"By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers".
- 1 John 3:16
We dont necessarily need OBSM here, but there are rather strong implications to this verse if one were to look at it carefully.
'By this we know love'
This suggests that love is seen in whatever is coming after it. The phrasing of this sense seems to suggest to me that its not just love, as the world may banter the word about, but a specific kind of love. Agape love, the truest, purest, highest form of love.
'that he laid down his life for us'
Clearly then, this tells us that agape love is most clearly seen in Jesus Christ upon the cross. No need for me to explain in detail, the love of God seen in the crucifixion is a fundamental concept.
'and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers'
And here is the whammy. Just like how Christ laid down his life for us, we are called to lay down our lives for our brothers (or sisters). Just like how Christ did it. How did Christ do it?
He died for the sinners. He died for those who hated him. He died for those who forsook him. Upon that cross, He was alone. One of his closest disciples denied him. The rest fled. He laid down his very life for them all. Not just instant death, but a slow, painful, torturous death.
Few days back I posted, how far will you go to seek the betterment of others at the expense of yourself?
As followers of Christ, are we not called to this?
We are only human. In our fallen sinful nature, we have the tendency to seek first our own good. Yet as we come into the Kingdom, we are called to seek first His righteousness. Abandon the self seeking nature of Man in pursuit for greater things.
But we arent perfect yet. So I'd admit that more often than not, the first thing that comes to my mind is 'how convenient will it be for me', 'how will it benefit me', 'how can this be done to my advantage'. When im conscious of it, I do my best to ensure that I do not let selfish personal desires take precedence, but I do not always succeed, nor am I always conscious of it.
Yet, if we are truly to be identified with Christ, we need to learn what it really means to 'deny ourselves, take up the cross and follow Jesus'. Its a huge thing, we throw it around as one of the basic truths of Christianity, but it is also perhaps glossed over as simply letting Christ be our focus. Its more than that. We often only think of the last part calling us to follow Jesus, without fully understanding its implications, and what exactly does denying ourselves and taking up the cross constitute.
How far will you go for your brothers?
How far will you go for Christ?
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