M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

13 Before the Passover Feast had started, Jesus saw that the time had come for him to leave this world. The time had come for him to go back to his Father. He loved his own people who were in the world. And he loved them the same way right to the end.

² He and his disciples were eating together. The devil had already put it into Judas' heart to give Jesus over to people who hated him. (Judas was the son of Simon Iscariot.)

³ Jesus knew that his Father had put everything into his hands. He knew he had come from God. He knew he was going back to God.

⁴ Jesus stood up where he had been eating. He took off his outer clothing. And he took a towel and tied it around him.

⁵ Then he poured water into a pan and began to wash the disciples' feet. He wiped their feet with the towel he had tied around him.

⁶ He came to Simon Peter. Peter said to him, `Lord, are you going to wash my feet?'

⁷ Jesus answered him, `You do not understand now what I am doing, but you will understand it later.'

⁸ Peter said to him, `You will never wash my feet!' Jesus answered him, `If I do not wash you, then you do not belong to me.'

⁹ Simon Peter said to him, `Lord, wash my feet, and my hands, and my head also!'

¹⁰ Jesus said, `A person who has bathed himself needs to wash his feet only. He is all clean. You are clean, but not all of you.'

¹¹ Jesus knew who was going to give him over to people who hated him. That is why he said, `You are not all clean.'

¹² After Jesus had finished washing their feet, he took his gown and sat down again. `Do you understand what I have done to you?' he asked.

¹³ `You call me Master and Lord. What you say is right. I am your Master and Lord.

¹⁴ I am your Lord and Master and have washed your feet. If I do that, then you should wash one another's feet.

¹⁵ I have shown you what to do. Now you do as I have done.

¹⁶ I tell you the truth. The servant is not better than his master. The one who is sent is not better than the one who sent him.

¹⁷ Do you understand what I have told you? If you do, you will have much happiness for doing it.

¹⁸ I am not talking about all of you but I know the people I have chosen. So God's word comes true. The holy writings say, "He who is eating my bread has turned against me."

¹⁹ `I am telling you this now before it happens. So when it happens you will believe who I am.

²⁰ I tell you the truth. The person who receives the one I send, receives me. He that receives me, receives the one who sent me.'

²¹ When Jesus had said this, he was troubled in his heart. He said, `I tell you the truth. One of you will give me over to people who hate me.'

²² The disciples looked at one another. They did not know which one of them Jesus was talking about.

²³ The disciple Jesus loved was at his right side.

²⁴ Simon Peter nodded to that disciple. He said, `Tell us who he is talking about.'

²⁵ He who was at Jesus' right side said to Jesus, `Lord, who is it?'

²⁶ Jesus answered, `I will put a piece of bread in the dish. Then I will give it to that one.' He put in the bread, then he took it and gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot.

²⁷ Right after Jesus had given the bread, Satan came into Judas. Then Jesus said to him, `What you are going to do, do right away.'

²⁸ No one at the table knew why Jesus said, `Do it right away.'

²⁹ Judas had the money bag. Some thought that Jesus was telling him, `Buy what we need for the feast,' or that he wanted Judas to give something to the poor people.

³⁰ Judas went out right after he had taken the bread. It was night.

³¹ When he had gone out, Jesus said, `Now the Son of Man is very great. And he has made God's name great.

³² If he has made God's name great, God also will make him great by his own power. He will do it right away.

³³ My children, I am with you for a short time longer. You will look for me. What I said to the Jews I say to you now: "You cannot come to the place where I am going."

³⁴ I give you a new law. That law is, "Love each other." As I have loved you, so you also love each other.

³⁵ This is how all people will know that you are my disciples.'

³⁶ Simon Peter said to him, `Lord, where are you going?' Jesus answered him, `You cannot go with me where I am going now. Later on you will go with me.'

³⁷ Peter said to him, `Lord, why can I not go with you now? I am willing to die for you.'

³⁸ Jesus answered him, `Will you die for me? I tell you the truth. Before the cock calls, you will say three times that you do not know me.'

3 That is why I, Paul, am a prisoner who belongs to Jesus Christ. It is for the sake of you people who are not Jews.

² I am sure you have heard that God gave me work to do for you.

³ He showed me what his plan was. And I have already written a little about it to you.

⁴ When you read this, you can understand why I know about his plan for Christ.

⁵ In the past, God did not tell his plan to people. But now the Holy Spirit has shown it to his holy apostles and prophets.

⁶ This is God's plan. Those who are not Jews will also share in the blessings of God. They also are a part of the body of Jesus Christ. They also will receive the things God has promised in Jesus Christ through the good news.

⁷ God gave me the work of telling that good news. And he blessed me by his power.

⁸ I am less than the least of all God's people, and yet he blessed me. It is my work to tell those who are not Jews about the wonderful blessings of Christ. There are so many that we cannot know them all.

⁹ God has blessed me so that I might tell all people plainly what his plan is. God, who made all things, did not tell anyone about his plan in all the times in the past.

¹⁰ Now he wants those who rule and have power in the sky to know how very wise God is. They will know this when they look at the church people.

¹¹ This is what God has always planned to do. And he did it in Jesus Christ our Lord.

¹² In Christ we are not to be afraid to come to God. We are sure we can come because we believe in Christ.

¹³ So I ask you not to be sad when you think of the troubles I have for your sake. You should be proud about it.

¹⁴ That is why I kneel down before the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

¹⁵ From him every family in heaven or on earth gets its name.

¹⁶ I ask him to make you very strong in heart by his Spirit. He has great and wonderful blessings and is able to do so because of the fullness of his glory.

¹⁷ And I ask that Christ may live in your hearts because you believe in him. I ask that you may live and grow in love.

¹⁸ I ask that God will give you power to know how wide and long and high and deep the love of Christ is. All Christians should know that.

¹⁹ I ask God that you may know the love of Christ which is more than we can ever know. I ask that you may be filled with everything that God has.

²⁰ God can do much more than we ask him to do, or we even think of. He does it by his power which is working in us.

²¹ So, praise him in the church meeting in Christ Jesus. Praise him for ever and ever! May it be so!