Today we are going to look at propitiation in the scriptures and what it means that Jesus is the propitiation for our sin.  

One of the most important things in our lives and our lives with God is what we believe about the sacrifice of Jesus.  Jesus is the word made flesh.  There is a word being made flesh at the cross about God.  Whatever way we interpret that word will shape our lives with God and what we think of God.

1Jn 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:
1Jn 2:2  And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
1Jn 2:3  And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
1Jn 2:4  He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
1Jn 2:5  But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
1Jn 2:6  He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.

Advocate according to the Fathers Will.

How did Jesus walk?  In John 15:10 Jesus says he abided in the word of the Father’s love.  Jesus walked in the word of the Father’s goodness towards him.  He abided in the word that the Father could only ever be good to Him, and was only ever filled with lovingkindness towards Him.  That even should the Father find him dead in sin, the Father would not leave him for dead but would fill him with the wine of His life and make a place for him to dwell in His house for all eternity.  

Keeping the commandment of Jesus:  The commandment of Jesus is the revelation of the Father and the love in His heart for the world.  Jesus says in John 12 he is not come to declare himself but he is come to reveal the Father, even as the Father has given him commandment.  Jesus goes on to say in John that the commandment the Father has given him is unto everlasting life.  Then in John 17 Jesus says eternal life is founding in knowing God as the one who will Father His life in you free from your works.  

The account of the woman caught in the act of adultery is a perfect picture of the commandment of Jesus.  Jesus is there in the midst of the temple revealing the Father.  He is there revealing that God is not the thief that is stealing from us and killing us and destroying us because we sinned.  He is revealing God is with you in the midst of your sin to be a Father to your life.  He is with you to defend your name and defend your honor.  He is with you to send the sin in the world away from you as far as the east is from the west.  He is with you to remove the death that was condemning you.  He is with you to justify you from the accusation of the evil one.  He is with you to Father His life in you free from your works because of the love He feels in His heart when He looks upon you.  

That is the commandment of Jesus, and the way you keep his commandment is by calling upon the name of the Lord.  The way you keep the commandment is by allowing God to Father His life in you.  

1Jn 2:2  And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

The word propitiation means an appeasing of something or an atonement or a restoration from something.  

What’s happened is the serpent has gotten it right to inject his poison into much of the church’s doctrine concerning propitiation.  Propitiation is oftentimes portrayed as Jesus appeasing Gods anger over our sin instead of being portrayed as Jesus appeasing Gods desire to love us out of death and into His life.  

1 John 2:2 quite clearly says Jesus is the propitiation for sin not Gods anger.  1st John 4:10  goes on to say propitiation is about God loving sinners not Him being angry with sinners when it says “In this is love, not that we loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son as a propitiation for our sins.  

John says when we were sinners not loving God, God was in the place where He felt love for us.  And because God felt love for us He sent Jesus to take upon himself the death that was the wages of our sin.

Jesus is the appeasement or the satisfaction or that which restores us from our sin.  The apostle Paul says the wages of sin is death.  So Jesus is the appeasing or that which satisfies and restores us from the death that was reigning over us because of sin.  

God didnt have the power of death.  God wasnt holding the keys of hades.  It wasnt God who was holding us captive and using the death that was reigning over us to hold us in bondage.  God was never Pharoah.   

Hebrews 2 says it was the devil who had the power of death.  

Mat 16:17  And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 16:18  And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Mat 16:19  And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

The rock the church will be built upon is the revelation that the sons of man are the sons of God.  This revelation was manifested when God brought forth His life and immortality in the bodily resurrection of Jesus.  

The word hell is translated hades in the greek.  It means the place of the dead or the grave.  

The gates of death were standing against us.  We were being held by death, shut up unto the eternal life God promised us from before the world began .... Just as pharoah had a hold over the hebrews and held them captive.  The devil had a lien so to speak against our lives because we were joined together with death through Adam.  

No man had the keys that could open the grave.  No man had the key that could open the house of David, the house that was filled with the bread of life.  The gates of death were prevailing against us.  They were shut and locked with us still on the inside.  

Heb 2:14  Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, Jesus also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;
Heb 2:15  And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

God was propitious towards mankind.  He desired to be good to us.  He had a burning in His bones to love you with all his heart and all soul and all His strength ...... He saw we were being held captive by death.  He saw Satan had the power of death ... and had the keys to hades and had locked us in  ... 

God says how can I restore mankind from their sin.  How can I release them from the death that is holding them.  How can I give them the keys to the kingdom of heaven so they have free access to my life and my immortality.  The love of God for all people was made flesh in the man Christ Jesus ... Jesus came and took the death sin was punishing us with into his body on the cross and has overcome the grave.  He was cleansed from death once for all time by the power of the Fathers love for the world.  

Jesus took the keys of death from the prince of this world when he came out of the grave having conquered the death that was reigning over the world never to be able to die unto sin again.  When Jesus was raised from the dead, the gates of hades were opened, and no man can shut them.  That’s why in Matthew 27 You can see people who had died now walking around ... 

Jesus gave us the keys of the kingdom of heaven.  He opened the flood gates of God’s incorruptible life, and the gates of death cannot shut us out of God’s life.  The gates of death cannot prevail against those who believe the testimony God has given in Jesus, for that testimony abides in us as an incorruptible seed that will bring forth the very life and immortality of God in our bodies and cause us to overcome death in the flesh and overcome the death in the world.  

We have an advocate with the Father.  John isnt saying we need an advocate to represent us to the Father.  He’s saying our advocate is seated at the right hand of the Father.  John is saying we have an advocate according to the Father’s Will .... The Father wanted to be an advocate for us against the death that is shadowing the world so He sent Jesus Christ the righteous to condemn the death that was holding us captive.  

We live in a world that is shadowed by death.  That death is all the time wanting to uncover our nakedness and work condemnation in our hearts.   Jesus is our propititiation, Jesus is our mercy seat.  Jesus is the place where we can see Gods eyes have always been full of mercy towards us.  We see Jesus and we see we have an advocate in the Father.  We see the Father has bound death once for all time in the body of Jesus’ resurrection.  

Propitiation is about God being our advocate against death.  Its about God wanting to purify our hearts from fear.  We see Jesus is sinless, cleansed from the wound of death, never to be able to be touched by death or corruption again.  And we see as Jesus is now so are we in this world.  If Jesus has been cleansed from sin then so have we.  We see that even though we do not yet see our flesh glorified with God’s life.  We know that now we are the Sons of God, we know that when we see Jesus we will see the same life and immortality in our bodies that we see in Jesus.  This revelation works to keep our hearts pure from the fear thats in the world because of death.  It perfects the love of God in our hearts.  And the gates of death.  The death thats in the world cannot prevail against us.  It can no longer fill our hearts with fear because we know we are sinless, cleansed from death, even as Jesus is!  Glory to God.  

Jesus is not only the appeasing of our sin and the sin of the world.  He satisfied Gods desire to love us.  Jesus is the propitiation for the Father’s love for the world.  That’s why the sacrifice of Jesus is a sweet smelling savour to the Lord.  That’s why isaiah says God shall see Jesus bruised by the serpent on the cross and shall be satisfied.  

Prayer