THERE’S ONE THING that I think makes me stand out as a statistical outlier: I’ve served on more juries than anyone I know, or at least anyone I’ve ever talked to about it. It’s only been three times, but I’ve never heard anyone say that they’ve served more than once, and most tell me they’ve never done it.

I was elected foreman on a criminal case, nearly made foreman on a civil case (I punted), and served on another civil case as well. Watching legal proceedings from the jury box gave me an inside view of how the justice system works…and sometimes doesn’t, depending on the competence of the attorneys. I remember one attorney who was so well-prepared and incisive that he reminded me of Perry Mason (anyone remember that name?), and another who seemed so lost and confused that even the judge got frustrated with him. And then there was the guy from the district attorney’s office who made a blatantly underhanded attempt to influence the jury — whereupon the juror sitting next to me silently passed me a note saying, “This man needs to get another job.”

Thanks largely to the apostle Paul, many of us are used to hearing the gospel framed in legal terms: because of our sin, we have an enormous moral debt which we can’t repay. By his sacrificial death on the cross, Jesus incurs and settles the debt, freeing us from the sentence that would otherwise have been ours.

Like Paul, the apostle John insists on the importance of recognizing our sinfulness, contradicting the claims of some in his community. He wants believers to avoid sin, which can’t be done by people who think they’re beyond all that. But sin isn’t the end of the story either, as he says at the beginning of chapter 2:

My little children, I’m writing these things to you so that you don’t sin. But if you do sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous one. He is God’s way of dealing with our sins, not only ours but the sins of the whole world. (1 John 2:1-2, CEB)

“Advocate.” Of all the New Testament writers, the apostle John is the only one to use this word. At root, it suggests someone who is called to stand at your side. Outside of the New Testament, the word was typically used in a legal context. But we need to get our associations right. When John calls Jesus our “advocate,” we should probably think less “high-powered attorney” than “court-appointed public defender,” whose role is to help you when you can’t do anything to help yourself.

John uses the word “advocate” five times. Here, in his letter, is the only time he uses it to refer to Jesus. The other four times, he puts the word in the mouth of Jesus, who is having one last coaching session with his disciples before his arrest and crucifixion. This is what’s known as the “Upper Room discourse” in chapters 14 to 17 of the Fourth Gospel.

The disciples are deeply disturbed. They were already disoriented by his subservient act of washing their grimy feet. Then he predicted that he would be betrayed by Judas and disowned three times by Peter. And to top it all off, he announces that he’s leaving them and going back to the Father. We can imagine how distraught the disciples were at this point. What could he say to comfort them?

Jesus promises to ask the Father to send the Holy Spirit in his stead. He refers to the Spirit as the “advocate” and repeats the promise four times to reassure his friends. Though Jesus is leaving them behind to carry on his work, the Spirit will be with them forever. And what will the Spirit do? Here’s what he says in John 14:26:

The Companion, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I told you.

“Companion.” That’s how the Common English Bible translates the word, despite translating it as “advocate” when John refers to Jesus instead. Both words, “companion” and “advocate,” as well as “helper” and so on, describe the various roles played by someone who comes alongside. Jesus isn’t saying that the Holy Spirit will be the defense attorney for the disciples. He’s saying that he’s not leaving them alone, for the Spirit will be with them and help them with the difficult work ahead.

HERE’S MY POINT. As I’ll suggest in the next post, John would surely agree with the idea that a holy God detests sin. But that’s not the same thing as hating sinners. When he says that Jesus is our Advocate, we shouldn’t think that we have to lawyer up before facing the hanging judge, as if it’s only by the skill of a clever attorney that we can be saved.

Yes, justice must be served. But John wants us to know that the judge brings about justice in a way that demonstrates love — even to those who don’t deserve it.