1 John 3:16

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16, New International Version)

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

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

It’s crazy to me how the first passage is just John 3:16 and the second one is from 1st John 3:16. Is that a coincidence? I don’t think God makes coincidences and I think every word which the writers of the Bible were inspired to write is exactly where it is meant to be in the Bible. To me, it’s more proof of who God is.

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