“”One of them (a Pharise), an expert in religious law , tried to trap Him (Jesus) with his question: “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?”
Jesus replied, ” You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and the greatest commandment. A second is equally important: Love your neighbor as yourself. The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.””
“”I love the Lord because He hears my voice and my prayer for mercy. Because He bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath!
Death wrapped its rope about me; the terrors of the grave overtook me. I only saw trouble and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the Lord: “Please, Lord, save me!”
How kind the Lord is! How good He is! So merciful, this God or ours! The Lord protects those of childlike faith; I was facing death, and He saved me.
Let my soul be at rest again, for the Lord has been good to me.””
“Since you have heard about Jesus and have leaned the truth that comes from Him, throw away your sinful nature and your former way of life, which was is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.
“”Put on your new nature, created to be like God, truly righteous and holy.
So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body. “And don’t sin by letting your anger control you”(ref. Psalm 4:4). Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, for anger gives a foothold to the devil.
If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. Don’t use full or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that you words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.
And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, He has identified you as His own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.
Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”” (Ephesians 4: 20-32, NLT)
“”About that time, the disciples came in to Jesus and asked, “Who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?”
Jesus called a little child to Him and put the child among them. Then He said,”I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like the little children, you will never get in to the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes humble as this little child is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.
And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on My behalf is welcoming me. But you cause of of the little ones who trusts in Me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea.
What sorrows awaits the world, because it tempts people to sin. Temptations are inevitable, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting.””
(Matthew 18, vv1-7, NLT)
“”Beware that you don’ look down on any of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels are always in the presence of My Heavenly Father.””
“”When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
“Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”
“Then He asked them, “But who do you think I am?”
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the son of the Living God.”
Jesus replied,”You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being. Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build My church and all the power of hell will not conquer it.””
“Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from His love? Any fellowship with the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me (the Apostle Paul) truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose.
Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.”
“”His disciples came and asked him, “Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?”
He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others do not. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they will have will be taken away from them. That is why I use parables,
For they look, but they don’t really see. They hear, but they don’t reply listen or understand.
This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says, ‘When you hear what I say, you will to understand. When you see what I did, you will not comprehend. For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes- so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.’
But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear. I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it.”” (Mathew 13, vv 10-17, NLT)
(Isaiah reference taken from Chapter 6, vv 9-10, NLT)
“”But Jesus knew what they were planning. So He left that area, and many people followed Him. He healed all the sick among them, but He warned them not to reveal who He was. This fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah concerning Him:
“Look at my Servant, whom I have chosen. He is my Beloved, who pleases Me. I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He will proclaim justice to the nations. He will not fight or shout or raise His voice in public. He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. Finally He will cause justice to be victorious. And His name will be the hope of all the world.””
(Matthew 12:vv 15-21, NLT) (Isaiah quote taken from Chapter 42, vv 1-4)
“”At that time, Jesus prays His prayer: “O Father Lord of heaven and earth, thank You for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased Me that You do it this way!”
“My Father has entrusted everything to Me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son choose to reveal Him.”
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you. Let Me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give to you is light.””(Matthew 11: vv 25-30, NLT)
