The three sixteens

This is a compilation of verses with a positive message that stands alone without heavy dependence on context, with the reference numbers 3:16. (James 3:16 and Revelation 3:16 can also stand alone, except that their message is not positive and thus lacks balance, although I guess you could say that I lack balance in choosing only the positive verses.  That's fair.  Consider yourself apprised.)

--All quotes are from the NIV--

Matthew 3:16
As soon as Jesus was baptized, He went up out of the water.  At that moment heaven was opened, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on Him.

Luke 3:16
John answered them all, "I baptize you with water.  But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire."

John 3:16
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

1 Corinthians 3:16
Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple, and that God's Spirit lives in you?

Galatians 3:16
The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed.  The Scripture does not say "and to seeds," meaning many people, but "and to your seed," meaning one person, who is Christ.

Ephesians 3:16
I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being.

Colossians 3:16
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing songs, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.

2 Thessalonians 3:16
Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times and in every way.  The Lord be with all of you.

1 Timothy 3:16
Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great:
He appeared in a body,
was vindicated by the Spirit,
was seen by angels,
was preached among the nations,
was believed on in the world,
was taken up in glory.

2 Timothy 3:16
All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.

1 John 3:16
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.

An explanation

I almost never write here anymore.

This may be indicative of a change in me.  Used to be, I kept my faith over here, and my life on my Memoirs blog.  These days, my faith and my life are inextricably bound up together, and I think that is a good thing.

It's not that my faith and my life weren't joined before.  It's just that I tried to keep this blog more for devotional and teaching purposes, and the Memoirs blog was more of a personal divulgence.  But just as reading the Bible developed a taste in me for the Bible as vastly superior to any other book, so it has come to pass that there isn't much of anything worth writing about in life apart from how God is working.  At any rate, I see God in every aspect of my life more clearly now, and the scriptures keep flowing into my Memoirs, and when I am finished writing there, it doesn't seem that there is much more to be said here.

It is interesting to me that my faith writing has invaded my life writing, and not the other way around.  I choose to believe that this is a good thing, bequeathed by a good source.

I will keep this blog, because there are some things that I consider resources here, writing I would like to preserve for my own reference.  I hope and pray that a person who happened upon this blog could explore it and find the way to salvation.  So I will leave it, in hopes that it might bear fruit someday, like a stunted apple tree, a late bloomer.

If the Lord wills, I will be back.