Luke 24

Looking for the Living One in a Cemetery

1 At the crack of dawn on Sunday, the women came to the tomb carrying the burial spices they had prepared.2 They found the entrance stone rolled back from the tomb,3 so they walked in. But once inside, they couldn't find the body of the Master Jesus.

4 They were puzzled, wondering what to make of this. Then, out of nowhere it seemed, two men, light cascading over them, stood there.5 The women were awestruck and bowed down in worship. The men said, "Why are you looking for the Living One in a cemetery?6 He is not here, but raised up. Remember how he told you when you were still back in Galilee7 that he had to be handed over to sinners, be killed on a cross, and in three days rise up?"8 Then they remembered Jesus' words.

9 They left the tomb and broke the news of all this to the Eleven and the rest.10 Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them kept telling these things to the apostles,11 but the apostles didn't believe a word of it, thought they were making it all up.

12 But Peter jumped to his feet and ran to the tomb. He stooped to look in and saw a few grave clothes, that's all. He walked away puzzled, shaking his head.

The Road to Emmaus

13 That same day two of them were walking to the village Emmaus, about seven miles out of Jerusalem.14 They were deep in conversation, going over all these things that had happened.15 In the middle of their talk and questions, Jesus came up and walked along with them.16 But they were not able to recognize who he was.

17 He asked, "What's this you're discussing so intently as you walk along?"18 Then one of them, his name was Cleopas, said, "Are you the only one in Jerusalem who hasn't heard what's happened during the last few days?"

19 He said, "What has happened?"20 They said, "The things that happened to Jesus the Nazarene. He was a man of God, a prophet, dynamic in work and word, blessed by both God and all the people. Then our high priests and leaders betrayed him, got him sentenced to death, and crucified him.21 And we had our hopes up that he was the One, the One about to deliver Israel. And it is now the third day since it happened.22 But now some of our women have completely confused us. Early this morning they were at the tomb23 and couldn't find his body. They came back with the story that they had seen a vision of angels who said he was alive.24 Some of our friends went off to the tomb to check and found it empty just as the women said, but they didn't see Jesus."

25 Then he said to them, "So thick-headed! So slow-hearted! Why can't you simply believe all that the prophets said?26 Don't you see that these things had to happen, that the Messiah had to suffer and only then enter into his glory?"27 Then he started at the beginning, with the Books of Moses, and went on through all the Prophets, pointing out everything in the Scriptures that referred to him.

28 They came to the edge of the village where they were headed. He acted as if he were going on29 but they pressed him: "Stay and have supper with us. It's nearly evening; the day is done." So he went in with them.30 And here is what happened: He sat down at the table with them. Taking the bread, he blessed and broke and gave it to them.31 At that moment, open-eyed, wide-eyed, they recognized him. And then he disappeared.

32 Back and forth they talked. "Didn't we feel on fire as he conversed with us on the road, as he opened up the Scriptures for us?"

A Ghost Doesn't Have Muscle and Bone

33 They didn't waste a minute. They were up and on their way back to Jerusalem. They found the Eleven and their friends gathered together,34 talking away: "It's really happened! The Master has been raised up-Simon saw him!"

35 Then the two went over everything that happened on the road and how they recognized him when he broke the bread.

36 While they were saying all this, Jesus appeared to them and said, "Peace be with you."37 They thought they were seeing a ghost and were scared half to death.38 He continued with them, "Don't be upset, and don't let all these doubting questions take over.39 Look at my hands; look at my feet-it's really me. Touch me. Look me over from head to toe. A ghost doesn't have muscle and bone like this."40 As he said this, he showed them his hands and feet.

41 They still couldn't believe what they were seeing. It was too much; it seemed too good to be true.42 They gave him a piece of leftover fish they had cooked.43 He took it and ate it right before their eyes.

You're the Witnesses

44 Then he said, "Everything I told you while I was with you comes to this: All the things written about me in the Law of Moses, in the Prophets, and in the Psalms have to be fulfilled."

45 He went on to open their understanding of the Word of God, showing them how to read their Bibles this way.46 He said, "You can see now how it is written that the Messiah suffers, rises from the dead on the third day,47 and then a total life-change through the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed in his name to all nations-starting from here, from Jerusalem!48 You're the first to hear and see it. You're the witnesses.49 What comes next is very important: I am sending what my Father promised to you, so stay here in the city until he arrives, until you're equipped with power from on high."

50 He then led them out of the city over to Bethany. Raising his hands he blessed them,51 and while blessing them, took his leave, being carried up to heaven.

52 And they were on their knees, worshiping him. They returned to Jerusalem bursting with joy.53 They spent all their time in the Temple praising God. Yes.

John 1

The Life-Light

1 The Word was first, the Word present to God, God present to the Word. The Word was God,2 in readiness for God from day one.

3 Everything was created through him; nothing-not one thing!-came into being without him.4 What came into existence was Life, and the Life was Light to live by.5 The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness; the darkness couldn't put it out.

6 There once was a man, his name John, sent by God7 to point out the way to the Life-Light. He came to show everyone where to look, who to believe in.8 John was not himself the Light; he was there to show the way to the Light.

9 The Life-Light was the real thing: Every person entering Life he brings into Light.10 He was in the world, the world was there through him, and yet the world didn't even notice.11 He came to his own people, but they didn't want him.12 But whoever did want him, who believed he was who he claimed and would do what he said, He made to be their true selves, their child-of-God selves.13 These are the God-begotten, not blood-begotten, not flesh-begotten, not sex-begotten.

14 The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, Generous inside and out, true from start to finish.

15 John pointed him out and called, "This is the One! The One I told you was coming after me but in fact was ahead of me. He has always been ahead of me, has always had the first word."

16 We all live off his generous bounty, gift after gift after gift.17 We got the basics from Moses, and then this exuberant giving and receiving, This endless knowing and understanding-all this came through Jesus, the Messiah.18 No one has ever seen God, not so much as a glimpse. This one-of-a-kind God-Expression, who exists at the very heart of the Father, has made him plain as day. Thunder in the Desert

Thunder in the Desert

19 When Jews from Jerusalem sent a group of priests and officials to ask John who he was, he was completely honest.20 He didn't evade the question. He told the plain truth: "I am not the Messiah."

21 They pressed him, "Who, then? Elijah?" "I am not." "The Prophet?" "No."

22 Exasperated, they said, "Who, then? We need an answer for those who sent us. Tell us something-anything!-about yourself."

23 "I'm thunder in the desert: 'Make the road straight for God!' I'm doing what the prophet Isaiah preached."

24 Those sent to question him were from the Pharisee party.25 Now they had a question of their own: "If you're neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet, why do you baptize?"

26 John answered, "I only baptize using water. A person you don't recognize has taken his stand in your midst.27 He comes after me, but he is not in second place to me. I'm not even worthy to hold his coat for him."

28 These conversations took place in Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing at the time.

The God-Revealer

29 The very next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and yelled out,30 "Here he is, God's Passover Lamb! He forgives the sins of the world! This is the man I've been talking about, 'the One who comes after me but is really ahead of me.'31 I knew nothing about who he was-only this: that my task has been to get Israel ready to recognize him as the God-Revealer. That is why I came here baptizing with water, giving you a good bath and scrubbing sins from your life so you can get a fresh start with God."

32 John clinched his witness with this: "I watched the Spirit, like a dove flying down out of the sky, making himself at home in him.33 I repeat, I know nothing about him except this: The One who authorized me to baptize with water told me, 'The One on whom you see the Spirit come down and stay, this One will baptize with the Holy Spirit.'34 That's exactly what I saw happen, and I'm telling you, there's no question about it: This is the Son of God."

Come, See for Yourself

35 The next day John was back at his post with two disciples, who were watching.36 He looked up, saw Jesus walking nearby, and said, "Here he is, God's Passover Lamb."

37 The two disciples heard him and went after Jesus.38 Jesus looked over his shoulder and said to them, "What are you after?" They said, "Rabbi" (which means "Teacher"), "where are you staying?"

39 He replied, "Come along and see for yourself." They came, saw where he was living, and ended up staying with him for the day. It was late afternoon when this happened.

40 Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, was one of the two who heard John's witness and followed Jesus.41 The first thing he did after finding where Jesus lived was find his own brother, Simon, telling him, "We've found the Messiah" (that is, "Christ").42 He immediately led him to Jesus. Jesus took one look up and said, "You're John's son, Simon? From now on your name is Cephas" (or Peter, which means "Rock").

43 The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. When he got there, he ran across Philip and said, "Come, follow me."44 (Philip's hometown was Bethsaida, the same as Andrew and Peter.)

45 Philip went and found Nathanael and told him, "We've found the One Moses wrote of in the Law, the One preached by the prophets. It's Jesus, Joseph's son, the one from Nazareth!"46 Nathanael said, "Nazareth? You've got to be kidding." But Philip said, "Come, see for yourself."

47 When Jesus saw him coming he said, "There's a real Israelite, not a false bone in his body."

48 Nathanael said, "Where did you get that idea? You don't know me." Jesus answered, "One day, long before Philip called you here, I saw you under the fig tree."

49 Nathanael exclaimed, "Rabbi! You are the Son of God, the King of Israel!"

50 Jesus said, "You've become a believer simply because I say I saw you one day sitting under the fig tree? You haven't seen anything yet!51 Before this is over you're going to see heaven open and God's angels descending to the Son of Man and ascending again."

John 2

From Water to Wine

1 Three days later there was a wedding in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus' mother was there.2 Jesus and his disciples were guests also.3 When they started running low on wine at the wedding banquet, Jesus' mother told him, "They're just about out of wine."

4 Jesus said, "Is that any of our business, Mother-yours or mine? This isn't my time. Don't push me."

5 She went ahead anyway, telling the servants, "Whatever he tells you, do it."

6 Six stoneware water pots were there, used by the Jews for ritual washings. Each held twenty to thirty gallons.7 Jesus ordered the servants, "Fill the pots with water." And they filled them to the brim.

8 "Now fill your pitchers and take them to the host," Jesus said, and they did.

9 When the host tasted the water that had become wine (he didn't know what had just happened but the servants, of course, knew), he called out to the bridegroom,10 "Everybody I know begins with their finest wines and after the guests have had their fill brings in the cheap stuff. But you've saved the best till now!"

11 This act in Cana of Galilee was the first sign Jesus gave, the first glimpse of his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

12 After this he went down to Capernaum along with his mother, brothers, and disciples, and stayed several days.

Tear Down This Temple . . .

13 When the Passover Feast, celebrated each spring by the Jews, was about to take place, Jesus traveled up to Jerusalem.14 He found the Temple teeming with people selling cattle and sheep and doves. The loan sharks were also there in full strength.

15 Jesus put together a whip out of strips of leather and chased them out of the Temple, stampeding the sheep and cattle, upending the tables of the loan sharks, spilling coins left and right.16 He told the dove merchants, "Get your things out of here! Stop turning my Father's house into a shopping mall!"17 That's when his disciples remembered the Scripture, "Zeal for your house consumes me."

18 But the Jews were upset. They asked, "What credentials can you present to justify this?"19 Jesus answered, "Tear down this Temple and in three days I'll put it back together."

20 They were indignant: "It took forty-six years to build this Temple, and you're going to rebuild it in three days?"21 But Jesus was talking about his body as the Temple.22 Later, after he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered he had said this. They then put two and two together and believed both what was written in Scripture and what Jesus had said.

23 During the time he was in Jerusalem, those days of the Passover Feast, many people noticed the signs he was displaying and, seeing they pointed straight to God, entrusted their lives to him.24 But Jesus didn't entrust his life to them. He knew them inside and out, knew how untrustworthy they were.25 He didn't need any help in seeing right through them.