1 John 3:16

For God so loved theworld that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall notperish but have eternal life. (John 3:16, New International Version)

I think every believer has heard that verse, and mostof us have it memorized. So, it would be cheating to add it to my list ofverses to memorize. But I mention it because of the similarity to today’s verse. 

This is how we know whatlove is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down ourlives for our brothers and sisters. (1 John 3:16, New International Version)

It’s crazy to me how the first passage is just John3:16 and the second one is from 1st John 3:16. Is that a coincidence? I don’tthink God makes coincidences and I think every word which the writers of theBible were inspired to write is exactly where it is meant to be in the Bible. Tome, it’s more proof of who God is.

And I don’t think God means that we have to sacrificeour own lives for others. Jesus already did that. But I do think that we needto make sacrifices in our lives – give up that expensive morning coffee fromStarbucks and donate that money to the homeless shelter, buy a few extra non-perishableswhen you’re grocery shopping and drop them off at the food pantry, just evenget out of your comfort zone and share the word of Jesus with someone who is struggling.