Study Desk

"When they had no means of repaying [the debts], he freely forgave them both. So which of them will love him more?"

And He said, "To you [who have been chosen] it has been granted to know and recognize the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is in parables, so that though SEEING THEY MAY NOT SEE, AND HEARING THEY MAY NOT UNDERSTAND.

"Those beside the road are the people who have heard; then the devil comes and takes the message [of God] away from their hearts, so that they will not believe [in Me as the Messiah] and be saved.

"Now no one lights a lamp and then covers it with a container [to hide it], or puts it under a bed; instead, he puts it on a lampstand, so that those who come in may see the light.

"So be careful how you listen; for whoever has [a teachable heart], to him more [understanding] will be given; and whoever does not have [a longing for truth], even what he thinks he has will be taken away from him."

Now on one of those days Jesus and His disciples got into a boat, and He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side of the lake (Sea of Galilee)." So they set out.

Then all the people of the country of the Gerasenes and the surrounding district asked Him to leave them, because they were overwhelmed with fear. So Jesus got into the boat and returned [to the west side of the Sea of Galilee].

"Return home and tell [about] all the great things God has done for you." So the man went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.

So they began going from village to village, preaching the gospel and healing the sick everywhere.

Now the day was ending, and the twelve [disciples] came and said to Him, "Send the crowd away, so that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside and find lodging, and get provisions; because here we are in an isolated place."

They did so, and had them all sit down.

and a spirit seizes him, and suddenly he cries out, and it throws him into a convulsion so that he foams at the mouth; and only with [great] difficulty does it leave him, mauling and bruising him as it leaves.

However, they did not understand this statement. Its meaning was kept hidden from them so that they would not grasp it; and they were afraid to ask Him about it.

But the Lord replied to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered and anxious about so many things;

"So I say to you, ask and keep on asking, and it will be given to you; seek and keep on seeking, and you will find; knock and keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.

And [at another time] Jesus was casting out a demon, and it was [controlling a man so as to make him] mute; when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds were awed.

"For just as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man also be [a sign] to this generation.

"No one lights a lamp and then puts it in a cellar nor under a basket [hiding the light], but [instead it is put] on the lampstand, so that those who come in may see the light.

"So if your whole body is illuminated, with no dark part, it will be entirely bright [with light], as when the lamp gives you light with its bright rays."

"So you are witnesses and approve the deeds of your fathers, because they [actually] killed them, and you repair or build their tombs.