Book of Common Prayer

The sign of life

¹ From the Elder to the Chosen Lady and her children, whom I love in truth—as indeed, in addition to myself, do all those who know the truth, ² because of the truth that abides in us and is with us forever. ³ Grace, mercy and peace from God the father and from Jesus the Messiah, the son of the father, be with us in truth and love.

⁴ I was delighted when I found some of your children walking in the truth, just as we received the commandment from the father. ⁵ And now, dear Lady, I am writing to you, not indeed a new commandment, but the one we had from the very beginning, that we should love one another. ⁶ This is love: that we should behave in accordance with his commandments. And this is the commandment, just as you heard it from the very start, that we should behave in accordance with it.

Don’t be deceived!

⁷ Many deceivers, you see, have gone out into the world. These are people who do not admit that Jesus the Messiah has come in the flesh. Such a person is the Deceiver—the Antimessiah! ⁸ Watch out for yourselves, so that you won’t lose what we have worked for, but may receive the full reward.

⁹ Anyone who goes out on their own, and does not abide in the teaching of the Messiah, does not have God. One who abides in the teaching—such a one has the father and the son. ¹⁰ If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, don’t receive them into the house; don’t even give them a greeting. ¹¹ Anyone who utters a greeting to such a person shares in their wicked deeds.

¹² I have many things to write to you, but I did not wish to write with pen and ink. I am hoping instead to come to you, and to speak face to face. That will complete our joy.

¹³ The children of your Chosen Sister send you greetings.

The healing of the man with a virulent skin disease

¹² It so happened that, as Jesus was in one particular town, there was a man whose skin was covered all over with a virulent disease. When he saw Jesus, he fell on his face.

“Lord,” he begged, “if you want, you can make me clean.”

¹³ Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him.

“I do want to,” he said. “Be clean.”

And the skin disease disappeared immediately.

¹⁴ Jesus instructed the man not to tell anyone. “Go and show yourself to the priest,” he said, “and make the offering commanded by Moses in connection with your healing, as evidence for them.”

¹⁵ The news about Jesus, though, spread all round, and large crowds came to hear and to be healed from their diseases. ¹⁶ He used to slip away to remote places and pray.

The healing of the paralytic lowered through the roof

¹⁷ One day, as Jesus was teaching, there were Pharisees and legal experts sitting there who had come from every village of Galilee, and from Judaea and Jerusalem. The power of the Lord was with Jesus, enabling him to heal. ¹⁸ Just then some men appeared, carrying a paralyzed man on a mattress; they were trying to bring him in and lay him before Jesus. ¹⁹ The crowd made it impossible for them to get through, so they went up on the roof and let him down through the tiles, mattress and all, so that he landed right in the middle, in front of Jesus.

²⁰ Jesus saw what trust they had.

“My friend,” he said, “your sins are forgiven.”

²¹ The legal experts and Pharisees began to argue. “Who does he think he is?” they said. “He’s blaspheming! Nobody can forgive sins—only God can do that!”

²² Jesus knew their line of thought.

“Why are you complaining in your hearts?” he replied. ²³ “Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? ²⁴ But if you want to be convinced that the son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins—” (here he turned to the paralyzed man) “—I say to you, get up, pick up your mattress, and go home.”

²⁵ At once he got up in front of them all, picked up what he’d been lying on, and went off home, praising God.

²⁶ A sense of awe came over everyone. They praised God, and were filled with fear. “We’ve seen extraordinary things today,” they said.