John – Gospel 2 – Jesus Turns Water into Wine

Two days after this there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and Jesus’ mother was there. 2 Jesus himself, too, with his disciples, was invited to the wedding. 3 And, when the wine ran short, his mother said to him: “They have no wine left.” 4 “What do you want with me?” answered Jesus. “My time has not come yet.” 5 His mother said to the servants: “Do whatever he tells you.”

6 There were standing there six stone water-jars, in accordance with the Jewish rule of ‘purification,’ each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to the servants: “Fill the water-jars with water;” 8 And, when they had filled them to the brim, he added: “Now take some out, and carry it to the master of the feast.” The servants did so.

9 And, when the master of the feast had tasted the water which had now become wine, not knowing where it had come from—although the servants who had taken out the water knew—10 He called the bridegroom and said to him: “Everyone puts good wine on the table first, and inferior wine afterwards, when his guests have drunk freely; but you have kept back the good wine till now!”

11 This, the first sign of his mission, Jesus gave at Cana in Galilee, and by it revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. 12 After this, Jesus went down to Capernaum with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples; but they stayed there only a few days. 13 Then, as the Jewish Passover was near, Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

14 In the temple courts he found people who were selling bullocks, sheep, and pigeons, and the money-changers at their counters. 15 So he made a whip of cords, and drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep and bullocks as well; he scattered the money of the money-changers, and overturned their tables, 16 And said to the pigeon-dealers: “Take these things away. Do not turn my Father’s house into a market-house.”

17 His disciples remembered that scripture said: ‘The zeal of thy house hath consumed me.’ 18 Upon this the Jews asked Jesus: “What sign are you going to show us, since you act in this way?” 19 “Destroy this temple,” was his answer, “and I will raise it in three days.”

20 “This temple,” replied the Jews, “has been forty-six years in building, and are you going to ‘raise it in three days’?” 21 But Jesus was speaking of his body as a temple. 22 Afterwards, when he had risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this; and they believed the passage of scripture, and the words which Jesus had spoken.

23 While Jesus was in Jerusalem, during the Passover festival, many came to trust in him, when they saw the signs of his mission that he was giving. 24 But Jesus did not trust himself to them, since he could read every heart, 25 And because he did not need that others should tell him what people were; for he could of himself read what was in them.

To read the next chapter of the Book of John, please go to The Gospel of John – 3.

This Online New Testament Gospel of John is excerpted from the book The Living Hour: The Lord’s Prayer for Daily Life (with New Century Gospels). Including over 200 bookmarked citations from the canonical Gospels, this Progressive Christian book appeals to the Unitarian spirit at the heart of all faiths.

Challenge your perceptions on the Gospel of Christ, Jesus’s parables, and the Kingdom of God by purchasing The Lord’s Prayer book today. Produced by LivingHour.org, a Thailand-based small press dedicated to publishing unique Learning Easy Thai Language Books, as well as works on progressive spirituality.

John – Gospel 7 – Your Time Is Always Here

After this, Jesus walked about in Galilee, for he would not walk in Judea, because the Jews were eager to put him to death. 2 When the Jewish festival of tabernacles was near, 3 His brothers said to him: “Leave this part of the country, and go into Judea, so that your disciples, as well as we, may see the work that you are doing. 4 For no one does a thing privately, if he is seeking to be widely known. Since you do these things, you should show yourself publicly to the world.” 5 For even his brothers did not believe in him.

6 “My time,” answered Jesus, “is not come yet, but your time is always here. 7 The world cannot hate you, but it does hate me, because I testify that its ways are evil. 8 Go yourselves up to the Festival; I am not going to this Festival yet, because my time has not yet come.” 9 After telling them this, he stayed on in Galilee.

10 But, when his brothers had gone up to the festival, Jesus also went up, not publicly, but privately. 11 The Jews were looking for him at the festival and asking ‘Where is he?’ 12 And there were many whispers about him among the people, some saying: ‘He is a good man;’ others: ‘No! he is leading the people astray.’ 13 No one, however, spoke freely about him, for fear of the Jews.

14 About the middle of the festival week, Jesus went up into the temple courts, and began teaching. 15 The Jews were astonished. “How has this man got his learning,” they asked, “when he has never studied?”

16 So, in reply, Jesus said: “My teaching is not my own; it is his who sent me. 17 If anyone has the will to do God’s will, they will find out whether my teaching is from God, or whether I speak on my own authority. 18 Those who speak on their own authority seek honor for themselves; but those who seeks the honor of him that sent them are sincere, and there is nothing false in them. 19 Was not it Moses who gave you the law? Yet not one of you obeys it! Why are you seeking to put me to death?”

20 “You must be possessed by a devil!” the people exclaimed. “Who is seeking to put you to death?”

21 “There was one thing I did,” replied Jesus, “at which you are all still wondering. 22 But that is why Moses has instituted circumcision among you—not, indeed, that it began with him, but with our ancestors—and that is why you circumcise even on a Sabbath. 23 When a man receives circumcision on a Sabbath to prevent the law of Moses from being broken, how can you be angry with me for making someone sound and well on a Sabbath? 24 Do not judge by appearances; judge justly.”

25 At this some of the people of Jerusalem exclaimed: “Is not this the man that they are seeking to put to death? 26 Yet here he is, speaking out boldly, and they say nothing to him! Is it possible that our leading men have really discovered that he is the Christ? 27 Yet we know where this man is from; but, when the Christ comes, no one will be able to tell where he is from.”

28 Therefore, Jesus, as he was teaching in the temple courts, raised his voice and said: “Yes; you know me and you know where I am from. Yet I have not come on my own authority, but he who sent me may be trusted; and him you do not know. 29 I do know him, for it is from him that I have come, and he sent me as his messenger.” 30 So they sought to arrest him; but no one touched him, for his time was not come yet.

31 Many of the people, however, believed in him. “When the Christ comes,” they said, “will he give more signs of his mission than this man has given?” 32 The Pharisees heard the people whispering about him in this way, and so the chief priests and the Pharisees sent officers to arrest him;

33 On which Jesus said: “I shall be with you but a little longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. 34 You will look for me, and you will not find me; and you will not be able to come where I shall be.”

35 “Where is this man going,” the Jews asked one another, “that we shall not find him? Will he go to our countrymen abroad, and teach foreigners? 36 What does he mean by saying: ‘You will look for me, and you will not find me; and you will not be able to come where I shall be’?”

37 On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus, who was standing by, exclaimed: “If anyone thirsts, let them come to me, and drink. 38 You who believe in me, as scripture says, out of your heart shall flow rivers of living water.” 39 By this he meant the spirit, which those who had believed in him were to receive; for the spirit had not yet come, because Jesus had not yet been exalted.

40 Some of the people, when they heard these words, said: “This is certainly ‘the prophet’!” 41 Others said: “This is the Christ!” But some asked: “What! Does the Christ come from Galilee? 42 Is not it said in scripture that it is of the race of David, and from Bethlehem, the village to which David belonged, that the Christ is to come?” 43 So there was a sharp division among the people on account of Jesus. 44 Some of them wanted to arrest him, and yet no one touched him.

45 When the officers returned to the chief priests and Pharisees, they were asked: “Why have you not brought him?” 46 “No man ever spoke as he speaks!” they answered. 47 “What! Have you been led astray too?” the Pharisees replied. 48 “Have any of our leading men believed in him, or any of the Pharisees? 49 As for these people who do not know the law—they are cursed!”

50 But one of their number, Nicodemus, who before this had been to see Jesus, said to them: 51 “Does our law pass judgment on people without first giving them a hearing, and finding out what they have been doing?” 52 “Are you also from Galilee?” they retorted. “Search and you will find that no prophet is to arise in Galilee!” 53 Then everyone went back to their own houses.

To read the next chapter of the Book of John, please go to The Gospel of John – 8.

This Online New Testament Gospel of John is excerpted from the book The Living Hour: The Lord’s Prayer for Daily Life (with New Century Gospels). Including over 200 bookmarked citations from the canonical Gospels, this Progressive Christian book appeals to the Unitarian spirit at the heart of all faiths.

Challenge your perceptions on the Gospel of Christ, Jesus’s parables, and the Kingdom of God by purchasing The Lord’s Prayer book today. Produced by LivingHour.org, a Thailand-based small press dedicated to publishing unique Learning Easy Thai Language Books, as well as works on progressive spirituality.

Luke – Gospel 23 – Jesus Visits Herod

Then they all rose as a body and led Jesus before Pilate. 2 And they began to accuse him: “This is a man whom we found misleading our people, preventing them from paying taxes to Caesar, and claiming that he himself is Christ a King.’” 3 “Are you the King of the Jews?” Pilate asked him. “That is what you say,” replied Jesus.

4 Then Pilate, turning to the chief priests and the people, said: “I do not see anything to find fault with in this man.” 5 But they insisted: “He is stirring up the people by his teaching all through Judea; he began with Galilee and has now come here.”

6 Hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean; 7 And, having satisfied himself that Jesus came under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who also was at Jerusalem at the time. 8 When Herod saw Jesus, he was exceedingly pleased, for he had been wanting to see him for a long time, having heard a great deal about him; and he was hoping to see some sign given by him. 9 So he questioned him at some length, but Jesus made no reply.

10 Meanwhile the chief priests and the teachers of the law stood by and vehemently accused him. 11 And Herod, with his soldiers, treated Jesus with scorn; he mocked him by throwing a gorgeous robe round him, and then sent him back to Pilate. 12 And Herod and Pilate became friends that very day, for before that there had been ill-will between them.

13 So Pilate summoned the chief priests, and the leading men, and the people, 14 And said to them: “You brought this man before me charged with misleading the people; and yet, for my part, though I examined him before you, I did not find this man to blame for any of the things of which you accuse him; 15 Nor did Herod either; for he has sent him back to us. And, as a fact, he has not done anything deserving death; 16 So I shall chastise him, and then release him.” 27 For of necessity he needed to release one to them at the feast.

18 But they began to shout as one person: “Kill this fellow, but release Barabbas for us.” 19 Barabbas was a man who had been put in prison for a riot that had broken out in the city and for murder. 20 Pilate, however, wanting to release Jesus, called to them again; 21 But they kept calling out: “Crucify, crucify him!”

22 “Why, what harm has this man done?” Pilate said to them for the third time. “I have found nothing in him for which he could be condemned to death. So I will chastise him, and then let him go.”

23 But they persisted in loudly demanding his crucifixion; and their clamor gained the day. 24 Pilate decided that their demand should be granted. 25 He released the man who had been put in prison for riot and murder, as they demanded, and gave Jesus up to be dealt with as they pleased.

26 And, as they were leading Jesus away, they laid hold of Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and they put the cross on his shoulders for him to carry behind Jesus. 27 There was a great crowd of people following him, many being women who were beating their breasts and wailing for him.

28 So Jesus turned and said to them: “Women of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. 29 A time, I tell you, is coming, when it will be said: ‘Happy are the women who are barren, and those who have never borne children or nursed them!’ 30 At that time people will begin to say to the mountains ‘Fall on us,’ and to the hills ‘Cover us.’ 31 If what you see is done while the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

32 There were two others also, criminals, led out to be executed with Jesus. 33 When they had reached the place called Calvary, there they crucified Jesus and the criminals, one on the right, and one on the left. 34 Then Jesus said: “Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are doing.” His clothes they then divided among themselves by casting lots.

35 Meanwhile the people stood looking on. Even the leading men said with a sneer: “He saved others, let him save himself, if he is God’s Christ, his Chosen One.” 36 The soldiers, too, came up in mockery, bringing him common wine, 37 And saying as they did so: “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself.” 38 Above him were the words: ‘THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.’

39 One of the criminals who was hanging beside Jesus railed at him. “Are not you the Christ? Save yourself and us,” he said. 40 But the other rebuked him. “Have not you,” he said, “any fear of God, now that you are under the same sentence? 41 And we justly so, for we are only reaping our deserts, but this man has not done anything wrong.”

42 Jesus,” he went on, “do not forget me when you have come to your kingdom.” 43 And Jesus answered: “I tell you, this very day you shall be with me in paradise.” 44 It was nearly mid-day, when a darkness came over the whole country, lasting until three in the afternoon, 45 The sun being eclipsed; and the temple curtain was torn down the middle. 46 Then Jesus, with a loud cry, said: “Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit.” And with these words he expired.

47 The Roman captain, on seeing what had happened, praised God, exclaiming: “Certainly this was a righteous man!” 48 All the people who had gathered to see the sight, watched what occurred, and then went home beating their breasts. 49 All the friends of Jesus had been standing at a distance, with the women who accompanied him from Galilee, watching everything.

50 Now there was a man of the name of Joseph, who was a counselor, and who was a good man and just. 51 This man had not assented to the decision and action of the council. He was from Arithamaea, a city of the Jews, and lived in expectation of the kingdom of God. 52 He now went to see Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus; 53 And, when he had taken it down, he wrapped it in a linen sheet, and laid him in a tomb cut out of stone, in which no one had yet been buried.

54 It was the preparation day, just before the start of the Sabbath. 55 The women who had accompanied Jesus from Galilee followed, and saw the tomb and how the body of Jesus was laid, 56 And then went home, and prepared spices and perfumes. During the Sabbath they rested, as directed by the commandment.

To read the next chapter of the Book of Luke, please go to The Gospel of Luke – 24.

This Online New Testament Gospel of Luke is excerpted from the book The Living Hour: The Lord’s Prayer for Daily Life (with New Century Gospels). Including over 200 bookmarked citations from the canonical Gospels, this Progressive Christian book appeals to the Unitarian spirit at the heart of all faiths.

Challenge your perceptions on the Gospel of Christ, Jesus’s parables, and the Kingdom of God by purchasing The Lord’s Prayer book today. Produced by LivingHour.org, a Thailand-based small press dedicated to publishing unique Learning Easy Thai Language Books, as well as works on progressive spirituality.

Looking for Jesus

Gospel of Mark 16

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought some spices, so that they might go and anoint the body of Jesus. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, they went to the tomb after sunrise. 3 They were saying to one another: “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?”

4 But on looking up, they saw that the stone had already been rolled back; it was a very large one. 5 Going into the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on their right, in a white robe, and they were dismayed; But he said to them: 6 “Do not be dismayed; you are looking for Jesus, the Nazarene, who has been crucified; he has risen, he is not here! Look! Here is the place where they laid him. 7 But go, and say to his disciples and to Peter: ‘He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see him, as he told you.’”

8 They went out and fled from the tomb, for they were trembling and bewildered; and they did not say a word to anyone, for they were frightened; 9 After his rising again, early on the first day of the week, Jesus appeared first of all to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had driven out seven demons. 10 She went and told the news to those who had been with him, and who were now in sorrow and tears; 11 Yet even they when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, did not believe it.

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Learn the Lord’s Prayer‘s Meaning

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12 Afterwards, altered in appearance, he made himself known to two of them, as they were walking on their way into the country. 13 They also went and told the rest, but they did not believe even them. 14 Later on, he made himself known to the eleven them-selves as they were at a meal, and reproached them with their want of faith and their stubbornness, because they did not believe those who had seen him after he had risen from the dead.

15 Then he said to them: “Go into all the world, and proclaim the gospel to all creation. 16 He who believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he who refuses to believe will be condemned. 17 Moreover these signs shall attend those who believe. In my name they shall drive out demons; they shall speak with ‘tongues’; 18 They shall take up serpents in their hands; and, if they drink any poison, it shall not hurt them; they will place their hands on sick people and they shall recover.”

19 So the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them was taken up into heaven, and sat at the right hand of God. 20 But they set out, and made the proclamation everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the message by the signs which attended it.

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Gain fresh insight into the Lord’s Prayer & how God is with us today. Read our free online book The Lord’s Prayer for Daily Life. The prayer’s hidden teachings will enrich and inspire you. Click the following link to begin reading the Living Hour Book now: The Lord’s Prayer.

Browse the entire Book of Mark here: Gospel of Mark

Jesus is Risen

Gospel of Matthew 28

After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary had gone to look at the grave, 2 When suddenly a great earthquake occurred. For an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled away the stone, and seated himself upon it. 3 His appearance was as dazzling as lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow; 4 And, in their terror of him, the men on guard trembled violently and became like dead men.

5 But the angel, addressing the women, said: “You need not be afraid. I now that it is Jesus, who was crucified, for whom you are looking. 6 He is not here; for he has risen, as he said he would. Come, and see the place where he was lying; 7 And then go quickly and say to his disciples: ‘Jesus is risen from the dead, and is going before you into Galilee; there you will see him.’ Remember, I have told you.”

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What is the Lord’s Prayer?

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8 On this they left the tomb quickly, in awe and great joy, and ran to tell the news to the disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Welcome!” he said. The women went up to him, and clasped his feet, bowing to the ground before him. Then Jesus said to them: 10 “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to set out for Galilee, and they shall see me there.”

11 While they were still on their way, some of the guard came into the city, and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 So they and the elders met and, after holding a consultation, gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, 13 And told them to say that his disciples came in the night, and stole him while they were asleep; 14 “And should this matter come before the governor,” they added, “we will satisfy him, and see that you have nothing to fear. 15 So the soldiers took the money, and did as they were instructed. And this story has been current among the Jews from that day to this.

16 The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus told them to meet him; 17 And, when they saw him, they bowed to the ground before him; although some felt doubtful. 18 Then Jesus came up, and spoke to them: “All authority in heaven and on the earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the faith of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, 20 And teaching them to lay to heart all the commands that I have given you; and remember I myself am with you every day until the close of the age.”

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To read the previous chapter (27) of the Gospel of Matthew, please click on the following link: Forsaken Me.

Gain fresh insight into the Lord’s Prayer. Read our free online book The Lord’s Prayer for Daily Life. The prayer’s hidden teachings will enrich and inspire you. Click the following link to begin reading the Living Hour book now: The Lord’s Prayer.

Browse the entire Gospel of Matthew here: Gospel of Matthew