this narrow path

1 john 3: 16-18

¹⁶ 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.
-not just for our brothers and sisters, but for our family and friends and significant other.. this is what love is.. when you love someone, i truly believe that you would willingly take a gunshot for them. just as Christ was nailed into the cross and bled HImself to death showed us His love, we ought to lay our lives down for those whom we may call our brothers and sisters.

¹⁷ If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be that person? ¹⁸ Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.
-i feel like this is one of the hardest commands that the bible gives us. it's hard enough to love, just as Christ loved us. but in addition, we should also focus on how our actions portray the love that we have for Christ and for others. when a friend or someone you know is going through a hard time or going through temptations,, how far should we get involved in his/her situations without offending him/her and trying to portray God's love without looking down upon them at the same time?!.. i've always struggled with that and that's sorta stopped me from acting upon them. but it's there,, written down in scripture that we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters and act upon their needs.