Overcoming Insecurity
Do
not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication
with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God,
which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in
Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable,
whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is
commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise,
think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen
in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
There
is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with
punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
Finally,
be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor
of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we
do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the
authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the
spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole
armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having
done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth,
and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ...
“Therefore
I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you
will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than
food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they
neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds
them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious
can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about
clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil
nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like
one of these. ...
No
temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he
will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he
will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
Do
not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind,
that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and
acceptable and perfect.
There
is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law
of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and
death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By
sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned
sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be
fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the
Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things
of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the
things of the Spirit. ...
If
you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will
be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and
so prove to be my disciples.
Therefore,
confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be
healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
And
you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
A
Psalm of David. The Lord is
my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads
me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of
righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the
shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your
staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my
enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. ...
I
therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the
calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with
patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the
Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were
called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one
baptism, ...
Therefore,
since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord
Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace
in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that,
we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and
endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not
put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the
Holy Spirit who has been given to us. ...
I
have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who
lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of
God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Brothers,
I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting
what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward
the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
For
the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.
For
we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God
prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Likewise,
you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you,
with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to
the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that
at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because
he cares for you.
I
appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your
bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your
spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the
renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God,
what is good and acceptable and perfect.
May
mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.
And
let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete,
lacking in nothing.
For
the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword,
piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and
discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Keep
your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.
But
be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
But
the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions
and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.
If
I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy
gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all
mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove
mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I
deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is
patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It
does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; ...
For
everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
Therefore,
since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside
every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance
the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of
our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising
the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him
who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not
grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet
resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And have you forgotten the
exhortation that addresses you as sons? “My son, do not regard lightly the
discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. ...
These
things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may
be full.
No
one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him, and
he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.
The
thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life
and have it abundantly.
This
is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light,
and in him is no darkness at all.
You
then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what
you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful
men who will be able to teach others also. Share in suffering as a good soldier
of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim
is to please the one who enlisted him. An athlete is not crowned unless he
competes according to the rules. ...
I
appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your
bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your
spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the
renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God,
what is good and acceptable and perfect. For by the grace given to me I say to
everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think,
but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that
God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and the members do
not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and
individually members one of another. ...
Now
faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand
that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not
made out of things that are visible. By faith Abel offered to God a more
acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous,
God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he
died, he still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see
death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken
he was commended as having pleased God. ...
Train
up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from
it.
“I
can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because
I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.
The
one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be
my son.
Do
not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained
angels unawares.
If
you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much
more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
But
as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine. Older men are to be
sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in
steadfastness. Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not
slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train
the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled,
pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the
word of God may not be reviled. ...
“Truly,
truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs
in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the
door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear
his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has
brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for
they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from
him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” ...
These
are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are
loud-mouthed boasters, showing favoritism to gain advantage.
“For
no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for
each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from
thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good person out of
the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his
evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth
speaks. “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you? Everyone
who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is
like: ...
But
false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false
teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even
denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.
And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth
will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words.
Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not
asleep. For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into
hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the
judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald
of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of
the ungodly; ...
When
Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said,
“Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you,
since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all
whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you the only
true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth, having
accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in
your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.
...
For
I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who
sent me.
In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He
was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without
him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the
light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not
overcome it. ...
Long
ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets,
but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the
heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance
of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the
universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat
down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior
to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. For to
which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son, today I have begotten
you”? Or again, “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son”? ...
But
in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a
defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do
it with gentleness and respect,
“For
God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him
should not perish but have eternal life.
When
the Lord has given you
rest from your pain and turmoil and the hard service with which you were made
to serve, you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon: “How the
oppressor has ceased, the insolent fury ceased! The Lord has broken the staff of the
wicked, the scepter of rulers, that struck the peoples in wrath with unceasing
blows, that ruled the nations in anger with unrelenting persecution. The whole
earth is at rest and quiet; they break forth into singing. ...
But
according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in
which righteousness dwells.
Older
women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much
wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love
their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home,
kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be
reviled.
First
of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and
thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high
positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in
every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who
desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For
there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ
Jesus, ...
He
put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared
to a man who sowed good seed in his field,
Seeing
the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples
came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the
poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who
mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall
inherit the earth. ...
Comfort,
comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her
that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received
from the Lord's hand double
for all her sins. A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a
highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and
hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a
plain. And the glory of the Lord shall
be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” ...
Comfort,
comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her
that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received
from the Lord's hand double
for all her sins. A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a
highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and
hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a
plain. And the glory of the Lord shall
be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” ...
Do
not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of
gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden
person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit,
which in God's sight is very precious.
And
do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the
Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing
and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for
everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting
to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit to your own husbands,
as to the Lord. ...
On
the other hand, the one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding
and encouragement and consolation.
Therefore
you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment
on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same
things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice
such things. Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things
and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you
presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing
that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard
and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath
when God's righteous judgment will be revealed. ...
When
they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do
you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love
you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” He said to him a second time, “Simon,
son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love
you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon,
son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the
third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything;
you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.
Jesus
said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am
sending you.”
Peter,
an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the dispersion in
Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge
of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus
Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to
you. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his
great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is
imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's
power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in
the last time. ...
So
that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his
designs.
What
shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no
means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of
us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We
were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as
Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk
in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we
shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. ...
I
am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread,
he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world
is my flesh.”
He
said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and they marveled,
saying to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even winds and
water, and they obey him?”
Righteous
are you, O Lord, when I
complain to you; yet I would plead my case before you. Why does the way of the
wicked prosper? Why do all who are treacherous thrive? You plant them, and they
take root; they grow and produce fruit; you are near in their mouth and far
from their heart. But you, O Lord,
know me; you see me, and test my heart toward you. Pull them out like sheep for
the slaughter, and set them apart for the day of slaughter. How long will the
land mourn and the grass of every field wither? For the evil of those who dwell
in it the beasts and the birds are swept away, because they said, “He will not
see our latter end.” “If you have raced with men on foot, and they have wearied
you, how will you compete with horses? And if in a safe land you are so
trusting, what will you do in the thicket of the Jordan? ...
The
people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a
land of deep darkness, on them has light shined. You have multiplied the
nation; you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the
harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil. For the yoke of his
burden, and the staff for his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, you have
broken as on the day of Midian. For every boot of the tramping warrior in
battle tumult and every garment rolled in blood will be burned as fuel for the
fire. For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall
be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty
God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. ...
The
revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the
things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his
servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus
Christ, even to all that he saw. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words
of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written
in it, for the time is near. John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace
to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the
seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful
witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who
loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood ...
Beloved,
do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from
God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the
Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the
flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from
God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now
is in the world already. Little children, you are from God and have overcome
them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are
from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to
them. ...
But
false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false
teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even
denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.
And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth
will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words.
Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not
asleep. For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into
hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the
judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald
of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of
the ungodly; ...
Paul,
a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of
God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,
concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was
declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by
his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have
received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the
sake of his name among all the nations, ...
After
this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there
is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has
five roofed colonnades. In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and
paralyzed. One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long
time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” ...
And
he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not
lose heart. He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared
God nor respected man. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to
him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ For a while he refused,
but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man,
yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she
will not beat me down by her continual coming.’” ...
In
the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that
they were trampling one another, he began to say to his disciples first,
“Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Nothing is covered
up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. Therefore
whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you
have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops. “I tell
you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have
nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who,
after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear
him! ...
A
Psalm of Asaph. God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of
the gods he holds judgment: “How long will you judge unjustly and show
partiality to the wicked? Selah Give justice to the weak and the fatherless;
maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the
needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” They have neither knowledge
nor understanding, they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the
earth are shaken. ...
Yet
you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with
glory and honor.
James,
a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes in the
Dispersion: Greetings. Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of
various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces
steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be
perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him
ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given
him. ...
Now
it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which we are
speaking. It has been testified somewhere, “What is man, that you are mindful
of him, or the son of man, that you care for him? You made him for a little
while lower than the angels; you have crowned him with glory and honor, putting
everything in subjection under his feet.” Now in putting everything in
subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not
yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while
was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor
because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste
death for everyone. ...
Long
ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets,
but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the
heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance
of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the
universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat
down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior
to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. For to
which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son, today I have begotten
you”? Or again, “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son”? ...
And
he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard and put a
fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and leased
it to tenants and went into another country. When the season came, he sent a
servant to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. And
they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. Again he sent to
them another servant, and they struck him on the head and treated him
shamefully. And he sent another, and him they killed. And so with many others:
some they beat, and some they killed. ...
For
even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as
a ransom for many.”
The
word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord:
“Thus says the Lord, the God
of Israel: Write in a book all the words that I have spoken to you. For behold,
days are coming, declares the Lord,
when I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel and Judah, says the Lord, and I will bring them back to the
land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall take possession of it.” These
are the words that the Lord spoke
concerning Israel and Judah: “Thus says the Lord: We have heard a cry of panic, of terror, and no peace.
...
For
behold, the Lord God of
hosts is taking away from Jerusalem and from Judah support and supply, all
support of bread, and all support of water; the mighty man and the soldier, the
judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder, the captain of fifty and the
man of rank, the counselor and the skillful magician and the expert in charms.
And I will make boys their princes, and infants shall rule over them. And the
people will oppress one another, every one his fellow and every one his
neighbor; the youth will be insolent to the elder, and the despised to the
honorable. ...
If
the clouds are full of rain, they empty themselves on the earth, and if a tree
falls to the south or to the north, in the place where the tree falls, there it
will lie.
Then
I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven
plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished. And I
saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those who had
conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside
the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. And they sing the song of
Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and amazing
are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of
the nations! Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone
are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have
been revealed.” After this I looked, and the sanctuary of the tent of witness in
heaven was opened, ...
And
a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon
under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and
was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. And another sign
appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns,
and on his heads seven diadems. His tail swept down a third of the stars of
heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who
was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it.
She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod
of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, ...
The
revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the
things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his
servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus
Christ, even to all that he saw. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words
of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written
in it, for the time is near. John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace
to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the
seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful
witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who
loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood ...
The
revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the
things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his
servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus
Christ, even to all that he saw. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words
of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written
in it, for the time is near. John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace
to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the
seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful
witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who
loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood ...
The
revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the
things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his
servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus
Christ, even to all that he saw. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words
of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written
in it, for the time is near. John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace
to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the
seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness,
the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us
and has freed us from our sins by his blood ...
Because
of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever:
My
little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But
if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the
righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also
for the sins of the whole world. And by this we know that we have come to know
him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep
his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his
word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we
are in him: ...
For
God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
Paul,
an apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our
hope, To Timothy, my true child in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God
the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. As I urged you when I was going to
Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to
teach any different doctrine, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless
genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God
that is by faith. The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart
and a good conscience and a sincere faith. ...
Paul,
Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and
the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord
Jesus Christ. We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is
right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of
you for one another is increasing. Therefore we ourselves boast about you in
the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions
and in the afflictions that you are enduring. This is evidence of the righteous
judgment of God, that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for
which you are also suffering— ...
Seeing
the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples
came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the
poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who
mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall
inherit the earth. ...
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