Hi friends, I'm Annie F. Downs. Let's read the Gospels. The Gospels are the first four books of the New Testament in the Bible, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. These are the stories of Jesus Christ's life on earth, the friendships, the parables, the sacrifices, the meals, the miracles. So here is how it works. I'll read three chapters to you. You can listen or read along in your own Bible or online. And then I'll pray. And that's it. Today is day one and I'll be reading John chapters one through three in the new living translation. And in your guided journal, we are starting on page 19. John one. In the beginning, the word already existed. The word was with God and the word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him and nothing was created except through him. The word gave life to everything that was created and his life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness can never extinguish it. God sent a man, John the Baptist, to tell about the light so that everyone might believe because of his testimony. John himself was not the light. He was simply a witness to tell about the light. The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He came into the very world he created, but the world didn't recognize him. He came to his own people and even they rejected him. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God. So the word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father's one and only Son. John testified about him when he shouted to the crowds, this is the one I was talking about when I said, someone is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for he existed long before me. From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses, but God's unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but the unique one who is himself God is near to the Father's heart. He has revealed God to us. This was John's testimony when the Jewish leaders sent priests and temple assistants from Jerusalem to ask John, who are you? He came right out and said, I am not the Messiah. Well, then who are you? They asked, are you Elijah? No, he replied, are you the prophet we are expecting? No. Then who are you? We need an answer for those who sent us. What do you have to say about yourself? John replied in the words of the prophet Isaiah, I am a voice shouting in the wilderness clear the way for the Lord's coming. Then the Pharisees who had been sent asked him, if you aren't the Messiah or Elijah or the prophet, what right do you have to baptize? John told them, I baptize with water, but right here in the crowd is someone you do not recognize. Though his ministry follows mine, I am not even worthy to be his slave and untie the straps of his sandal. This encounter took place in Bethany, an area east of the Jordan River where John was baptizing. The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one I was talking about when I said, a man is coming after me who is far greater than I am for he existed long before me. I did not recognize him as the Messiah, but I have been baptizing with water so that he might be revealed to Israel. Then John testified, I saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him. I didn't know he was the one, but when God sent me to baptize with water, he told me, the one on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit. I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testified that he is the chosen one of God. The following day John was again standing with two of his disciples. As Jesus walked by, John looked at him and declared, look, there is the Lamb of God. When John's two disciples heard this, they followed Jesus. Jesus looked around and saw them following. What do you want? He asked them. They replied, Rabbi, which means teacher, where are you staying? Come and see, he said. It was about four o'clock in the afternoon when they went with him to the place where he was staying and they remained with him the rest of the day. Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, was one of these men who heard what John said and then followed Jesus. Andrew went to find his brother Simon and told him, we have found the Messiah, which means Christ. Then Andrew brought Simon to meet Jesus. Looking intently at Simon, Jesus said, your name is Simon, son of John, but you will be called Cephas, which means Peter. The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, come follow me. Philip was from Bethsaida, Andrew and Peter's hometown. Philip went to look for Nathaniel and told him, we have found the very person Moses and the prophets wrote about. His name is Jesus, the son of Joseph, from Nazareth. Nazareth exclaimed Nathaniel, can anything good come from Nazareth? Come and see for yourself, Philip replied. As they approached, Jesus said, now here is a genuine son of Israel, a man of complete integrity. How do you know about me? Nathaniel asked. Jesus replied, I could see you under the fig tree before Philip found you. Then Nathaniel exclaimed, Rabbi, you are the son of God, the king of Israel. Jesus asked him, do you believe this just because I told you I had seen you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this. Then he said, I tell you the truth, you will all see heaven open and the angels of God going up and down on the Son of Man, the one who is the stairway between heaven and earth. John 2. The next day there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus' mother was there and Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration. The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus' mother told him they have no more wine. Dear woman, that's not our problem, Jesus replied, my time has not yet come. But his mother told the servants, do whatever he tells you. Standing nearby were six stone water jars used for Jewish ceremonial washing. Each could hold 20 to 30 gallons. Jesus told the servants, fill the jars with water. When the jars had been filled, he said, now dip some out and take it to the master of ceremonies. So the servants followed his instructions. When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from, though of course the servants knew, he called the bridegroom over. A host always served the best wine first, he said. Then when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now. This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory and his disciples believed in him. After the wedding, he went to Capernaum for a few days with his mother, his brothers and his disciples. It was nearly time for the Jewish Passover celebration, so Jesus went to Jerusalem. In the temple area, he saw merchants selling cattle, sheep and doves for sacrifices. He also saw dealers at tables exchanging foreign money. Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased them all out of the temple. He drove out the sheep and cattle, scattered the money changers' coins over the floor and turned over their tables. Then going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, Get these things out of here, stop turning my father's house into a marketplace. Then his disciples remembered this prophecy from the scriptures, passion for God's house will consume me. But the Jewish leaders demanded, What are you doing? If God gave you authority to do this, show us a miraculous sign to prove it. Alright, Jesus replied, Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up. What? They exclaimed, It has taken 46 years to build this temple and you can rebuild it in three days? But when Jesus said this temple, he meant his own body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered he had said this and they believed both the scriptures and what Jesus had said. Because of the miraculous signs Jesus did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many began to trust in him. But Jesus didn't trust them because he knew all about people. No one needed to tell him about human nature for he knew what was in each person's heart. John 3 There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. After dark one evening he came to speak with Jesus. Rabbi, he said, We all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you. Jesus replied, I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the kingdom of God. What do you mean? exclaimed Nicodemus. How can an old man go back into his mother's womb and be born again? Jesus replied, I assure you no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and the spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. So don't be surprised when I say you must be born again. The wind blows wherever it wants, just as you can hear the wind, but can't tell where it comes from or where it is going. So you can't explain how people are born of the spirit. How are these things possible? Nicodemus asked. Jesus replied, You are a respected Jewish teacher and yet you don't understand these things. I assure you, we tell you what we know and have seen and yet you won't believe our testimony. But if you don't believe me when I tell you about earthly things, how can you possibly believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has ever gone to heaven and returned, but the Son of man has come down from heaven. And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life. For this is how God loved the world. He gave his one and only son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his son into the world, not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him, but anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God's one and only son. And the judgment is based on this fact. God's light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants. Then Jesus and his disciples left Jerusalem and went into the Judean countryside. Jesus spent some time with them there, baptizing people. At this time, John the Baptist was baptizing at Anon near Salem, because there was plenty of water there. And people kept coming to him for baptism. This was before John was thrown into prison. A debate broke out between John's disciples and a certain Jew over ceremonial cleansing. So John's disciples came to him and said, Rabbi, the man you met on the other side of the Jordan River, the one you identified as the Messiah, is also baptizing people and everybody is going to him instead of coming to us. John replied, No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven. You yourselves know how plainly I told you I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him. It is the bridegroom who marries the bride and the bridegroom's friend is simply glad to stand with him and hear his vows. Therefore I am filled with joy at his success. He must become greater and greater and I must become less and less. He has come from above and is greater than anyone else. We are of the earth and we speak of earthly things, but he has come from heaven and is greater than anyone else. He testifies about what he has seen and heard, but how few believe what he tells them. Anyone who accepts his testimony can affirm that God is true, for he is sent by God. He speaks God's words, for God gives him the Spirit without limit. The Father loves his Son and has put everything into his hands. And anyone who believes in God's Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn't obey the Son will never experience eternal life, but remains under God's angry judgment. That is John 1 through 3 in the NLT. Let's pray together. Jesus, we are thoughtful as we start this 30-day journey of wanting to know you better 29 days from now than we know you today. Would you open our eyes every day? Even at the end of this scripture where it says, The Father loves his Son has put everything in his hands, that God gives him the Spirit without limit. God, we ask you would put all the knowledge in our hands and give us the Holy Spirit without limit as we are reading the Gospels. We want to know you, Jesus. We love you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
