Book of Common Prayer

6 So, let us leave behind the first teachings about Christ. And let us go on to things that are grown up. We must not go back to the beginning again and talk about turning away from doing things that bring death to us. We must not go back again and talk about believing in God. Let us go forward.

² We must not go back to teaching about baptizing people in water, about putting hands on people's heads, about people being raised from death, and about people being judged for ever.

³ If God will let us, we will go on to build on these things.

⁴ Some people had light in their hearts once. They knew the gift from heaven.

⁵ They had the Holy Spirit. They knew the word of God is good and felt the powers of the next world.

⁶ If people who were like that leave their faith in Christ, they cannot come to God again. They themselves nail God's Son up on the cross again. They are holding him up to shame before everyone.

⁷ The ground drinks the water that often rains on it. It makes plants grow for the people who take care of it. And God blesses that ground.

⁸ But if it grows thorns and weeds, it is no good. It will soon be cursed. In the end, it will be burned with fire.

⁹ This is the way we talk. But dear people, we are sure that better things are true about you. Yes, you show all the good ways of people who have been saved from their wrong ways.

¹⁰ God does what is right. He will not forget your work and the love you have shown for him. You have helped God's people and you are still helping them.

¹¹ We want every one of you to try in the same way. Then you will get what you hope for right up to the end.

¹² Do not give up. But be like the people who get what God has promised. They believe God and keep on believing for a long time.

²² After this, Jesus and his disciples came into the country of Judea. Jesus stayed there with them and baptized people.

²³ John was also baptizing people in the river at Aenon, near the town of Salim. There was much water. People came to him and were baptized.

²⁴ This was before John was put in prison.

²⁵ John's disciples and the leaders of the Jews were talking about how to be clean, the way God wants us to be clean.

²⁶ They came to John and said, `Teacher, there was a man with you on the other side of the Jordan River. You were telling people about him. Now he himself is baptizing and all the people are going to him.'

²⁷ John answered, `A man cannot get anything unless God in heaven gives it to him.

²⁸ You yourselves heard what I said. I am not the Christ but I have been sent ahead of the Christ.

²⁹ The wife belongs to the man who has married her. The man's best friend may stand and listen. And when he hears what that man says, he is very glad for him. So what I hear makes me very glad in the same way.

³⁰ He must become more and more great, but I must become less and less great.

³¹ `The one who comes from heaven is greater than all other people. The one who is of the earth talks about things on earth. So the one who comes from heaven is greater than all.

³² He tells what he has seen and heard, but no one wants to believe what he says.

³³ If a person believes what the one from heaven says, then he also says God is true.

³⁴ The one God sent speaks the words of God. God does not give him the Spirit little by little, but he gives the Spirit in full.

³⁵ The Father loves his Son and has put everything in his hand.

³⁶ He who believes in the Son will live for ever. He who does not believe in the Son will not live. God will be very angry with him for ever.'