Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
How to Honor God
58 The Lord says, “Shout out loud. Don’t hold back.
Shout out loud like a trumpet.
Tell the people about the things they have done against God.
Tell the family of Jacob about their sins.
2 Then they will come every day looking for me.
And they will want to learn my ways.
They will become a nation that does what is right.
They will obey the commands of their God.
They will ask me to judge them fairly.
They will want God to be near them.
3 They say, ‘To honor you we had special days when we gave up eating.
But you didn’t see.
We humbled ourselves to honor you.
But you didn’t notice.’”
But the Lord says, “You do what pleases yourselves on these special days.
And you are unfair to your workers.
4 On these special days when you do not eat, you argue and fight.
You hit each other with your fists.
You cannot do these things as you do now
and believe I will listen to your prayers.
5 This kind of special day is not what I want.
This is not the way I want people to be sorry for what they have done.
I don’t want people just to bow their heads like a plant.
I don’t want them to wear rough cloth and lie in ashes to show their sadness.
This is what you do on your special days when you do not eat.
But do you think this is what the Lord wants?
6 “I will tell you the kind of special day I want.
I want you to free the people you have put in prison unfairly.
Undo their chains.
Free those to whom you are unfair.
Free them from their hard labor.
7 I want you to share your food with hungry people.
I want you to bring poor, homeless people into your own homes.
When you see someone who has no clothes, give him yours.
Don’t refuse to help your own relatives.
8 If you do these things, your light will shine like the dawn.
Then your wounds will quickly heal.
Your God will walk before you,
and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind.
9 Then you will call to the Lord, and the Lord will answer you.
You will cry out to the Lord, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
“You should stop making trouble for others.
You should stop using cruel words and pointing your finger at others.
9 Then you will call to the Lord, and the Lord will answer you.
You will cry out to the Lord, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
“You should stop making trouble for others.
You should stop using cruel words and pointing your finger at others.
10 You should feed those who are hungry.
You should take care of the needs of those who are troubled.
Then your light will shine in the darkness.
And you will be bright like sunshine at noon.
11 The Lord will always lead you.
He will satisfy your needs in dry lands.
He will give strength to your bones.
You will be like a garden that has much water.
You will be like a spring that never runs dry.
12 Your people will rebuild the old cities that are now in ruins.
You will rebuild the foundations of these ancient cities.
You will be known for repairing the broken places.
You will be known for rebuilding the roads and houses.
Honest People Are Blessed
112 Praise the Lord!
Happy is the person who fears the Lord.
He loves what the Lord commands.
2 His descendants will be powerful in the land.
The children of honest people will be blessed.
3 His house will be full of wealth and riches.
His goodness will continue forever.
4 A light shines in the dark for honest people.
It shines for those who are good and kind and merciful.
5 It is good to be kind and generous.
Whoever is fair in his business
6 will never be defeated.
A good person will be remembered from now on.
7 He won’t be afraid of bad news.
He is safe because he trusts the Lord.
8 That person is confident. He will not be afraid.
He will look down on his enemies.
9 He gives freely to the poor.
The things he does are right and will continue forever.
He will be given great honor.
10 The wicked will see this and become angry.
They will grind their teeth in anger and then disappear.
The wishes of the wicked will come to nothing.
The Message of Christ’s Death
2 Dear brothers, when I came to you, I did not come as a proud man. I preached God’s truth, but not with fancy words or a show of great learning. 2 I decided that while I was with you I would forget about everything except Jesus Christ and his death on the cross. 3 When I came to you, I was weak and shook with fear. 4 My teaching and my speaking were not with wise words that persuade people. But the proof of my teaching was the power that the Spirit gives. 5 I did this so that your faith would be in God’s power, not in the wisdom of a man.
God’s Wisdom
6 Yet I speak wisdom to those who are mature. But this wisdom is not from this world or of the rulers of this world. (These rulers are losing their power.) 7 But I speak God’s secret wisdom, which he has kept hidden. God planned this wisdom for our glory, before the world began. 8 None of the rulers of this world understood it. If they had, they would not have killed the Lord of glory on a cross. 9 But as it is written in the Scriptures:
“No one has ever seen this.
No one has ever heard about it.
No one has ever imagined
what God has prepared for those
who love him.” Isaiah 64:4
10 But God has shown us these things through the Spirit.
The Spirit knows all things, even the deep secrets of God. 11 It is like this: No one knows the thoughts that another person has. Only a person’s spirit that lives in him knows his thoughts. It is the same with God. No one knows the thoughts of God. Only the Spirit of God knows God’s thoughts. 12 We did not receive the spirit of the world, but we received the Spirit that is from God. We received this Spirit so that we can know all that God has given us.
13 When we speak, we do not use words taught to us by the wisdom that men have. We use words taught to us by the Spirit. We use spiritual words to explain spiritual things. 14 A person who is not spiritual does not accept the gifts that come from the Spirit of God. That person thinks they are foolish. He cannot understand the Spirit’s gifts, because they can only be judged spiritually. 15 But the spiritual person is able to judge all things. Yet no one can judge him. The Scripture says:
16 “Who has known the mind of the Lord?
Who has been able to teach him?” Isaiah 40:13
But we have the mind of Christ.
You Are Like Salt and Light
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its salty taste, it cannot be made salty again. It is good for nothing. It must be thrown out for people to walk on.
14 “You are the light that gives light to the world. A city that is built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 And people don’t hide a light under a bowl. They put the light on a lampstand. Then the light shines for all the people in the house. 16 In the same way, you should be a light for other people. Live so that they will see the good things you do. Live so that they will praise your Father in heaven.
The Importance of the Law
17 “Don’t think that I have come to destroy the law of Moses or the teaching of the prophets. I have not come to destroy their teachings but to do what they said. 18 I tell you the truth. Nothing will disappear from the law until heaven and earth are gone. The law will not lose even the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter until all has happened. 19 Whoever refuses to obey any command and teaches other people not to obey that command will be the least important in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys the law and teaches other people to obey the law will be great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 I tell you that you must do better than the teachers of the law and the Pharisees. If you are not better than they are, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.