5 January – 1 John 3:11-21; John 1:43-51

He who loves lives. We, too, ought to give up our lives for our brothers – like Jesus.

We die because we do not love, and we die because we love. The logic of John’s letter just seems absurd, something without hope (what difference does it make if death awaits us?). It is the promise – because it is based on faithfulness to Jesus, on His resurrection, which was also promised to us.

Gladness, thanksgiving, a bright holy day – intuitively we understand these terms. We want all this for ourselves and for our neighbours. There is also a promise in this: that Jesus, in whom we have trusted, will see us both under the fig tree and in every other place.