Faithful and Just

1 John 1:9“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

AN article that I came upon stated that all too often when we read or quote a favorite verse of Scripture, its familiarity gets in the way of our complete understanding of the verse. Such may be the case with this verse, one of the most beloved and oft-quoted passages of Scripture. My old mentor Bill Stiles always said that you had to know what you have been saved from before you can truly understand what you have been saved to. To begin with, in this verse of Holy Scripture, we must remember that the topic is sinful behavior. The Bible in Romans 6:23says that “the wages of sin is death”, therefore sin cannot go unpunished. The fact is that a faithful and just Judge must punish such sinful behavior; to forgive it is neither faithful nor just. But the Bible also says in 1 John 2:1, “If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father . . . Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin”.

Hebrews 9:22“Without shedding of blood is no remission” of sin”.

Jesus Christ fully paid the penalty for our sins. He died so that we don’t have to die, for God “has made Him to be sin for us”. God has further promised in Proverbs 28:13that “whoso confesses and forsakes [his sins] shall have mercy”. 

God in His mercy and grace has declared it to be so. What was once devised as merciful and gracious is now “faithful and just.”

The article concludes that because He is just, He cannot allow the punishment for our sin to be inflicted twice. Because He is faithful and has promised to forgive a penitent and confessing sinner, He will not only “forgive us our sins,” but “cleanse us from all unrighteousness,” thereby restoring the sweet fellowship broken by our rebellion.