Saturday, January 8, 2033

^6:10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. ¹¹Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹²For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world’s rulers of the darkness of this age, and against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. ¹³Therefore put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

¹⁴Stand therefore, having the utility belt of truth buckled around your waist, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵and having fitted your feet with the preparation of the Good News of peace, ¹⁶above all, taking up the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one. ¹⁷And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

^2:11Therefore remember that once you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called “uncircumcision” by that which is called “circumcision” (in the flesh, made by hands), ¹²that you were at that time separate from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world. ¹³But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off are made near in the blood of Christ.

^4:1Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. ²When he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry afterward. ³The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” ⁴But he answered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of God’s mouth.’” ⁵Then the devil took him into the holy city. He set him on the pinnacle of the temple, ⁶and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and, ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you don’t dash your foot against a stone.’”

⁷Jesus said to him, “Again, it is written, ‘You shall not test the Lord, your God.’” ⁸Again, the devil took him to an exceedingly high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. ⁹He said to him, “I will give you all of these things, if you will fall down and worship me.” ¹⁰Then Jesus said to him, “Get behind me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him only.’” ¹¹Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and served him.

^12:32“Don’t be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom. ³³Sell what you have and give gifts to the needy. Make for yourselves purses which don’t grow old, a treasure in the heavens that doesn’t fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. ³⁴For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. ³⁵“Let your waist be dressed and your lamps burning. ³⁶Be like men watching for their lord when he returns from the wedding feast, that when he comes and knocks, they may immediately open to him.

³⁷Blessed are those servants whom the lord will find watching when he comes. Most certainly I tell you that he will dress himself, make them recline, and will come and serve them. ³⁸They will be blessed if he comes in the second or third watch and finds them so. ³⁹But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what hour the thief was coming, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. ⁴⁰Therefore be ready also, for the Son of Man is coming in an hour that you don’t expect him.”

^6:11But you, man of God, flee these things, and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. ¹²Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you confessed the good confession in the sight of many witnesses. ¹³I command you before God who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus who before Pontius Pilate testified the good confession, ¹⁴that you keep the commandment without spot, blameless until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁵which at the right time he will show, who is the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords. ¹⁶He alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen nor can see, to whom be honor and eternal power. Amen.

^2:11For both he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one, for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brothers, ¹²saying, “I will declare your name to my brothers. Among the congregation I will sing your praise.” ¹³Again, “I will put my trust in him.” Again, “Behold, here I am with the children whom God has given me.” ¹⁴Since then the children have shared in flesh and blood, he also himself in the same way partook of the same, that through death he might bring to nothing him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, ¹⁵and might deliver all of them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

¹⁶For most certainly, he doesn’t give help to angels, but he gives help to the offspring of Abraham. ¹⁷Therefore he was obligated in all things to be made like his brothers, that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make atonement for the sins of the people. ¹⁸For in that he himself has suffered being tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.

^12:15Jesus, perceiving that, withdrew from there. Great multitudes followed him; and he healed them all, ¹⁶and commanded them that they should not make him known, ¹⁷that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying, ¹⁸“Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit on him. He will proclaim justice to the nations. ¹⁹He will not strive, nor shout, neither will anyone hear his voice in the streets. ²⁰He won’t break a bruised reed. He won’t quench a smoking flax, until he leads justice to victory. ²¹In his name, the nations will hope.”

^2:13Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.” ¹⁴He arose and took the young child and his mother by night and departed into Egypt, ¹⁵and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

¹⁶Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by the wise men, was exceedingly angry, and sent out and killed all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all the surrounding countryside, from two years old and under, according to the exact time which he had learned from the wise men. ¹⁷Then that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled, saying, ¹⁸“A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children; she wouldn’t be comforted, because they are no more.”

¹⁹But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, ²⁰“Arise and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel, for those who sought the young child’s life are dead.” ²¹He arose and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel. ²²But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in the place of his father, Herod, he was afraid to go there. Being warned in a dream, he withdrew into the region of Galilee, ²³and came and lived in a city called Nazareth; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophets that he will be called a Nazarene.