“But you know that He appeared so that He might take away our sins. And in Him is no sin.” 1 John 3:5 NIV
John’s readers knew this truth, but he reminds them of it again. Jesus Christ appeared to take away sins. This is the same verb as when John the Baptist saw Jesus and proclaimed in John 1:29, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” In 1 John 2:28 and 1 John 3:2, John used the word “appears” to refer to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. He uses it twice in 1 John 3, verses 3 and 8, to refer to His first coming. Jesus Christ did not come to this earth primarily to give us a moral teaching or an example, although He did those things too. His main reason for coming was to take away the sin of the world – your sin, my sin – by bearing the penalty that we deserved on the cross. The only way that He could do this was to be completely sinless Himself. John adds, “and in Him there is no sin.” Jesus’ virgin birth, through the Holy Spirit, preserved Him from original sin (Luke 1:35). He lived in complete obedience to God so that even His enemies could not convict Him of sin (John 8:46). He offered Himself as a lamb unblemished and spotless (1 Peter 1:19), the final and complete sacrifice for our sins (Hebrews 10:10, 14, 18). This truth can never be over-emphasised, and we need to be reminded ourselves, repeatedly, why Jesus Christ appeared. He was not simply a good teacher of morals who left us the Beatitudes. He died for the sin of the world, rose again from the dead like no other, and lives forevermore, seated at the right hand of God, as Lord of lords and King of kings.
PRAYER THOUGHT
Lord Jesus, thank You for coming to die on the cross for my sin.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
Lord Jesus, we acknowledge that You died for the sin of the world, rose again from the dead like no other, and You live forevermore, seated at the right hand of God, as Lord of lords and King of kings. AMEN
I.B.R.A. Readings
1 Chronicles 22:1-10
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