Sunday, August 1

36Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, 'Peace to you.'

37But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit.

38And He said to them, 'Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts?

39Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.'

40When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet.

41But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, 'Have you any food here?'

42So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb.

43And He took it and ate in their presence.

44Then He said to them, 'These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.'

45And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.

46Then He said to them, 'Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day,

47and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

48And you are witnesses of these things.

49Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.'

50And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them.

51Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven.

52And they worshiped Him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy,

53and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God. Amen.

6Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith;

7or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching;

8he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.

9Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.

10Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;

11not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord;

12rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer;

13distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.

14Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.

18For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

19For it is written: 'I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.'

20Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

21For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

22For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom;

23but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness,

24but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

33who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,

34quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.

35Women received their dead raised to life again.

36Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment.

37They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented—

38of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth.

39And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise,

40God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.

1Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

2looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

1So He got into a boat, crossed over, and came to His own city.

2Then behold, they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, 'Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you.'

3And at once some of the scribes said within themselves, 'This Man blasphemes!'

4But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, 'Why do you think evil in your hearts?

5For which is easier, to say, 'Your sins are forgiven you,' or to say, 'Arise and walk'?

6But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins'—then He said to the paralytic, 'Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.'

7And he arose and departed to his house.

8Now when the multitudes saw it, they marveled and glorified God, who had given such power to men.

6Therefore, when the chief priests and officers saw Him, they cried out, saying, 'Crucify Him, crucify Him!'

7Pilate said to them, 'You take Him and crucify Him, for I find no fault in Him.' The Jews answered him, 'We have a law, and according to our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God.'

8Therefore, when Pilate heard that saying, he was the more afraid,

9and went again into the Praetorium, and said to Jesus, 'Where are You from?' But Jesus gave him no answer.

10Then Pilate said to Him, 'Are You not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have power to crucify You, and power to release You?'

11Jesus answered, 'You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above. Therefore the one who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.'

12From then on Pilate sought to release Him, but the Jews cried out, saying, 'If you let this Man go, you are not Caesar's friend. Whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar.'

13When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus out and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha.

14Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, and about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, 'Behold your King!'

15But they cried out, 'Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!'

16Then he delivered Him to them to be crucified. Then they took Jesus and led Him away. Pilate said to them, 'Shall I crucify your King?'

17And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha, The chief priests answered, 'We have no king but Caesar!'

18where they crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either side, and Jesus in the center.

19Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing was: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.

20Then many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin.

21Therefore the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, 'Do not write, 'The King of the Jews,' but, 'He said, 'I am the King of the Jews.' ' '

22Pilate answered, 'What I have written, I have written.'

23Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments and made four parts, to each soldier apart, and also the tunic. Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece.

24They said therefore among themselves, 'Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be,' that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says: 'They divided My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.' Therefore the soldiers did these things.

25Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.

26When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, 'Woman, behold your son!'

27Then He said to the disciple, 'Behold your mother!' And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.

28After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, 'I thirst!'

29Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth.

30So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, 'It is finished!' And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.

31Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.

32Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was crucified with Him.

33But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs.

34But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out.

35And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe.

32'Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.

33But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.

34'Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.

35For I have come to ' set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law';

36and 'a man's enemies will be those of his own household.'

37He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.

38And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.

39He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

40'He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.

41He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward.

42And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.'

1Now it came to pass, when Jesus finished commanding His twelve disciples, that He departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities.

11For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren,

12saying: 'I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You.'

13And again: 'I will put My trust in Him.' And again: 'Here am I and the children whom God has given Me.'

14Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,

15and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

16For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham.

17Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.

18For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.

1After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

2Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches.

3In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.

4For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.