John 3:16 - for God So Loved the World

Navigating Challenges in Christian Friendships and Relationships

Where Do We Come From?

The Way of Kings

How to Keep the Fire Burning

How to Redeem Your Time

Jesus: The Greatest Gift

Hope for the Holidays

Daily Bible Reading—December 2024, God’s Guiding Word: Joy

The Heart of Christian Friendship: Cultivating Bonds That Last a Lifetime

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 <div class="p">1Again Jesus began to teach by the lake. The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water&#8217;s edge. 2He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said: 3&#8220;Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. 8Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.&#8221;</div><div class="p">9Then Jesus said, &#8220;Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.&#8221;</div><div class="p">10When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. 11He told them, &#8220;The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables 12so that,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,</div><div class="q2">and ever hearing but never understanding;</div><div class="q1">otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!&#8217; #4:12 Isaiah 6:9,10 &#8221;</div><div class="p">13Then Jesus said to them, &#8220;Don&#8217;t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? 14The farmer sows the word. 15Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. 16Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. 17But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 18Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. 20Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop&#8212;some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">A Lamp on a Stand</div><div class="p">21He said to them, &#8220;Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don&#8217;t you put it on its stand? 22For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open. 23If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear.&#8221;</div><div class="p">24 &#8220;Consider carefully what you hear,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;With the measure you use, it will be measured to you&#8212;and even more. 25Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">The Parable of the Growing Seed</div><div class="p">26He also said, &#8220;This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. 27Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. 28All by itself the soil produces grain&#8212;first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. 29As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">The Parable of the Mustard Seed</div><div class="p">30Again he said, &#8220;What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? 31It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. 32Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.&#8221;</div><div class="p">33With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. 34He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.</div>
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 <div class="p">1That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3Then he told them many things in parables, saying: &#8220;A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop&#8212;a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9Whoever has ears, let them hear.&#8221;</div><div class="p">10The disciples came to him and asked, &#8220;Why do you speak to the people in parables?&#8221;</div><div class="p">11He replied, &#8220;Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. 12Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. 13This is why I speak to them in parables:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;Though seeing, they do not see;</div><div class="q2">though hearing, they do not hear or understand.</div><div class="m">14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;You will be ever hearing but never understanding;</div><div class="q2">you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.</div><div class="q1">15 For this people&#8217;s heart has become calloused;</div><div class="q2">they hardly hear with their ears,</div><div class="q2">and they have closed their eyes.</div><div class="q1">Otherwise they might see with their eyes,</div><div class="q2">hear with their ears,</div><div class="q2">understand with their hearts</div><div class="q1">and turn, and I would heal them.&#8217; #13:15 Isaiah 6:9,10 (see Septuagint)</div><div class="m">16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.</div><div class="p">18 &#8220;Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 22The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. 23But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">The Parable of the Weeds</div><div class="p">24Jesus told them another parable: &#8220;The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.</div><div class="p">27 &#8220;The owner&#8217;s servants came to him and said, &#8216;Sir, didn&#8217;t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?&#8217;</div><div class="p">28 &#8220;&#8198;&#8216;An enemy did this,&#8217; he replied.</div><div class="p">&#8220;The servants asked him, &#8216;Do you want us to go and pull them up?&#8217;</div><div class="p">29 &#8220;&#8198;&#8216;No,&#8217; he answered, &#8216;because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;</div><div class="s1">The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast</div><div class="p">31He told them another parable: &#8220;The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.&#8221;</div><div class="p">33He told them still another parable: &#8220;The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds#13:33 Or about 27 kilograms of flour until it worked all through the dough.&#8221;</div><div class="p">34Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;I will open my mouth in parables,</div><div class="q2">I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.&#8221;#13:35 Psalm 78:2</div><div class="s1">The Parable of the Weeds Explained</div><div class="p">36Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, &#8220;Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.&#8221;</div><div class="p">37He answered, &#8220;The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.</div><div class="p">40 &#8220;As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.</div><div class="s1">The Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl</div><div class="p">44 &#8220;The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.</div><div class="p">45 &#8220;Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.</div><div class="s1">The Parable of the Net</div><div class="p">47 &#8220;Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.</div><div class="p">51 &#8220;Have you understood all these things?&#8221; Jesus asked.</div><div class="p">&#8220;Yes,&#8221; they replied.</div><div class="p">52He said to them, &#8220;Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.&#8221;</div>
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 <div class="p">4While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: 5&#8220;A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. 6Some fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. 7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. 8Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.&#8221;</div><div class="p">When he said this, he called out, &#8220;Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.&#8221;</div><div class="p">9His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10He said, &#8220;The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;though seeing, they may not see;</div><div class="q2">though hearing, they may not understand.&#8217; #8:10 Isaiah 6:9</div><div class="p">11 &#8220;This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. 12Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13Those on the rocky ground are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. 14The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life&#8217;s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. 15But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.</div><div class="s1">A Lamp on a Stand</div><div class="p">16 &#8220;No one lights a lamp and hides it in a clay jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, they put it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light. 17For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. 18Therefore consider carefully how you listen. Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they think they have will be taken from them.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">Jesus&#8217; Mother and Brothers</div><div class="p">19Now Jesus&#8217; mother and brothers came to see him, but they were not able to get near him because of the crowd. 20Someone told him, &#8220;Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.&#8221;</div><div class="p">21He replied, &#8220;My mother and brothers are those who hear God&#8217;s word and put it into practice.&#8221;</div>
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 <div class="p">18Then Jesus asked, &#8220;What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? 19It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds perched in its branches.&#8221;</div><div class="p">20Again he asked, &#8220;What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? 21It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds#13:21 Or about 27 kilograms of flour until it worked all through the dough.&#8221;</div>
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