Sunday, 03May09: 1 John 3: 16 - 24 NIV
. . .Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. v16
This morning it was my turn to read the New Testament Reading, taken from the passage mentioned above. Then, at the beginning of the sermon, my pastor asked the congregation whether we remember what John 3: 16 says. As expected, most of us raised our hands to indicate that we've no problem quoting the verse:
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Then it was followed by the question, "Who knows what 1 John 3: 16 says?".
Nobody knew.
And it was despite my having read it just a while earlier. I must have read it so badly that nobody understood me. Or perhaps, as usual, most of the congregation were not paying much attention so early in the morning. And I, even I who read the passage aloud to everybody, could only manage a vague recollection, and I had to turn to the passage to take another good look at the verse again!
Regardless of what caused the rather pitiful ignorance on our part, it is noteworthy that the Lord has allowed the bible to be numbered in such a way that 1 John 3: 16 is an elaboration of the implications of John 3: 16. That is, if we acknowledge that God has given his only Begotten to die for us, then we ought to die for our brothers. This is the "so what" of John 3: 16:
The Son of God laid down his life for us, SO we ought to lay down our lives for our brethren.
Now it is hard for us to agree heartily to this "so what" obligation of 1John 3: 16. It demands incredible courage and sacrifice, which we rarely come across all our lives. Nevertheless, I believe that God will grant us courage should the occasion arise one day for us to sacrifice ourselves to save a brother or sister. May God have mercy on us.
It is also interesting to note in this morning's passage that the verse immediately following 1John 3: 16 appears to have suddenly stopped talking about dying for one another. Instead it talks about material possessions.
If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? v17
I'd like to interpret this sudden departure from the "so we ought to die" issue, as indicating that we begin learning this "so what" obligation by first showing the love of God compassionately to one another: by sharing our possessions with fellow brethren in need. In other words, we must first learn to lay down "things in our lives" before we can lay down our lives. This appears to be the prelude, the ongoing daily practice, if you like, towards laying down our lives eventually, should God predestine us to do so one day.
And this is the command: to believe in thename of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. v23
Dear Christian friends, God loved the world so much that he gave his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ who has laid down his life for us. So, let us lay down our lives for one another. Let us begin by showing God's love in sharing our possessions in compassion with the needy brother or sister. This is the "so what" of John 3: 16.
