Book of Common Prayer

¹² You are chosen by God. He loves you and has made you holy. So then, care for one another. Be kind. Do not be proud. Be humble. Be patient.

¹³ Be patient with one another. If any one has a complaint against another, forgive that one. Christ forgave you. So you should forgive each other.

¹⁴ Beside all these, you must have love. This joins everything together as it should be.

¹⁵ Hold on to the peace of God which is in your hearts. You were called to have peace because you are all like one body. Be thankful.

¹⁶ Let your hearts be filled with the word of Christ. Be very wise when you teach people and help them to understand what is right and wrong. Sing with music. Sing praises and Christian songs. Sing to the Lord with praise in your hearts.

¹⁷ Whatever you say, or whatever you do, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus. Give thanks to God the Father through Jesus.

¹⁸ John also heard about all these things from his disciples.

¹⁹ He called two of them and sent them to Jesus. He asked, `Are you the One who is to come? Or shall we wait for another person?'

²⁰ When the men came to Jesus, they said, `John the Baptizer sent us to you. He asks, "Are you the One who is to come? Or shall we wait for another person?" '

²¹ At that time Jesus healed many people who were sick or had troubles or bad spirits. He made many blind people able to see.

²² He answered John's disciples, `Go tell John what you have seen and heard. Blind people see. The lame people walk. People with leprosy are healed. People who could not hear can hear. Dead people are alive again. Poor people hear the good news.

²³ Happy is the person who is not troubled in his heart about me.'

²⁴ When John's messengers had gone away, Jesus began to talk to the people about John. He said, `What did you go out into the desert to see? Did you go out to see a tall grass moving in the wind?

²⁵ What did you go out to see? A man wearing fine clothes? People who wear fine clothes and have nice things live in kings' houses.

²⁶ What did you go out to see? A prophet of God? Yes, I tell you, and he is much more than a prophet.

²⁷ He is the one the holy writings tell about: "See, I send my messenger ahead of you. He will make the way ready for you."

²⁸ I tell you, no one has ever been born who is greater than John. And yet, the smallest one in the kingdom of God is greater than he.'

²⁹ All the people and the tax collectors praised God when they heard that. They had been baptised by John.

³⁰ But the Pharisees and teachers of the law would not follow God's way and they were not baptised by John.

³¹ Jesus asked, `What will I say that the people of today are like? What are they like?

³² They are like children who sit in the market. They call to other children. They say, "We played music for you, but you did not dance. We cried, but you did not cry."

³³ John the Baptizer came. He does not eat bread or drink wine. You say, "He has a bad spirit in him."

³⁴ The Son of Man came. He eats and drinks. You say, "This man eats and drinks too much! He is a friend of tax collectors and bad people!"

³⁵ A man is proved wise by what he has done.'