Saturday, January 31, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 4: 35 - 41


35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, "Let us go across to the other side."
36 And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him.
37 And a great storm of wind arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already filling.
38 But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him and said to him, "Teacher, do you not care if we perish?"
39 And he awoke and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace! Be still!" And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.
40 He said to them, "Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?"
41 And they were filled with awe, and said to one another, "Who then is this, that even wind and sea obey him?"

Friday, January 30, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 4: 26 - 34


26 And he said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed upon the ground,
27 and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how.
28 The earth produces of itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.
29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."
30 And he said, "With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it?
31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth;
32 yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade."
33 With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it;
34 he did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 4: 21 - 25


21 And he said to them, "Is a lamp brought in to be put under a bushel, or under a bed, and not on a stand?
22 For there is nothing hid, except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret, except to come to light.
23 If any man has ears to hear, let him hear."
24 And he said to them, "Take heed what you hear; the measure you give will be the measure you get, and still more will be given you.
25 For to him who has will more be given; and from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away."

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 4: 1 - 20


1 Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land.
2 And he taught them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them:
3 "Listen! A sower went out to sow.
4 And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it.
5 Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it had not much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil;
6 and when the sun rose it was scorched, and since it had no root it withered away.
7 Other seed fell among thorns and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain.
8 And other seeds fell into good soil and brought forth grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold."
9 And he said, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."
10 And when he was alone, those who were about him with the twelve asked him concerning the parables.
11 And he said to them, "To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables;
12 so that they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand; lest they should turn again, and be forgiven."
13 And he said to them, "Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?
14 The sower sows the word.
15 And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown; when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word which is sown in them.
16 And these in like manner are the ones sown upon rocky ground, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy;
17 and they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away.
18 And others are the ones sown among thorns; they are those who hear the word,
19 but the cares of the world, and the delight in riches, and the desire for other things, enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.
20 But those that were sown upon the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold."

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 3: 31 - 35


31 And his mother and his brothers came; and standing outside they sent to him and called him.
32 And a crowd was sitting about him; and they said to him, "Your mother and your brothers are outside, asking for you."
33 And he replied, "Who are my mother and my brothers?"
34 And looking around on those who sat about him, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers!
35 Whoever does the will of God is my brother, and sister, and mother."

Monday, January 26, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 3: 22 - 30


22 And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He is possessed by Be-el'zebul, and by the prince of demons he casts out the demons."
23 And he called them to him, and said to them in parables, "How can Satan cast out Satan?
24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.
26 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end.
27 But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man; then indeed he may plunder his house.
28 "Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter;
29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin" --
30 for they had said, "He has an unclean spirit."

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Sunday Gospel

Mark 1: 14 - 20


14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God,
15 and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel."
16 And passing along by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen.
17 And Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you become fishers of men."
18 And immediately they left their nets and followed him.
19 And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zeb'edee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets.
20 And immediately he called them; and they left their father Zeb'edee in the boat with the hired servants, and followed him.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 3: 20 - 21


20 Then he went home; and the crowd came together again, so that they could not even eat.
21 And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for people were saying, "He is beside himself."

Friday, January 23, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 3: 13 - 19


13 And he went up on the mountain, and called to him those whom he desired; and they came to him.
14 And he appointed twelve, to be with him, and to be sent out to preach
15 and have authority to cast out demons:
16 Simon whom he surnamed Peter;
17 James the son of Zeb'edee and John the brother of James, whom he surnamed Bo-aner'ges, that is, sons of thunder;
18 Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Cananaean,
19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 3: 7 - 12


7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and a great multitude from Galilee followed; also from Judea
8 and Jerusalem and Idume'a and from beyond the Jordan and from about Tyre and Sidon a great multitude, hearing all that he did, came to him.
9 And he told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they should crush him;
10 for he had healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch him.
11 And whenever the unclean spirits beheld him, they fell down before him and cried out, "You are the Son of God."
12 And he strictly ordered them not to make him known.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 3: 1 - 6


1 Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there who had a withered hand.
2 And they watched him, to see whether he would heal him on the sabbath, so that they might accuse him.
3 And he said to the man who had the withered hand, "Come here."
4 And he said to them, "Is it lawful on the sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?" But they were silent.
5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was restored.
6 The Pharisees went out, and immediately held counsel with the Hero'di-ans against him, how to destroy him.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 2: 23 - 28


23 One sabbath he was going through the grainfields; and as they made their way his disciples began to pluck heads of grain.
24 And the Pharisees said to him, "Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the sabbath?"
25 And he said to them, "Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him:
26 how he entered the house of God, when Abi'athar was high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?"
27 And he said to them, "The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath;
28 so the Son of man is lord even of the sabbath."

Monday, January 19, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 2: 18 - 22


18 Now John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting; and people came and said to him, "Why do John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?"
19 And Jesus said to them, "Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast.
20 The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day.
21 No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; if he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made.
22 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; if he does, the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost, and so are the skins; but new wine is for fresh skins."

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Sunday Gospel

John 1: 35 - 42

35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples;
36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God!"
37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.
38 Jesus turned, and saw them following, and said to them, "What do you seek?" And they said to him, "Rabbi" (which means Teacher), "where are you staying?"
39 He said to them, "Come and see." They came and saw where he was staying; and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.
40 One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.
41 He first found his brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which means Christ).
42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him, and said, "So you are Simon the son of John? You shall be called Cephas" (which means Peter).

Saturday, January 17, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 2: 13 - 17

13 He went out again beside the sea; and all the crowd gathered about him, and he taught them.
14 And as he passed on, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office, and he said to him, "Follow me." And he rose and followed him.
15 And as he sat at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners were sitting with Jesus and his disciples; for there were many who followed him.
16 And the scribes of the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, "Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?"
17 And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I came not to call the righteous, but sinners."

Friday, January 16, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Matthew 10: 16 - 22

16 "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.
17 Beware of men; for they will deliver you up to councils, and flog you in their synagogues,
18 and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear testimony before them and the Gentiles.
19 When they deliver you up, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour;
20 for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.
21 Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death;
22 and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 1: 40 - 45

40 And a leper came to him beseeching him, and kneeling said to him, "If you will, you can make me clean."
41 Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, "I will; be clean."
42 And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean.
43 And he sternly charged him, and sent him away at once,
44 and said to him, "See that you say nothing to any one; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to the people."
45 But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 1: 29 - 39

29 And immediately he left the synagogue, and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.
30 Now Simon's mother-in-law lay sick with a fever, and immediately they told him of her.
31 And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her; and she served them.
32 That evening, at sundown, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons.
33 And the whole city was gathered together about the door.
34 And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.
35 And in the morning, a great while before day, he rose and went out to a lonely place, and there he prayed.
36 And Simon and those who were with him pursued him,
37 and they found him and said to him, "Every one is searching for you."
38 And he said to them, "Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also; for that is why I came out."
39 And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 1: 21 - 28

21 And they went into Caper'na-um; and immediately on the sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught.
22 And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.
23 And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit;
24 and he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God."
25 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!"
26 And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.
27 And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this? A new teaching! With authority he commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him."
28 And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.

Monday, January 12, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 14: 14 - 20

14 and wherever he enters, say to the householder, `The Teacher says, Where is my guest room, where I am to eat the passover with my disciples?'
15 And he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us."
16 And the disciples set out and went to the city, and found it as he had told them; and they prepared the passover.
17 And when it was evening he came with the twelve.
18 And as they were at table eating, Jesus said, "Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me."
19 They began to be sorrowful, and to say to him one after another, "Is it I?"
20 He said to them, "It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the dish with me.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Sunday Gospel

Mark 1: 7 - 11

7 And he preached, saying, "After me comes he who is mightier than I, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.
8 I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.
10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens opened and the Spirit descending upon him like a dove;
11 and a voice came from heaven, "Thou art my beloved Son; with thee I am well pleased."

Saturday, January 10, 2009

The Gospel For Today

John 3: 22 - 30

22 After this Jesus and his disciples went into the land of Judea; there he remained with them and baptized.
23 John also was baptizing at Ae'non near Salim, because there was much water there; and people came and were baptized.
24 For John had not yet been put in prison.
25 Now a discussion arose between John's disciples and a Jew over purifying.
26 And they came to John, and said to him, "Rabbi, he who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you bore witness, here he is, baptizing, and all are going to him."
27 John answered, "No one can receive anything except what is given him from heaven.
28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.
29 He who has the bride is the bridegroom; the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice; therefore this joy of mine is now full.
30 He must increase, but I must decrease."

Friday, January 9, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Luke 5: 12 - 16

12 While he was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy; and when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and besought him, "Lord, if you will, you can make me clean."
13 And he stretched out his hand, and touched him, saying, "I will; be clean." And immediately the leprosy left him.
14 And he charged him to tell no one; but "go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to the people."
15 But so much the more the report went abroad concerning him; and great multitudes gathered to hear and to be healed of their infirmities.
16 But he withdrew to the wilderness and prayed.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Luke 4: 14 - 22

14 And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee, and a report concerning him went out through all the surrounding country.
15 And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.
16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up; and he went to the synagogue, as his custom was, on the sabbath day. And he stood up to read;
17 and there was given to him the book of the prophet Isaiah. He opened the book and found the place where it was written,
18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19 to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord."
20 And he closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.
21 And he began to say to them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."
22 And all spoke well of him, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth; and they said, "Is not this Joseph's son?"

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 6: 45 - 52

45 Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Beth-sa'ida, while he dismissed the crowd.
46 And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray.
47 And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea, and he was alone on the land.
48 And he saw that they were making headway painfully, for the wind was against them. And about the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them,
49 but when they saw him walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost, and cried out;
50 for they all saw him, and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, "Take heart, it is I; have no fear."
51 And he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded,
52 for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Mark 6: 34 - 44

34 As he went ashore he saw a great throng, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.
35 And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, "This is a lonely place, and the hour is now late;
36 send them away, to go into the country and villages round about and buy themselves something to eat."
37 But he answered them, "You give them something to eat." And they said to him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread, and give it to them to eat?"
38 And he said to them, "How many loaves have you? Go and see." And when they had found out, they said, "Five, and two fish."
39 Then he commanded them all to sit down by companies upon the green grass.
40 So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties.
41 And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples to set before the people; and he divided the two fish among them all.
42 And they all ate and were satisfied.
43 And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish.
44 And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.

Monday, January 5, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Matthew 4: 12 - 17, 23 - 25

12 Now when he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee;
13 and leaving Nazareth he went and dwelt in Caper'na-um by the sea, in the territory of Zeb'ulun and Naph'tali,
14 that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
15 "The land of Zeb'ulun and the land of Naph'tali, toward the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles --
16 the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned."
17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
23 And he went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every infirmity among the people.
24 So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them.
25 And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decap'olis and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan.

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Sunday Gospel

Matthew 2: 1 - 12

1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying,
2 "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East, and have come to worship him."
3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him;
4 and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
5 They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it is written by the prophet:
6 `And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will govern my people Israel.'"
7 Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star appeared;
8 and he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him bring me word, that I too may come and worship him."
9 When they had heard the king they went their way; and lo, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came to rest over the place where the child was.
10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy;
11 and going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.
12 And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.

Saturday, January 3, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Matthew 1: 18 - 23

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit;
19 and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly.
20 But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit;
21 she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."
22 All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:
23 "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel" (which means, God with us).

Friday, January 2, 2009

The Gospel For Today

John 1: 19 - 28

19 And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"
20 He confessed, he did not deny, but confessed, "I am not the Christ."
21 And they asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" He said, "I am not." "Are you the prophet?" And he answered, "No."
22 They said to him then, "Who are you? Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?"
23 He said, "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, `Make straight the way of the Lord,' as the prophet Isaiah said."
24 Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.
25 They asked him, "Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?"
26 John answered them, "I baptize with water; but among you stands one whom you do not know,
27 even he who comes after me, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie."
28 This took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

Thursday, January 1, 2009

The Gospel For Today

Luke 2: 16 - 21

16 And they went with haste, and found Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.
17 And when they saw it they made known the saying which had been told them concerning this child;
18 and all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them.
19 But Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart.
20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
21 And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.