Study Desk

Jesus looked at them and said, "This is something that people cannot do. But God can do anything."

Some of the people were walking ahead of Jesus. Others were walking behind him. They all shouted, "Praise to the Son of David! ‘Welcome! God bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord!' Praise to God in heaven!"

Tell me: When John baptized people, did his authority come from God, or was it only from other people?" The priests and the Jewish leaders talked about Jesus' question. They said to each other, "If we answer, ‘John's baptism was from God,' then he will say, ‘Then why didn't you believe John?'

"So I tell you that God's kingdom will be taken away from you. It will be given to people who do what God wants in his kingdom.

They answered, "It is Caesar's picture and Caesar's name." Then Jesus said to them, "Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God."

Surely you have read what God said to you about people rising from death.

God said, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' So they were not still dead, because he is the God only of living people."

Jesus answered, "‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.'

‘The Lord God said to my Lord: Sit by me at my right side, and I will put your enemies under your control.'

And anyone who uses the Temple to make a promise is really using the Temple and God, who lives in it.

"It will be bad for you teachers of the law and you Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You give God a tenth of the food you get, even your mint, dill, and cumin. But you don't obey the really important teachings of the law—being fair, showing mercy, and being faithful. These are the things you should do. And you should also continue to do those other things.

"You are snakes! You are from a family of poisonous snakes! You will not escape God. You will all be judged guilty and go to hell!

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets. You stone to death those that God has sent to you. Many, many times I wanted to help your people. I wanted to gather them together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings. But you did not let me.

I tell you, you will not see me again until that time when you will say, ‘Welcome! God bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord.'"

"But God has decided to make that terrible time short. If it were not made short, no one would continue living. But God will make that time short to help the people he has chosen.

False messiahs and false prophets will come and do great miracles and wonders, trying to fool the people God has chosen, if that is possible.

"Then the king will say to the evil people on his left, ‘Get away from me. God has already decided that you will be punished. Go into the fire that burns forever—the fire that was prepared for the devil and his angels.

While they were eating, Jesus took some bread and thanked God for it. He broke off some pieces, gave them to his followers and said, "Take this bread and eat it. It is my body."

Then he took a cup of wine, thanked God for it, and gave it to them. He said, "Each one of you drink some of it.

This wine is my blood, which will be poured out to forgive the sins of many and begin the new agreement from God to his people.