within me. Cast me not away from my transgressions,
but uphold me by your loving spirit. Do you see
Jesus actively advocating for you before the
Father? So know the advocate, for the heart rests
in his advocacy. Are you living in the assurance
of Christ's ongoing intercession? And friends,
stop giving him reasons to do it. So many times
we can live a Christian life of, yeah, I got
it all out on Sunday. I got the juice. I got
the bread. I'm good. But, oh, Friday's coming.
That can't be the mature believer's way of life.
That is cheap grace in trying to take advantage
of Jesus' advocacy. We cannot be a church that
does that. We cannot be a people that does that.
So how do we do this tangibly? We need to, for
our hands, live as a witness. Just as Jesus in
the Spirit advocated for us, we are called to
advocate for others, to speak truth, to defend
the weak, to share the gospel. So that final
reflection, who in your life needs to hear about
the hope of Jesus, our advocate? So I'm going
to pause for a minute as we go into Holy Week
next week. It's a sacred week for the life of
the church. One thing I want you to know is all
that goes on through next week, understand this
truth. Jesus is not a distant Savior. He is active,
present, and the constant advocate for us before
the Father. As we go into the despair of next
week, as we walk through the gates of Jerusalem,
as we sit at the table in the upper room, as
we see the darkness of that Good Friday, the
death on the cross in the tomb, know three things.
That Jesus comforts us through the Holy Spirit.
He pleads for us in heaven. And he secures our
salvation, not just for today, but for eternity.
And that's why we throw a giant celebration called
Resurrection Sunday or Easter.