Sacrifice: Giving Up Pt. II (1 John 3:16-18)

In baseball, when a batter gives up his turn at bat to help another runner, and his team, it is called a sacrifice. This can be done in one of two ways:

1. The sacrifice fly, when the batter hits a fly ball for an out, allowing his teammate to score, or
2. The sacrifice hit, where a batter "bunts" or essentially taps the ball right in front of himself so that his teammate can advance to the next base.

Typically, this action does not count for or against the batter. For instance, if a batter has 4 attempts with two hits and two outs, we say he hit 2 for 4, but if one of the outs is a sacrifice he is said to have hit 2 for 3.

Jesus knew we could not "win" without Him. On our efforts, we will never be perfect. He gave up His life so that we could be reconnected to God for eternity. He took on our sin, gave up His life, and drove us home. In losing, He won for our sake. "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us."