Lesson 5 -- Bible Passages

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1. MT 10:26
   
   "There is nothing covered that shall not be revealed and hid that shall not be known."
   
   
2. MT 21:28.32
   
   "But what do you say to this? There was once a man who had two sons. He went to the older one and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’
   
   "‘I won’t,’ he answered; but later, he changed his mind and he did go.
   
   "Unaware of his change of mind, the father told the younger, ‘You go.’
   
   "And he said, ‘All right, I will.’ But he didn’t. Which of the two obeyed his father?"
   
   They replied, "The first, of course."
   
   So Jesus told them, "I tell you plainly that evil men and prostitutes will get into the kingdom before you do. For John told you to repent and turn to God and you wouldn’t, while very evil men and prostitutes did. And even when you saw this happening, you refused to change your minds and believe him."
   
   
3. LK 13:01.09
   
   At this time, he was informed that Pilate had butchered some Jews from Galilee as they were sacrificing at the temple in Jerusalem. "Do you think they were worse sinners than other men from Galilee?" he asked. "Is that why they suffered? Not at all! But I tell you that unless you repent, you shall also perish. And what about the eighteen men who died when the Tower of Siloam fell on them? Were they the worst sinners in Jerusalem? No, indeed! And unless you turn from evil and repent, all of you shall likewise perish."
   
   Then he spoke this parable. "A man planted a fig tree in his garden and he often looked to see if he could find any fruit in it, but he was always disappointed. Finally, he told his gardener to cut it down. ‘It’s been three years and there hasn’t been a single fig,’ he said. ‘Why wait any longer? It’s taking up space we can use for something else.’
   
   "‘Give it one more chance,’ the gardener answered. ‘Wait another year and I’ll see to it personally and put in plenty of fertilizer. If we get figs next year, fine; if not, I’ll cut it down’"
   
   
4. JN 15:19
   
   "If you were of the world, then the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, therefore the world hates you."
   
   
5. JN 5:01.14
   
   Later on, there was a feast of the Jews and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now in Jerusalem, by the sheep market, there is a bathing pool. Here, crowds of invalids lay waiting for the stirring of the water. For at intervals, an angel descended into the pool and stirred the water. Whoever got in first after the agitation of the pool became healed, whatever his ailment. One man there had been suffering from an infirmity for thirty-eight years. When Jesus noticed him lying there, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?"
   
   The invalid replied, "Yes, but I have no one to put me into the pool right after it has been disturbed; each time I make my move, another always gets in ahead of me."
   
   Jesus told him, "Get up, pick up your mat and walk." Instantly, the man was well. And he was able to pick up his mat and start walking.
   
   But all this happened on a Sabbath; and when the Jewish authorities saw the man, they accosted him and said, "This is a Sabbath. It’s illegal for you to carry that sleeping mat!"
   
   "The man who healed me told me to," was his reply.
   
   "Who is this man who told you to do this?" they demanded. But the man couldn’t tell because Jesus had disappeared into the crowd.
   
   But afterwards, Jesus found him in the temple and told him, "Now you are well, but don’t sin again lest a worse thing happen to you."
   
   
6. LK 15:11.24
   
   "There was once a man who had two sons. The younger one said to him, ‘Father, give me my share of the property now.’ So the man divided his property between his two sons. A few days later, this younger son packed up all his belongings and took a trip to a distant land and there, wasted all his money in reckless living. At about the time that his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land and he began to starve. He persuaded a farmer to hire him to feed his pigs. The boy became so hungry that even the bean pods he was feeding the swine looked good to him. When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home, even the hired men have enough and to spare and here I am, dying of hunger! I will go home to my father and say, Father I have sinned against both heaven and you and am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me in as a hired hand.’
   
   "So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long distance away, his father saw him coming and was filled with loving pity and ran and embraced him and kissed him. His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and you and am not worthy of being called your son.’
   
   "But the father called to his servants, ‘Hurry!’ he said. ‘Bring the finest robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and shoes on his feet. Then go and get the prize calf and kill it. We must celebrate with a feast. For my son was dead, but now he has returned to life. He was lost, but now he has been found.’ And so the feasting began"
   
   
7. MT 5:25.26
   
   "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. I tell you, you won’t be released from there until you have paid the last penny."
   
   
8. MK 8:34.36
   
   "If anyone wants to come after me, he must put aside all his selfish desires, take up his cross and follow me. Whoever saves his life shall surely lose it, but whoever gives up his life for my sake and the sake of the gospel shall find it again. For what good is it for a man to gain the whole world if, in exchange, he loses his eternal soul?"
   
   
9. LK 19:01.10
   
   As Jesus was passing through Jericho, a man named Zacchaeus, who was a chief tax collector and a wealthy Jew, tried to see who Jesus was; but he was too short to see over the crowds. So he ran on ahead and climbed up a sycamore tree, hoping to get a look at Jesus from there. When Jesus reached that same spot, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name, "Zacchaeus," he said, "come down quickly, for I am to be a guest in your home, today."
   
   Zacchaeus hurried down and welcomed him heartily. However, the crowds were displeased that Jesus was to be a guest of a notorious sinner. But Zacchaeus paused and said to Jesus, "Lord, I will give half my wealth to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone, which was never my intention, I will give him back four times as much."
   
   Jesus said referring to him, "Today, salvation has come to this house inasmuch as this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Man from Heaven came to seek and save the lost."
   
   
10. MT 7:13.14
    
    "Go in through the narrow gate because the gate to hell is wide and the road that leads to it is easy and there are many who choose to enter therein. But the gate to life is narrow and the way that leads to it is hard and only a few people find it."
    
    
11. MT 6:24
    
    "No man can serve two masters, for either he will hate one and love the other; or else, he will support one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."
    
    
12. JN 6:27
    
    "Don’t strive for the perishable things of this world but for those things that will endure for all eternity."
    
    
13. LK 11.41
    
    "You only need to give wholeheartedly of the things that you have; it is by being clean inside that the outside becomes clean, as well."
    
    
14. MT 5:16
    
    "Let your light shine before the people so that they may see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven."
    
    
15. JN 4:31.34
    
    In the meantime, the disciples were urging Jesus, "Teacher, have something to eat."
    
    But he answered, "I have food to eat that you know nothing about."
    
    So the disciples started asking each other, "Has anyone brought him food?"
    
    Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of the One Who sent me and to finish the work He gave me to do."
    
    
16. MT 10
    
    Jesus called his twelve disciples together and gave them authority to cast out evil spirits and to heal every kind of sickness and disease. Here are the names of his twelve disciples: Peter and his brother, Andrew; James and his brother, John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew; James, son of Alphaeus and Thaddaeus; Simon, the patriot and Judas Iscariot.
    
    To these twelve, Jesus gave the following instructions: "Don’t go to the Gentiles or the Samaritans but only to the people of Israel — God’s lost sheep. Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near. Heal the sick, cure the lepers, raise the dead and cast out demons. Give as freely as you have received. Don’t take any money with you. Don’t even carry a duffel bag with extra clothes and shoes or even a walking stick, for those you help should feed and care for you.
    
    "When you come to a city or village, look for someone who is willing to welcome you and stay with him until you leave that place. And as you enter the house, greet the members of the family as friends; and if the home is deserving, give it your blessing. As you leave any city or home that will not welcome you or hear your words, shake off the dust from your feet. At the Judgment Day, the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah will be better off than them.
    
    "I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. Be as wary as serpents and harmless as doves. But be careful of men. For you will be arrested and tried and whipped in the synagogues. And you must stand trial before governors and kings for my sake. This will give you the opportunity to tell them about me. But when they arrest you, don’t worry about what you are to do or say for you will be given the right words at the proper time. For the words you will speak will not be your own; they will come from the Spirit of your Father Who will be speaking through you.
    
    "Men will hand over their own brothers to be put to death and fathers will do the same to their children; children will turn against their parents and have them put to death. Everyone will hate you because of me. But whoever holds out to the end will be saved. When you are persecuted in one city, flee to the next. I will return before you have reached them all.
    
    "No pupil is greater than his teacher; no servant is greater than his master. So a pupil should be satisfied to become like his teacher and a servant like his master. If they have called the head of the house, Beelzebub, how much more the members of his household? But don’t be afraid of them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed and every secret will be made known. What I tell you in the dark, you must repeat in broad daylight; and what you have heard in private, you must announce from the rooftops. Don’t be afraid of those who can kill only your bodies but can’t touch your souls. Fear only God Who can destroy both body and soul in hell.
    
    "For only a penny, you can buy two sparrows; yet not one sparrow falls to the ground without your Father knowing it. And even the hair on your head are all numbered. So don’t worry. You are far more valuable to Him than many sparrows.
    
    "If anyone publicly acknowledges me, I will openly acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But if anyone publicly rejects me, so will I reject him. Don’t think that I have come to bring peace to the world. I have not come to bring peace but a sword. I came to set sons against their fathers, daughters against their mothers, daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law; a man’s worst enemies shall be the members of his own household.
    
    "Whoever loves his father or mother, son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up his cross and follow in my footsteps is not fit to be my disciple. If you cling to life, you will lose it; but if you give it up for my sake, you will save it.
    
    "Those who welcome you are welcoming me. And when they welcome me, they are welcoming God Who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet because he is a man of God will share in his reward. And whoever welcomes good and godly men because of their godliness will share in their reward. And you can be sure that whoever gives even a drink of water to the least of my followers, because he is my follower, will certainly receive a reward."
    
    
17. LK 22:35.36
    
    And he said to them, "When I sent you out on your mission without a purse and money, or shoes, did you lack for anything?"
    
    And they said, "Nothing."
    
    Then he told them, "But now, he who has a purse should bring it and money, as well. And he who doesn’t have a sword should sell his garments to buy one."
    
    
18. MK 10:42.45
    
    "As you know, the kings and great men of the earth lord it over the people. But in your case, it is different. Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant. And whoever wants to be the greatest of all must be the servant of all. For even I, the Man from Heaven, am not here to be served but to help others and to give my life as a ransom for many."
    
    
19. MT 9:37.38
    
    "The harvest is so great, but the workers are so few," he told his disciples. "So pray to the one in charge of the harvesting and ask him to recruit more laborers to help in the work."
    
    
20. JN 21:15.17
    
    After they had eaten, Jesus said to Peter, "Peter, son of John, do you love me more than the others?"
    
    "Yes, Lord," he answered, "you know that I love you."
    
    Jesus said to him, "Feed my lambs." But Jesus repeated the question, "Peter, son of John, do you really love me?"
    
    "Yes, Lord," he answered, "you know I am your friend."
    
    Jesus said to him, "Tend my sheep." And once more, he asked him, "Peter, son of John, are you even my friend?"
    
    Peter was grieved at the way Jesus asked the question this third time. "Lord, you know my heart, you know I am," he said.
    
    And Jesus said, "Feed my sheep."
    
    
21. MT 6:19.21
    
    "Don’t waste your time accumulating the fleeting treasures of this earth which can last only for a time and can be stolen, besides. But strive for the true treasures of heaven which cannot be destroyed and which cannot be stolen. For where your treasures are, there your heart will be also."
    
    
22. JN 4:35.38
    
    "You have a saying, ‘Four more months and then the harvest.’ But I tell you, take a good look at the fields; the crops are now ripe and ready to be harvested. Already, the reapers receive their wages and gather up the crop of souls to be granted eternal life so that both the sowers and the reapers may rejoice together! For it is true that one sows and someone else reaps."
    
    
23. LK 9:61.62
    
    Another said, "Yes, Lord, I’ll come; but, first, let me go and say goodbye to my family."
    
    But Jesus told him, "Anyone who lets himself be distracted from the work I plan for him is not fit for the Kingdom of God."
    
    
24. LK 9:59.60
    
    To another man, he said, "Follow me."
    
    But the man said, "Lord, first let me go back and bury my father."
    
    Jesus replied, "Let those who are dead in spirit bury their own dead. Your duty is to go and preach the coming of the Kingdom of God."
    
    
25. LK 14:16.27
    
    Jesus replied with a parable: "A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations. When everything was ready, he sent his servants to notify his invited guests that it was time for them to arrive. But they all began making excuses. One said he had just bought a field and wanted to inspect it and asked to be excused. Another said he had just bought five pairs of oxen and wanted to try them out. Another had just been married and, for that reason, couldn’t come. The servants returned and reported to their master what the intended guests had said.
    
    The master was furious and told them to go quickly into the streets and alleys of the city and to invite the beggars, the crippled, the lame and the blind. But even then, there was still room.
    
    "‘Well, then,’ said the master, ‘go out into the country lanes and out behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come so that the house will be full. For none of those I invited first will get even the smallest taste of what I had prepared for them.’"
    
    Then Jesus addressed the milling crowd, "Anyone who wants to be my follower must love me far more than he does his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers or sisters — yes, more than his own life — otherwise, he cannot be my disciple. And no one can be my disciple who does not carry his own cross and follow me."
    
    
26. LK 14:28.33
    
    But, first, conduct a thorough study before you even begin. For who would initiate the construction of a tower without first getting estimates and then checking to see if he has enough money to cover the cost? Otherwise, he might be able to complete only the foundations before running out of funds. And then how everyone would laugh at him. ‘Foolish man,’ they would mock. ‘He started that tower and couldn’t finish it.’ Or what king would even consider going to war without first consulting his advisers and discussing whether his army of ten thousand is strong enough to defeat the twenty thousand men who are marching against him? If it weren’t, then, while the enemy troops are still far away, he would send messengers to negotiate for peace. So no one can become my disciple unless he is willing to relinquish everything he has."
    
    
27. LK 10:07.09
    
    "When you enter a village, don’t move from house to house but stay in one place, eating and drinking whatever is set before you. And don’t hesitate to accept hospitality, for the workman is worthy of his wages. And wherever you may be received, heal the sick; and as you heal them, tell them, The Kingdom of God is very near you now."
    
    
28. JN 8:31.32
    
    "If you adhere to my teaching, you will really be my disciples; and you shall know the Truth and the Truth shall make you free."