Lesson 4 -- Bible Passages

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1. MK 4:24.25
   
   "Whatever rules you apply in your dealings with others, the same shall be applied to you. And those who are open to guidance shall be given all they need, because those who value the things that they have will be given even more while those who don’t will be deprived of even the little that they have."
   
   
2. MT 5:27.28
   
   "You have heard it said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who even looks at a woman with lust is already guilty of committing adultery."
   
   
3. MT 5:21.22
   
   "You have heard that people were told, ‘You shall not kill; and whoever kills shall be brought to court.’ But now I tell you: Whoever is angry with his brother without cause shall be held answerable; whoever calls his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing!’ will be brought before the Council; and whoever calls his brother a worthless fool will be in danger of going to hell."
   
   
4. MT 5:23.25
   
   "If you are intending to honor God with a gift or sacrifice, make certain that no one has a valid grudge against you; otherwise, your gift cannot be deemed acceptable by God. First, you must go and make peace with your enemies; and only then should you come back and offer your gift to God. Settle disputes with your adversary amicably before it is too late; otherwise, he might drag you into court and the court would hand you over to the authorities to be thrown in jail."
   
   
5. MT 19:16.24
   
   Once, a man came to Jesus, "Good Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to gain eternal life?"
   
   And Jesus said, "Why do you call me good? There is only one who is really good — and that is God. But to answer your question, you can enter into life if you keep the commandments."
   
   "Which ones?" he asked.
   
   And Jesus replied, "You shall not kill. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness. Honor your father and mother and you shall love your neighbor as you love yourself."
   
   "I’ve always obeyed all these commandments," the man replied. "What else must I do?"
   
   Jesus said to him, "If you want to be perfect, go and sell all you have and give the money to the poor and you shall have treasure in heaven; then come and follow me." When the young man heard this, he went away sad because he was very rich. Jesus then said to his disciples, "It is almost impossible for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. I say it again — it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God!"
   
   
6. LK 12:13.15
   
   A man approached Jesus and said, "Master, speak to my brother and tell him to give me my share of our inheritance."
   
   But Jesus replied, "Man, who appointed me to judge concerning such matters?" He then said to the people, "Watch out and guard against covetousness for a man’s worth does not depend on the abundance of his possessions."
   
   
7. MT 7:01.05
   
   "Don’t judge and you won’t be judged. In like manner that you judge, so will you be judged, according to the same rules and standards. And why do you notice the speck in your brother’s eye but pay no attention to the board in your own eye? How can you even say to him, ‘Brother, let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the board in yours? Hypocrite! First, get rid of the board and then perhaps, you may be able to see well enough to deal with his speck."
   
   
8. LK 14:07.11
   
   Jesus noticed how some of the guests desired to have the choice seats at the table; so he told this parable to all of them: "When someone invites you to a wedding feast, don’t always head for the best seat. It could happen that someone more important than you has been invited, and your host would have to come and say to you, ‘Let him have your place.’ Then you would be embarrassed and have to transfer to whatever seat is left vacant. Instead, when you are invited, go and sit where the lowly sit and when your host comes, he might say to you, ‘Friend, come on up. We have a better place for you.’ In this way, you shall be honored in the presence of all the other guests. For whoever exalts himself shall be abased and he who humbles himself shall be exalted."
   
   
9. LK 18:09.14
   
   Then he told this story to some who boasted of their virtue and scorned everyone else. "Once there were two men who went up to the Temple to pray: one was a Pharisee; the other, a tax collector. The Pharisee stood apart by himself and prayed, ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other men who are greedy, dishonest or an adulterer. I fast twice a week and I give a tenth of all my income.’
   
   "But the tax collector stood at a distance and would not even look up to heaven in shame, but beat on his breast and said, ‘God, have pity on me, a sinner!’ I tell you," said Jesus, "this sinner and not the Pharisee returned home forgiven! For the proud shall be humbled and the humble shall be lifted up."
   
   
10. MT 6:05.06
    
    "When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites! They love to stand up and pray in the houses of worship and on the street corners so that everyone may see them. I assure you, they have already been paid in full. But when you pray, go to your room, close the door and pray to your Father in private. And your Father Who knows all your secrets will reward you openly."
    
    
11. MT 6:16.18
    
    "And when you fast, do not put on a sad face as the hypocrites do. They neglect their appearance so that everyone may see that they are fasting. I assure you, that is the only reward they will ever get. But when you fast, wash your face and comb your hair so that others may not suspect that you are fasting. And your Father Who knows every secret will reward you."
    
    
12. MT 25:14.30
    
    "The Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man who was about to leave home on a trip. He called his servants and put them in charge of his property, entrusting to them various amounts of money which they are to invest for him while he is gone. He gave to each one according to his ability: to one, he gave five thousand gold coins; to another, two thousand; and to another, one thousand. Then he went on his trip.
    
    "The servant who had received five thousand coins immediately invested the same and earned another five thousand. In the same way, the servant who received two thousand coins earned another two thousand. But the servant who received one thousand coins went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
    
    "After a long time, the master came back and called his servants to account for his money. The servant to whom he had entrusted five thousand coins brought him ten thousand. His master praised him for his good work. ‘You have been faithful in handling this small amount,’ he told him, ‘so now, I will reward you by investing you with greater authority and more matters will be brought under your care.’
    
    "Next came the servant who had received two thousand. ‘Master, you gave me two thousand and I have doubled it,’ he said. His Lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. Likewise, inasmuch as you have been faithful in handling such a small amount, I will now entrust much more to your care.’
    
    "Then the servant who had received one thousand came in and said, ‘Master, I know you are a hard man; you harvest where you did not plant and gather where you did not winnow. I was afraid; so I went off and hid your money under the ground and here it is.’
    
    "‘You despicable and lazy servant!’ his master said. ‘You knew, didn’t you, that I reap where I did not plant and gather crops where I did not winnow? Well then, you should have deposited my money in the bank and I would have earned some interest on it. Now, take the money away from him and give it to the one who has ten thousand coins.’ For everyone who makes good use of what he is given will be given more and he will have more than enough. But from anyone who proves to be unfaithful, even the little that he has will be taken away from him."
    
    
13. LK 19:12.26
    
    "There was once a man of noble birth who was going to a far country to be made king, after which, he planned to return home. Before he left, he called his ten servants and gave each of them a gold coin and told them, ‘See what you can earn with this while I am gone.’ Then the man left.
    
    Upon his return, he ordered his servants to appear before him in order that he may find out what had happened to his money. The first one came and said, ‘Lord, I have earned ten gold coins with the one you gave me.’
    
    "‘Well done,’ he said, ‘you are a good servant! Since you were faithful in small matters, I will put you in charge of ten cities.’
    
    "The second servant came and said, ‘Lord, I have earned five gold coins with the one you gave me.’
    
    "To this one, he said, ‘You will be in charge of five cities.’
    
    "Another servant came and said, ‘Lord, here is your gold coin; I kept it hidden in a handkerchief. I was afraid because you are a hard man to deal with, taking what isn’t yours and even confiscating the crops that others plant.’
    
    "The king said to him, ‘You evil servant! Hard, am I? That’s exactly how I’ll be towards you! If you knew so much about me and how harsh I am, then why didn’t you deposit the money in the bank so that I could at least earn interest on it!’ Then he said to the others, ‘Take the money away from him and give it to the man who earned the most.’
    
    "‘But Lord,’ they said, ‘he has enough already!’
    
    "‘Yes,’ the king replied, ‘but it is always true that to the one who has, even more will be given and from the one who has nothing, even the little that he has will be taken away.’"
    
    
14. LK 12:47.48
    
    "The servant who is aware of what his master wants him to do but refuses to do it will be severely punished. But the servant who, innocently, does something he shouldn’t do, will be punished only lightly. For to whom much is given, much is required; and to whose care more is entrusted, much more will be expected."
    
    
15. LK 16:01.12
    
    "There was once a rich man who hired a man to manage his business. Some time later, he was informed that the man was thoroughly dishonest. He called in the manager and said to him, ‘What’s this I hear about your stealing from me? Turn in a complete report of your stewardship because you are dismissed.’
    
    "The manager thought to himself, ‘Now what can I do? I can’t go out and dig ditches and I’m too proud to beg. I know! Yes, that’s what I’ll do! And then I’ll have plenty of friends to take care of me, just in case.’ So he invited each one who owed money to his employer to come and discuss the situation. He asked the first one, ‘How much do you owe him?’
    
    "‘I owe a hundred barrels of oil,’ the man replied.
    
    "‘Here is the contract you signed,’ the manager told him. ‘Tear it up and write another for fifty.’
    
    "And to another man, he said, ‘And how much do you owe him?’
    
    "‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ was the reply.
    
    "‘Here,’ the manager said, ‘take your note and replace it with another for only eight hundred bushels.’
    
    "The rich man had to admire the rascal for being so shrewd. And it is true that the worldly are far more clever in handling the affairs of this world than the godly are. But shall I tell you to act that way, to buy friendship through cheating? Will this ensure for you the rewards you expect to gain? No! For he who is faithful in that which is the least is faithful also in much. And he who is dishonest in minor matters will also be dishonest in the more important ones.
    
    "If then, you have been proven untrustworthy in the handling of worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? And if you cannot be trusted with other people’s property, who would care to rely on you for anything at all?"
    
    
16. MT 5:42
    
    "Give to those who ask and lend to those who would borrow."
    
    
17. MT 6:01.04
    
    "Take care! Don’t do your good deeds publicly to be admired by men, for then, you would lose your reward from your Father in heaven. But when you give alms, don’t make a big show of it, as the hypocrites do in the houses of worship and on the streets, so that people may think well of them. I tell you in all earnestness, they have received all the reward they will ever get.
    
    "But when you help someone, do it in such a way that not even your closest friends may know about it. Then, it will be a private matter. And your Father Who knows all secrets will reward you."
    
    
18. MK 12:41.44
    
    As Jesus sat near the Temple treasury, he watched the people as they dropped in their money. Many rich men gave quite a lot of money. Then a poor widow came along and dropped in two little copper coins, worth about a penny. He called his disciples together and said to them, "I tell you that this poor widow put more in the offering box than all the others. For the others put in a little of their excess wealth; but she, poor as she is, put in all she had, even that she needed to live on."
    
    
19. LK 14:12.14
    
    Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends, your relatives or your rich neighbors. For they will invite you at some other time to return the favor. Instead, when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind; and you will be blessed, because they won’t be able to pay you back. And you shall be rewarded when the righteous are brought back to life."
    
    
20. MT 7:06
    
    "Don’t give that which is holy to dogs; neither cast your pearls before swine lest they trample them with their feet and then turn to attack you."
    
    
21. MT 5:43.48
    
    "You have heard it said, ‘You shall love your friends and hate your enemies.’ But I say: Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, so that you may become the children of your Father in heaven.
    
    "For He makes the sun to shine on both the evil and the good and sends rain to the just as well as to the unjust. And if you love only those who love you, why should you merit a reward? Even the tax collectors do as much. And if you respect only those who are your friends, what do you do that is more than what others do? Even the pagans do that. But you are to become perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect."
    
    
22. LK 17:03.04
    
    "If your brother commits an offense against you, inform him of his mistake; and if he should be sorry, forgive him. And even if he wrongs you seven times in one day and, each time, comes to you asking your forgiveness, you should forgive him."
    
    
23. JN 8:01.11
    
    Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early the next morning, he went back to the Temple. All the people gathered around him and he sat down and began to teach them. As he was speaking, the Jewish leaders and Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery and placed her out in front of the staring crowd. "Teacher," they said to Jesus, "this woman was caught in the very act of adultery. According to the law, Moses commands that such a woman must be stoned to death. But what do you say?" They were trying to trap Jesus into saying something they could use against him; but as though he had not heard them, Jesus stooped down and traced his fingers on the ground.
    
    They kept demanding an answer; so he stood up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone." Then he stooped down again and continued to write on the ground.
    
    Convicted by their own conscience, all who heard his words began to leave, one by one, beginning with the eldest, until only Jesus was left alone with the woman. He straightened up and said to her, "Where are your accusers? Is there no one left to condemn you?"
    
    She said, "No one, Lord."
    
    And Jesus said, "Well, neither do I condemn you. Go, but don’t sin again."
    
    
24. LK 7:37.50
    
    In that town, there was a woman who lived a sinful life. She heard that Jesus was eating in the house of a Pharisee; so she brought an alabaster jar full of perfume and stood behind Jesus, by his feet, crying, and began to wash his feet with her tears. Then she dried his feet with her hair, kissed them and poured the perfume on them.
    
    When the Pharisee saw this, he said to himself, "If this man really were a prophet, he would have known what kind of woman this one is. She is such a notorious sinner."
    
    Jesus spoke up and said to him, "Simon, I have something to tell you."
    
    "Yes, Teacher," he said, "what is it?"
    
    "Two men owed money to a moneylender," Jesus began. "One owed him five hundred silver coins and the other one, fifty. Neither of them could pay him back; so he cancelled the debts of both. Which one, then, will love him more?"
    
    "I suppose," answered Simon, "that it would be the one who owed more."
    
    "You are right," said Jesus. Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your home and you didn’t give me water for my feet, but she has washed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. You did not welcome me with a kiss, but she has not stopped kissing my feet since I came. You provided no olive oil for my head, but she has covered my feet with perfume. Her sins, and they are many, are forgiven because she loves so much. But those whose sins are not so great, though they be forgiven, will not love as much." Then Jesus said to the woman, "Your sins are forgiven."
    
    The others sitting at the table began to say to themselves, "Who does he think he is, going around forgiving sins?"
    
    But Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."
    
    
25. MT 18:23.35
    
    "The Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to update the accounts of his servants. In the process, one who owed him ten thousand gold coins was brought in. The servant did not have enough to pay his debt: so the king ordered that he be sold as a slave, together with his wife and children and all that he had in order to pay the debt. The servant fell on his knees before the king, ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will repay the full amount.’ The king felt sorry for him, so he forgave him the debt and let him go.
    
    Then the same man went out and met one of his fellow servants who owed him a few silver coins. He grabbed him and started choking him, demanding that he be paid. His fellow servant fell down before him and begged him, ‘Be patient with me and I will pay you back.’ But he refused; instead, he had him thrown in jail until he should pay the debt.
    
    "When the other servants saw what had happened, they were very upset and went to the king and told him everything. So he called the servant and said to him, ‘You evil-hearted wretch! I forgave you the whole amount you owed me just because you asked me to. You should have been merciful to your fellow servant just as I had shown mercy to you.’ The king was very angry and he sent the servant to jail to be punished until he should pay back the whole amount."
    
    And Jesus concluded, "So shall my Father in heaven do the same to all those who refuse to forgive their brothers."
    
    
26. JN 15:12
    
    "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you."
    
    
27. MK 12:28.33
    
    One of the religious teachers who was listening to the discussion realized that Jesus had answered well. So he asked, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"
    
    Jesus replied, "The most important one is this: ‘Listen, Israel! The Lord, our God, is the one and only God. And you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is: ‘You must love others as much as you love yourself.’ No other commandments are greater than these."
    
    The man then said, "Well done, Teacher! It is true, as you say, that only the Lord is God and that there is no other God but He. And man must love God with all his heart, with all his mind and with all his strength; and he must love his neighbor as he loves himself. It is more important to obey these two commandments than to offer altar animals and other sacrifices to God."
    
    
28. LK 10:29.37
    
    The man wanting to justify his strong aversion for certain people asked Jesus, "Who is my neighbor?"
    
    Jesus answered, "There was once a man who was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho when robbers jumped him, stripped him and beat him up, leaving him half dead. Some time later, a priest went down that road; but when he saw the man lying there, he crossed over to the other side of the road and walked on by. A Jewish temple-assistant did the same thing; he, too, left him lying there.
    
    "But a despised Samaritan came along and when he saw him, his heart filled with pity. Kneeling beside him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with medicine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his donkey and walked along beside him till they came to an inn, where he nursed him through the night. The next day, he handed the innkeeper two silver coins and told him to take care of the man. ‘If his bill should come to more than that,’ he said, ‘I’ll pay the difference when I return.’ Now, which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the victim?"
    
    The man replied, "The one who helped him."
    
    Then Jesus said, "Yes, now go and do the same."
    
    
29. MT 5:38.41
    
    "You have heard it said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But now I tell you: Don’t resist evil. But when you are slapped on one cheek, offer the other also. And if someone takes you to court to demand your shirt, let him have your coat, as well. And if anyone compels you to go a mile, go with him two miles."
    
    
30. MT 7:12
    
    "Accordingly, whatever you would want people to do for you, do the same for them. This is the essence of the Law of Moses and the teachings of the prophets."
    
    
31. MT 6:33
    
    "But first, seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be ours, as well."