Month: August 2024

Then Peter stepped forward with the eleven other apostles and shouted to the crowd, “Listen carefully, all of you, fellow Jews and residents of Jerusalem! Make no mistake about this. These people are not drunk, as some of you are assuming. Nine o’clock in the morning is much too early for that No, what you was predicted long ago by the prophet Joel:

“In the last days, ‘ God says ‘I will pour our My Spirit upon all the people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams. In those days I will pour out my Spirit even on My servants – men and women alike – and they will prophesy. And I will cause wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below – blood and fire and clouds of smoke. The sun will become dark, and the moon will turn blood red before that great and glorious day of the Lord arrives. But everyone who calls on the Lord will be saved.'” (vv. 14-21, NLT)

So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking Him, “Lord, has the time come for You to free Israel and restore our kingdom?”

He replied, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be My witnesses, telling people about Me everywhere – in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

After saying this, He was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could not longer see Him. As they strained to see Him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you to heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in teh same way you saw Him go!” (vv. 1-11, NLT)

The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book. But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in Him you will have life by the power His name. (vv. 30-31, NLT)

“I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in Me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as You and I are one – as You are in Me, Father, and I am in You. And may they be in Us so that the wold will believe You sent Me.

I have given them the glory you gave Me, so they may be one as We are one. I am in them and You are in Me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that You sent Me and that You love them as much as You love Me. Father, I want these whom You have given Me to be with Me where I am. Then they can see all the glory You gave Me because You loved Me even before the world began!

O righteous Father, the world doesn’t know You, but I do; and these disciples know You sent Me. I have revealed You to them, and I will continue to do so. Then Your love for Me will be in them, and I will be in them.” (vv. 20-25, NLT)

“But now I am going away to the One who sent Me, and not one of you is asking where I am going. Instead, you grieve because of what I’ve told you. But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I didn’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send Him to you. And when He comes, He will convict the wold of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. The wold’s sin is that is refuses to believe in Me. Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more. Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged.”

“There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now. When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth . He will not speak on His own but will tell you what He has heard. He will tell you about the future. He will bring Me glory by telling you whatever He receives from Me. All that belongs to the Father is mine; this is why I said,’The Spirit belongs will tell you whatever He receives from Me.” (vv. 1-15, NLT)

“I am the true grapevine, and My Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of Mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and He prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. You have already been pruned and puurified by the message I have given you. Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in Me.” (vv. 1-4, NLT)

“I have loved you even as the Father has loved Me. Remain in My love. When you obey My commandments, you remain in My love, just I obey My Father’s commandments and remain in My love. I have told you these things, so that you will be filled with My joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! This is My commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. There is no greater love than to lay done one’s life for one’s friends. You are My friend if you do what I command, I no longer cal you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are My friends , since I have told you everything the Father told Me. You didn’t choose Me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using My name. This is My command: Love one another.” (vv. 9-17, NLT)

“If you love Me, obey My commandments. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The wold cannot receive Him, because it isn’t looking for Him and doesn’t recognize Him. But you know Him, because He lives with you now and later will be in you.” No, I will not abandon you as orphans – I will come to you. Soon the world will no longer see Me, but you will still see Me. Since I live, you also will live. When I am raised to life again, you will know that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you. Those who accept My commandments and obey them are the ones who live Me. And because they love Me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal Myself to each of them.” (vv. 15-21, NLT)

“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in Me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with Me where I am. And you know the way to where I am going.”

“No, we don’t know, Lord, ” Thomas said. “We have no idea where You are going, so how can we know the way?”

Jesus told them, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through Me, If you had really known Me, you would know who my Father is. From now on, you know Him and have seen Him!” (vv. 1-7, NLT)

But despite all the miraculous signs Jesus had done, most of the people still did not believe in Him. This is exactly what Isaiah the prophet had predicted: “Lord, who has believed in our message? To whom has the Lord revealed His powerful arm? “

But the people could ‘t believe, for as Isaiah also said, “The Lord has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts – so that their eyes cannot see, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to Me and have Me heal them.”

Isaiah was referring to Jesus when he had said this, because he saw the future and spoke of the Messiah’s glory. Many people did believe in Him, however, including some of the Jewish leaders.But they wouldn’t admit it for fear that the Pharisees would expel them from their synagogue. For they loved human praise more than the praise of God.” (vv 37-43, NLT)

Six days before the Passover celebration began, Jesus arrived in Bethany, the home of Lazarus – the manHe had raised from the dead. A dinner was prepared in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, and Lazarus was among those who ate with Him. Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from the essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping His feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance.

But Judas Iscariot, the disciple who would soon betray Him, said “That perfume was worth a year’s wages. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor.” Not that he cared for the poor – he was at thief, and since he was in charge of the disciples’ money, he often stole some for himself.

Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. She did this in preparation for my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have Me.”

When all the people heard of Jesus’ arrival, they flocked to see Him and also to see Lazarus, the man Jesus raised from the dead. Then the leading priests decided to kill Lazarus, too, for it was because of him that many of the people had deserted them and believed in Jesus.” (vv. 1-11, NLT)