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T
UESDAY
IN
THE
O
CTAVE OF
E
ASTER
Acts of the Apostles 5:17-26
Psalm 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9
John 3:16-21
S
UMMARY
One of the most widely quoted versus from the Bible, and
has been referenced as the 'Gospel in a nutshell':
For God so loved the world so much that he gave His only
Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not die but
have eternal life'
The verse occurs in a story in Ch 3 where Nicodemus (a member of the Sanhedrin rul-
ing council) comes to speak w Jesus because His miracles have convinced him that Je-
sus has been sent from God. This verse builds upon the lessons Jesus imparts upon
Nicodemus, in that believing in Jesus is necessary for eternal life. But just as impor-
tantly, whoever does NOT believe in Jesus is already condemned. Jesus represents the
light that has come into our world, but for most it is easier to love the 'darkness', which
is representative of evil. Those that do 'wicked' things hate the light, lest his works
should be exposed, but those that do what is 'true' come to the light so that their
works may be seen to have been carried out in God.
R
EFLECTION
We have all seen this verse referenced in some capacity: it is often on signs people
make to get on TV at sporting events; football player Tim Tebow (and many others,
though he is probably the most well
known) have put John 3:16 on black sun-
shield strips below their eyes during
games; even In n Out Burger prints it on
the rim of bottom of their paper cups . It is
so prevalent because it summarizes what
we all SHOULD focus on in our daily ac-
tions and lives: Love. Love for our fellow
man in the way we act and treat others,
and love in the way we GIVE to others in
the way that God gave his only Son to us.
It can sound overwhelming and
'unattainable' if we try to measure ourselves to the standard of God giving Jesus to the
world, but if we think of it in a more 'micro' way in terms of our daily lives we each be
better person if we keep Love in mind in the ways we think and act.