May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,
but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out. Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.” We love because He first loved us. As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us. Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. Let your face shine on your servant;
save me in your unfailing love. Worship the Lord your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart;
I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. Lord, you are my God;
I will exalt you and praise your name,
for in perfect faithfulness
you have done wonderful things,
things planned long ago. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone,
for they will surely sprout wings
and fly off to the sky like an eagle. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” The Lord is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you. For the Lord loves the just
and will not forsake his faithful ones.
Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed;
the offspring of the wicked will perish. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me. Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the Lord and shun evil.
This will bring health to your body
and nourishment to your bones. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen. Surely your goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
forever. No one should seek their own good, but the good of others. Now I am about to go the way of all the earth. You know with all your heart and soul that not one of all the good promises the Lord your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled; not one has failed. How much better to get wisdom than gold,
to get insight rather than silver! Yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live. Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. May God bless us still,
so that all the ends of the earth will fear him. Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.