Heavenly father
give us grace to avoid doing things which have the semblance of being right, but which we know to be wrong,
and give us discernment to know what to do when all the options open to us seem wrong.
31 “It was also said, ‘Whoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorce,’
32 but I tell you that whoever puts away his wife, except for the cause of sexual immorality, makes her an adulteress;
and whoever marries her when she is put away commits adultery.Heavenly father
give us grace to be simple and clear in what we say today.33 “Again you have heard that it was said to the ancient ones,
más
‘You shall not make false vows, but shall perform to the Lord your vows,’
34 but I tell you, don’t swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God;
35 nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
36 Neither shall you swear by your head, for you can’t make one hair white or...Heavenly father
give us grace to never repay evil for evil, but to confront it with goodness38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’
más
39 But I tell you, don’t resist him who is evil; but whoever strikes you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also.
40 If anyone sues you to take away your coat, let him have your cloak also.
41 Whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.
42 Give to him who asks you, and...‘You have heard that it was said, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” But I say to you: Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also, and if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, give your coat as well, and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.’ Matthew 5:38–42
Jesus sits close to his disciples, teaching them. Gathered around are hundreds, maybe thousands who’ve come from surrounding cities, eager to hear...
másHeavenly father
give us grace to love those who do not love us, so that we may be your children today.43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’
más
44 But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you,
and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you,
45 that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven.
For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends...
másYou have heard that it was said, “Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.” But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.… If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others?
—Matthew 5:43–48One way of viewing the Good News is that the Kingdom of Heaven, the Kingdom of Love is among us.
We can, here and how, live as citizens of...Jesus taught them, “But I say to you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” —Matthew 5:44
Richard Rohr describes how loving our enemies is a practice of “integrating the negative,” accepting what we find unacceptable within ourselves:
Our enemies always carry our own shadow side, the things we don’t like about ourselves. We will never face our own shadow until we embrace those who threaten us (as Francis of Assisi embraced the leper in his conversion experience). The people who turn us off...
másBut I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you
Rev. James Lawson (1928–2024), an influential teacher of nonviolence in the civil rights movement, insists on the effective power of nonviolence:
There is impracticality to violence. It’s ineffective and has been ineffective throughout the world for too many years. We must not let people who romanticize or mythologize violence persuade us that it has proven to be efficacious…. It has proven to be the most ineffective weapon. It drains emotional, psychological, moral,...
másHeavenly father
give us grace to be like you in not just loving those who love us today46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same?
47 If you only greet your friends, what more do you do than others? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same?
48 Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.
Daily Bible Verses by Book
These bible verses are emailed to members of the church who have signed up to receive them every day. Contact Nic for more information.