“And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin.”
There are two purposes for the coming of Christ into the world:
To take away sins (3:4-6)
To destroy the works of the devil (3:7,8)
And you know
John’s readers knew something about the purpose of Christ’s coming; they did not assume it. The Greek says that they came to a settled knowledge of this. There is no room for speculation about the subject of salvation.
that He was manifested
John appeals to something that his readers understood – the historical fact of the incarnation. The phrase “He was manifested” refers to the coming of Jesus into the world from eternity. Jesus’ coming assumes His preexistence. He came from the glory he had with the Father.
Jn 3:17, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”
Jn 5:37, “And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.”
Jn 8:18, “I am One who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me.”
1 Jn 4:10, “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”
PRINCIPLE:
Any sin that a Christian commits is unwarranted because of the wonderful work of Christ on the cross.
APPLICATION:
Many Christians do not appreciate the price that Jesus paid for their sin. The commission and mission of Christ were for the removal of our sin. He paid the price of death as a sinless sacrifice on the cross so we could have a relationship with God.
By Christ’s work on the cross, He saved us from the penalty of sin. Later, by His work as the ascended and seated Son of God on the Throne, He saves us from the power of sin (He 7:24). Finally, by His return, He will save us from the very presence of sin. Any exercise of sin by the Christian is unwarranted in light of the great price that Jesus paid. Our lives should correspond to the purpose of His work and manifested character because of the magnitude of His wonderful work on the cross.
2 Ti 1:10, “…but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel…”
He 9:26, “…He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.”
