Sunday, June 29

3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

4to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you,

5who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

6In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials,

7that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ,

8whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory,

9receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.

13Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

14as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance;

15but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct,

16because it is written, 'Be holy, for I am holy.'

17And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear;

18knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,

19but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

11Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,

12having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

13Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king as supreme,

14or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good.

15For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men—

16as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God.

17Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.

18Servants, be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh.

19For this is commendable, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully.

20For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God.

21For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:

22'Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth';

23who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously;

24who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.

9Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons.

10She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept.

11And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.

12After that, He appeared in another form to two of them as they walked and went into the country.

13And they went and told it to the rest, but they did not believe them either.

14Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen.

15And He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

16He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.

17And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;

18they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.'

19So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.

20And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen.

1Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

2through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

3And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance;

4and perseverance, character; and character, hope.

5Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

6For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

7For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for good man someone would even dare to die.

8But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

9Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.

10For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

21To our shame I say that we were too weak for that! But in whatever anyone is bold—I speak foolishly—I am bold also.

22Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? So am I.

23Are they ministers of Christ?—I speak as a fool—I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often.

24From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one.

25Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep;

26in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;

27in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness—

28besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches.

29Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I do not burn with indignation?

30If I must boast, I will boast in the things which concern my infirmity.

31The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying.

32In Damascus the governor, under Aretas the king, was guarding the city of the Damascenes with a garrison, desiring to arrest me;

33but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall, and escaped from his hands.

1It is doubtless not profitable for me to boast. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord:

2I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows—such a one was caught up to the third heaven.

3And I know such a man—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows—

4how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.

5Of such a one I will boast; yet of myself I will not boast, except in my infirmities.

6For though I might desire to boast, I will not be a fool; for I will speak the truth. But I refrain, lest anyone should think of me above what he sees me to be or hears from me.

7And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure.

8Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me.

9And He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

22'The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light.

23But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

24'No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

25'Therefore I say to you, do not worry 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?

26Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

27Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

28'So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin;

29and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

30Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

31'Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'

32For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

33But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

13When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, 'Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?'

14So they said, 'Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.'

15He said to them, 'But who do you say that I am?'

16Simon Peter answered and said, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.'

17Jesus answered and said to him, 'Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

18And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.

19And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.'