Study Desk

They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those troubled by evil spirits were healed.

I know this because I am under the authority of my superior officers, and I have authority over my soldiers. I only need to say, ‘Go,' and they go, or ‘Come,' and they come. And if I say to my slaves, ‘Do this,' they do it."

And when the officer's friends returned to his house, they found the slave completely healed.

Great fear swept the crowd, and they praised God, saying, "A mighty prophet has risen among us," and "God has visited his people today."

John is the man to whom the Scriptures refer when they say, ‘Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, and he will prepare your way before you.'

But the Pharisees and experts in religious law rejected God's plan for them, for they had refused John's baptism.

They are like children playing a game in the public square. They complain to their friends, ‘We played wedding songs, and you didn't dance, so we played funeral songs, and you didn't weep.'

"I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love."

The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don't have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation.

The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity.

Then Jesus' mother and brothers came to see him, but they couldn't get to him because of the crowd.

Someone told Jesus, "Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, and they want to see you."

One day Jesus said to his disciples, "Let's cross to the other side of the lake." So they got into a boat and started out.

As they sailed across, Jesus settled down for a nap. But soon a fierce storm came down on the lake. The boat was filling with water, and they were in real danger.

Then he asked them, "Where is your faith?" The disciples were terrified and amazed. "Who is this man?" they asked each other. "When he gives a command, even the wind and waves obey him!"

When the herdsmen saw it, they fled to the nearby town and the surrounding countryside, spreading the news as they ran.

People rushed out to see what had happened. A crowd soon gathered around Jesus, and they saw the man who had been freed from the demons. He was sitting at Jesus' feet, fully clothed and perfectly sane, and they were all afraid.

When they arrived at the house, Jesus wouldn't let anyone go in with him except Peter, John, James, and the little girl's father and mother.

So they began their circuit of the villages, preaching the Good News and healing the sick.

But the crowds found out where he was going, and they followed him. He welcomed them and taught them about the Kingdom of God, and he healed those who were sick.