If I Could Only Pick 3 Bible Verses

pic quote 1 corinthians 2 v 2

Over the last couple days I have had a recurring thought in my mind.  If you met someone who had never heard of Jesus or the Bible, but you could only share 3 verses with them, which 3 would they be?  Tough thought from the Lord, so I have been praying over it.  I am not including the Scripture pin verse in my choice of 3, but that verse is my focus for the 3 verses I chose.  The whole Bible is summed up in what Jesus Christ did for mankind at the cross.  It is through faith in Him alone that we are saved because He is the only One who died to forgive our sins.  It is His blood that washes away our scarlet sins, so they are white as snow (Isaiah 1:18)!  Thank You Jesus for paying the price for our sins in full (John 19:30)!  Thank You for Your forgiveness and love!

I was also thinking about how a person who had never heard of Jesus or any of the verses in the Bible might not understand words like “sanctification” and other Christian lingo we believers get used to saying.  If I was given the opportunity to share Christ with someone like that and only use 3 verses while I share, then I would want to go back to the basics and make it as simple as possible.  It’s all about what God did for us in Jesus Christ in His love, grace, mercy, and forgiveness for all of us!  It is simply our calling to share what He did with the world (Matthew 28:18-20).  It is every believer’s great honor and blessing to share that great news in the power of the Holy Spirit!  God does not want anyone to perish, but for all of us to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9)!  That is the best news anyone in the whole world could ever hear!

Here are the 3 verses that have been on my heart.  I use them a lot on my blog because they are foundational to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is that we are saved by God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone.  To be saved means that our sins are forgiven and we are given eternal life in Heaven through faith in Jesus!  This salvation is a gift from God that we could never earn.  He gives us this awesome gift because He loves us and it must be received by faith.  There is no boasting in Heaven.  We are NOT saved by works as if we are on some kind of point system or as if God owes us something.  Our salvation is secured and guaranteed through faith in Jesus alone.

#1: Back to the foundational verse of the entire Bible.  Every prophecy and everything that is written from Genesis to Revelation all points to Jesus and this verse sums it up beautifully!

“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.”

Jesus speaking in John 3:16

That is powerful truth straight from Jesus!  If that was the only verse that a person ever heard, it would be enough to lead them to faith in Jesus and be saved!  God loves us and if you believe in God’s Son Jesus Christ, you will not perish but have eternal life!  To perish means to die in your sins.  We all need forgiveness and if you believe in Jesus, then God will forgive all of your sins and you will not perish!  You will be saved and have eternal life!  May that verse go out and bear fruit as we know it always does Lord Jesus, Amen!

#2: How do we receive this gift of salvation by faith?

“That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Romans 10:9

That is THE answer to that question folks!  This is where I would explain sin and how we need forgiveness and why Jesus died for us.  I would explain that God is holy and perfect and because of our sin we miss the mark of His perfection.  How nothing we could ever do in our own efforts to get to Heaven would bridge that gap, so God became a man and died for us to forgive our sins and give us eternal life.

#3: I would want the person to understand that salvation is a gift from God that could never be earned by works.  I would explain that no amount of sacrificing of animals or chanting or meditating or burning of incense or offerings or good works or any other effort of man would ever be enough to pay the price for their sins.  I would explain that Jesus Christ died for us, so that all of mankind would be completely forgiven and there is no longer anymore need for sacrifice or any other kind of sin cleansing ritual.  I would explain that the God of all creation took care of that Himself and it is through the blood of Jesus Christ that we are forgiven and saved.  And God did it all because He loves each and everyone one of us!

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith–and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God–not by works, so that no one can boast.”

Ephesians 2:8-9

There are so many other verses I could have used (Romans 3:23, 5:8, and 6:23 for example), but these would be the 3 that I would use if I found myself ministering to a secluded tribe in the Amazon or something and I could only use 3 verses for some reason.  My heart is filled with so many verses of God’s truth and I would want to say so much more, but even if all I had was John 3:16 it would be enough.  All I have to do is get out of the way and introduce them to Jesus.  His Word is powerful enough!

Which 3 verses would you choose?  Let me know in the comments!

May we all focus on Jesus in all things at all times in all seasons of life!  Amen!

Grace and peace to you all!

Author: Ryan Callahan

Hello, and welcome to my site! I am an independent Christian author (One Man's Very Strange Supernatural Life), blogger, and evangelist for Jesus. My main goal with this blog is to help people come to know Jesus, help people understand the Bible, and to minister to a lost and hurting world. This site is about hope, new beginnings, grace, mercy, forgiveness, and love! I'm glad you are here, God bless you! Copyright © 2024 Ryan Callahan. All rights reserved.

35 thoughts on “If I Could Only Pick 3 Bible Verses”

    1. Thanks brother, looking forward to your picks! I just realized that when I chose Ephesians 2:8-9 that is actually 2 verses, but they have to go together to get the full meaning. I suppose I actually chose 4 then. 😂 Tough challenge indeed! God bless!

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      1. Yes I agree when someone needs encouragement or anything else it’s like ok i’ll send this one and this one and more so many to use.

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  8. It would be tough for me to narrow it down to three verses, I think, but I might be able to whittle it down to two books of the Bible: Psalms and Proverbs.

    Years ago, a friend was deeply struggling (she was not a Christian), and the Lord put it on my heart to buy her a Bible. So I got a Bible in a easily-understood translation, and – somewhat apprehensively, if I’m honest – recommended that my friend simply start reading. She was grateful for the gift, and asked me, “Where should I start reading?” My reply: “Start in Psalms and then make your way through Proverbs.”

    I thought the Psalms would minister to her heart (which was broekn) and Proverbs might give her some practical wisdom to help her with next steps. To my surprise, my friend responded with great enthusiasm, and continued on with her own exploration of the Bible on her own. And even though she and I have lost touch now, I know that she has a personal relationship with Jesus, and He’s got His eye on her.

    So I think those books would be my choice (those books also minister to my heart in a powerful way, too – they help to keep me anchored). Thanks for asking such a good question!

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      1. I hope she is remaining strong in the Lord, too. Unfortunately, shortly after my friend believed in Jesus, life seemed to get much much harder for her. There was a point when I reached out to her and she simply stop responding. After a couple of attempts, I wanted to make a point of respecting her boundaries, so I did not pressed the issue further. I still pray for her, but trust that the Lord has her in His very capable hands.

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  9. These are great! Once in our Connect Group at church we had to get in pairs and one of us was the believer and the other was the non-believer. The believer had a very short time to make the non-believer understand Jesus. It was so hard! I would pick Hebrews 11:1, James 4:7, and definitely John 3:16.

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