M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
2 Write this to the angel of the church people in Ephesus: Here are the words of the one who holds the seven stars in his hand, the one who walks among the seven gold lamps.
2 `He says, "I know the things you do. I know that you work hard and are patient. I know that you have nothing to do with bad men. You tested those who say they are messengers from God but are not. You proved that they are not true apostles.
3 I know that you are patient and are strong for my name's sake. And you have not given up.
4 But here is what I say against you. You do not love as you loved at first.
5 So remember what you were like at first. Stop! Live the way you did at first. If you do not, I will come and move your lamp from its place. I will do it if you do not stop.
6 But this is good: you hate the things which the people called Nicolaitans do. I hate the things they do also."
7 He who can hear should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. He says, "I will let the person who wins eat fruit from the tree of life. It grows in God's garden." '
8 `Write this to the angel of the church people in Smyrna: Here are the words of the one who is the First and the Last. He is the one who died but lived again.
9 `He says, "I know the things you do and the trouble you have. I know you are poor. But you are rich in some ways. I know some people do not respect God. They call themselves Jews. But they are not real Jews. They belong to Satan's people.
10 Do not be afraid of the troubles you will have. Yes, the devil will put some of you into prison where you will be tested. You will have trouble for ten days. But keep on believing, even if you have to die for it. I will give you life for ever."
11 `He who can hear should listen to the message of the Spirit to the churches. He says, "The person who wins will not be hurt by the second death." '
12 `Write this to the angel of the church people in Pergamum: Here are the words of the one who has the long knife which is sharp on both sides.
13 `He says, "I know where you live. You live where Satan rules. But you keep my name and you have never said that you do not believe in me. You kept on believing in me even in the time of Antipas. He said he believed in me and was true to me. He was killed among you where Satan lives.
14 But I have a few things to say against you. You have some people there who believe the teaching of Balaam. He showed Balak how to trick the people of Israel and make them do wrong. They ate food that was given to idols, and they used sex wrongly.
15 Also, you have people among you who believe the teaching of the Nicolaitans. I hate the things they do.
16 Stop! If you do not, I will come soon and I will fight against them with the long knife that comes from my mouth."
17 `He who can hear should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. He says, "I will give some of the secret food to the person who wins. And I will give him a white stone. A new name will be written on the stone. No one will know the name but the one who gets the stone." '
18 `Write this to the angel of the church people in Thyatira: Here are the words of the Son of God. He is the one whose eyes shine like a flame of fire, and his feet shine like fine brass.
19 `He says, "I know the things you do. I know that you love me, believe in me, work for me, and are patient. I know that you do these things more now than you did at first.
20 But I have this to say against you. You let that woman named Jezebel keep on teaching. She calls herself a prophet of God but teaches my servants wrong things. She fools them to use sex wrongly and eat food that has been given to idols.
21 I gave her time to stop, but she will not stop her wrong sexual ways and turn back to God.
22 Look, I will make her very sick, and also those who love her. I will do it if they do not stop what they are doing with her.
23 I will kill her children. Then all the churches will know that I find out what is in a person's mind and heart. I will pay each one of you for the good or wrong things you have done.
24 But some of you in Thyatira do not listen to that woman's teaching. You have not learned what some people call the deep things of Satan. To you I say, I will put no other load on you.
25 The only thing I say to you is to keep on believing until I come.
26 If a person wins and does what I want him to do until the end, I will make him rule with me over all peoples.
27 The holy writings said this long ago: `He will rule them with an iron stick. He will break them to pieces like pots made of clay.' This is the same power as I received from my Father.
28 And I will give him the morning star."
29 `He who can hear should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.'
1 The Word already was, way back before anything began to be. The Word and God were together. The Word was God.
2 Before anything began to be, the Word was there with God.
3 God made everything by the Word. Nothing has been made without him.
4 Life was in the Word. That life was Light for people.
5 The Light shone where it was dark and the darkness did not stop the Light from shining.
6 God sent a man named John.
7 He came to talk about the Light, so that all people might believe in the Light by what he said.
8 He himself was not that Light, but he was sent to talk about the Light.
9 The true Light which gives light to every person who comes into the world.
10 He, the Word, was in the world. Yes, he even made the world. And yet the world did not know him.
11 He came into the world that was his own, but his own people did not receive him.
12 But there were people who did believe in his name. They did receive him. He gave all those who received him and believed him the right to become children of God.
13 They were born into God's family by God. That is, they were not born into his family in the way a person is born into this world. It was not by any person's will.
14 The Word became man and he lived among us. We saw with our own eyes that he is great. He is great the way God the Father made his only Son great. We saw that he is full of loving kindness and truth.
15 John talked about him. He called out saying, `Here is the man I told you about. I said that the one who is coming after me is greater than I am, because he lived before I lived.'
16 He was full of loving kindness, and we have all received so much kindness from him.
17 Moses gave the law, but Jesus Christ gave this loving kindness and truth.
18 No one has ever seen God. But his only Son is very near to his Father's heart. He has told us plainly about God.
19 The leaders of the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem. They asked John, `Who are you?' John told them.
20 He did not hide the truth, but he told people plainly. He said, `I am not the Christ.'
21 So they asked him, `Well then, are you Elijah?' He answered, `No, I am not.' They asked, `Are you the Prophet?' He answered, `No.'
22 Then those priests said, `Who are you? We want to give an answer to the people who sent us. What do you say about yourself?'
23 John said, `I am a voice calling in the desert, "Make the road straight for the Lord." This is what was said by Isaiah, the prophet of God long ago.'
24 It was the Pharisees who had sent these people to John.
25 So they asked him, `If you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet, why then are you baptizing?'
26 John answered, `I baptize people in water. But there is a man standing among you whom you do not know.
27 He is the one coming after me who is greater than I am. I am not even good enough to untie his shoe strings.'
28 The place where John was baptizing was Bethany on the other side of the Jordan River.
29 The next day John saw Jesus coming to him. `Look,' said John. `See God's special Lamb! He takes away the wrong ways of the world.
30 Here is the man I told you about. I said that the one who is coming after me is greater than I am, because he lived before I lived.
31 I myself did not know who he was. But I came and baptized people in water so that the people of Israel would know who he was.'
32 John also said, `I saw the Spirit coming from the sky. He came down on him like a dove. It stayed on him.
33 I myself did not know who he was. But he who sent me to baptize people in water told me. He said, "You will see the Spirit coming from the sky on a man. That man will baptize people in the Holy Spirit."
34 I saw the Spirit coming on him, and I have told you. This man is the Son of God.'
35 The next day, John was standing with two of his followers.
36 Jesus walked by. When John saw him, he said, `Look, see God's Lamb!'
37 The two followers heard what John said, so they went after Jesus.
38 Jesus turned. He saw them coming after him. He said to them, `What are you looking for?' They said, `Teacher, where do you live?'
39 Jesus said, `Come and see.' They went and saw the place where Jesus was staying. The time was about four o'clock in the afternoon. They stayed with Jesus the rest of the day.
40 Andrew was one of those two followers of John who heard John speak and went after Jesus. He was Simon Peter's brother.
41 The first thing Andrew did then was to find his brother Simon. He said, `We have found the Messiah!' (Messiah means the Christ, the messenger of God.)
42 Andrew brought Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, `You are Simon, the son of John. Your name will be Cephas.' (Cephas means Peter, a rock or stone.)
43 The next day Jesus said, `I will go to Galilee.' He found Philip and said to him, `Come with me.'
44 Philip was from the town of Bethsaida. Andrew and Peter were also from that town.
45 Philip went to find Nathanael. He said `We have found the man about whom Moses wrote in the books of the law. The prophets also wrote about him. He is Jesus, from Nazareth. He is the son of Joseph.'
46 Nathanael said, `From Nazareth? Can any good thing come from there?' Philip said, `Come and see for yourself.'
47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him. He said, `Here is a man who is truly of Israel. He does not fool people.'
48 Nathanael asked, `How do you know me?' Jesus answered, `I saw you when you were under the fig tree. That was before Philip called you.'
49 Nathanael said, `Teacher, you are the Son of God. You are the King of Israel.'
50 Jesus answered, `I told you that I saw you under the fig tree. Is that why you believe in me now? You will see more wonderful things than that!
51 I tell you the truth,' said Jesus. `You will see heaven open. You will see God's angels going up and down to the Son of Man.'
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