Care for Those Indeed
1 John 3:17
Excerpt
While laying down one’s life for another is the supreme example of Christlike love, John moves to a more practical, everyday scenario to emphasize the type of love he describes previously. The adversative conjunction “but” (de), absent in the NIV, introduces a negative example that contrasts the positive one of v. 16.
Clearly, the more difficult call is to lay one’s life down for another. It is a lesser demand to help a brother in need. The apostle knows, however, that not many are required to perform the heroic deed of giving one’s life for another, but the opportunity to help a needy brother is constant. The challenge for John’s hearers is to apply their Christian love to a context that is true to everyday life, one in which they repeatedly find themselves.
Akin, Daniel L. 1, 2, 3 John. Vol. 38. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2001. Print. The New American Commentary.
Akin, Daniel L. 1, 2, 3 John. Vol. 38. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2001. Print. The New American Commentary.
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