Daily Bible Verses

Heavenly father
give us grace to turn to you today and live in the Kingdom of Heaven  

¹⁷ From that time, Jesus began to preach, and to say, 
“Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.”

¹⁸ Walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers: Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew, his brother,
casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. 
¹⁹ He said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers for men.”
²⁰ …

‘Come, follow me,’ Jesus said, Matthew 4:19

Jesus came to teach us the way of wisdom by bringing us a message that offers to liberate us from both the lies of the world and the lies lodged within ourselves. The wisdom of the gospel creates an alternative consciousness, solid ground on which we can really stand, free from every social order and every ideology. The preaching of the gospel pulls the rug out from under us, and we have to put our life on a new footing. First we have to act. We have to cross over a threshold and live differently, so…

Heavenly father
give us grace to seek first your kingdom today and to be channels of healing to others.

²³ Jesus went about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues,
preaching the Good News of the Kingdom,
and healing every disease and every sickness among the people. 
²⁴ The report about him went out into all Syria.
They brought to him all who were sick, afflicted with various diseases and torments,
possessed with demons, epileptics, and paralytics; and he healed them. 
²⁵ …

1 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.  He said

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
    for they will be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
    for they will inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
    for they will be filled.
7 Blessed are…

Heavenly father
give us grace to seek you today in our poverty of spirit and our mourning, and to be a blessing to others in their poverty of spirit and their mourning

¹ Seeing the multitudes, he went up onto the mountain.
When he had sat down, his disciples came to him. 
² He opened his mouth and taught them, saying,³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.
⁴ Blessed are those who mourn,
  …

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven

The Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who do not possess adequate resources

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
    …

Heavenly father
give us grace to be merciful and pure in heart today.

⁷ Blessed are the merciful,
    for they shall obtain mercy.
⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart,
    for they shall see God.

Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

Imagine living with one purpose: to have a heart centred on the will and love of God, so that this determines all our actions each day. 

Being committed to something keeps life expanding for us, even when we think that there’s nowhere else for it to go. Purpose gives us a sense of importance, of wanting to do even more, even…

Blessed are the pure of heart; for they shall see God. —Matthew 5:8  

Cynthia Bourgeault explains how understanding the ancient meaning of the word passion can help us gain emotional equilibrium:   
The tradition from about the 4th century on has been unanimous with what gets in the way of becoming pure of heart. I will quote directly from the Philokalia: “The problem with the passions is that they divide the heart.” The passions are the culprit that sucks the heart out of its capacity to see with equanimity and clarity, with luminosity and radiance, and makes…

Blessed are the peacemakers,
    for they will be called children of God.

https://www.thefuelcast.com/library/2025-04-2-the-bible-and-violence-pa…

Heavenly father
give us grace to be peacemakers today, whatever the cost.

⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers,
    for they shall be called children of God.
¹⁰ Blessed are those who have been persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
    for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when people reproach you, persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, for my sake. ¹² Rejoice, and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven…

Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called children of God.

You don’t have to have anything to get started, really: just a will, which I believe is already within you, and a way. Do the work your way, with the intention of expanding the circle of human concern and creating radical belonging for others.…  

Get to work. Build. Bridge. Belong. This call for belonging is not about saving ourselves as individuals in terms of the resources that we have or the access we have been granted. Belonging is about saving our very humanity.  

If you are not…

Blessed are the peacemakers: They shall be recognized as children of God.  
—Matthew 5:9  

Richard Rohr considers what it means to be a peacemaker:  

This verse in Matthew’s Gospel is the only time the word peacemakers is ever used in the whole Bible. Peacemakers literally are the “ones who reconcile quarrels.” We can clearly see Jesus is not on the side of the violent but on the side of the nonviolent. Jesus is saying there must be a connection, a clear consistency, a constant unity between means and ends. There is no way to peace other than…

You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. People do not light a lamp and put it under a bushel basket; rather, they put it on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven (Matthew 5:13–16).

Brian McLaren …

13 ‘You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

14 ‘You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. …

13 ‘You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. 14 ‘You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5)

Jesus advocates an identity characterized by…

Heavenly father
give us grace to be the salt of the earth today, and to do nothing that will cause us to loose our saltiness

(Salt  = knowing the blessing of being poor, in mourning, meek, seekers of righteousness, pure in heart, merciful, peacemakers and persecuted)

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt has lost its flavor, with what will it be salted?
It is then good for nothing, but to be cast out and trodden under the feet of men.

Heavenly father
give us grace to do good works today so that people will see something of you

¹⁴ You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill can’t be hidden. 
¹⁵ Neither do you light a lamp and put it under a measuring basket, but on a stand; and it shines to all who are in the house. 
¹⁶ Even so, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

14 ‘You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.…

14 ‘You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.…

14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. (Matthew 5:15)

Archbishop Romero (who was murdered while leading worship by the authorities in Argentina) said:  

A Christian community is evangelized in order to evangelize. A light is turned on in order to give light. “People do not light a candle and put it under a basket,” said Christ. “They light it and put it up high so that it gives light” (Matthew 5:15). That is true community. A community is a…

Heavenly father
give us grace to do what is righteous today and every day. 

¹⁷ “Don’t think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I didn’t come to destroy, but to fulfil. 
¹⁸ For most certainly, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away,
not even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away from the law,
until all things are accomplished. 
¹⁹ Therefore, whoever shall break one of these least commandments and teach others to do so,
shall be called…

Heavenly father
give us grace to refrain today from labelling others as fools 

²¹ “You have heard that it was said to the ancient ones, ‘You shall not murder;’and ‘Whoever murders will be in danger of the judgement.’ ²² But I tell you that everyone who is angry with his brother without a cause  will be in danger of the judgement. Whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’  will be in danger of the council. Whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of Gehenna.

Heavenly father
give us grace to go out of our way to be reconciled to others today, remembering that we are never the completely innocent party

²³ “If therefore you are offering your gift at the altar,
and there remember that your brother has anything against you, 
²⁴ leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way.
First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 
²⁵ Agree with your adversary quickly while you are with him on the way;
…

Heavenly father
give us grace to be careful with our looking at and our thinking about other people today,
and give us grace to allow evil no place in our minds and bodies

²⁷ “You have heard that it was said,  ‘You shall not commit adultery;’
²⁸ but I tell you that everyone who gazes at a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart. 
²⁹ If your right eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it away from you.
For it is more profitable for you…

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,
‘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 goodness

³⁸ “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ 
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…

43 ‘You have heard that it was said, “Love your neighbour^[i] and hate your enemy.” 44 …

Heavenly 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.’
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…

Love your enemies (Matthew 5:44)

King so imbued this understanding of nonviolence into his followers that it became the ethos of the entire civil rights movement. One evening … the large crowd of black and white activists standing outside the Ebenezer Baptist Church was electrified by the sudden arrival of a black funeral home operator from Montgomery. He reported that a group of black students demonstrating near the capitol just that afternoon had been surrounded by police on horseback, all escape barred, and cynically commanded to disperse or take the consequences. Then the…

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…

But 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,…

But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, (Matthew 5:44)

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  said … 

When I speak of love I am not speaking of some sentimental and weak response. I am speaking of that force which all of the great religions have seen as the supreme unifying principle of life. Love is somehow the key that unlocks the door which leads to ultimate reality…. 

Far from being the pious injunction of a Utopian dreamer, the command to love one’s enemy…

Heavenly father
give us grace to be like you in not just loving those who love us today

⁴⁶ 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.

There is a common misperception that deeply distorts the reading of the Scriptures and much spirituality. I call it “spiritual capitalism,” which centers around a common philosophy of “I can do it, and I must do it, and I will do it.” This is the mindset of early-stage ego consciousness. It puts all the emphasis and total reliance on “me,” my effort, and my spiritual accomplishments. It has little active trust in God’s grace and mercy.

Unfortunately, the driving energy is fear and more effort, instead of quiet confidence and gratitude.

It becomes about climbing instead of…

6 “Be careful that you don’t do your charitable giving^[a] before men, to be seen by them, or else you have no…