Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

¹³ He picked up the coat that had fallen from Elijah. He went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan River. ¹⁴ Then he struck the water with Elijah’s coat. “Where is the power of the Lord?” he asked. “Where is the power of the God of Elijah?” When Elisha struck the water, it parted to the right and to the left. He went across the river.

¹⁵ The group of prophets from Jericho were watching. They said, “The spirit of Elijah has been given to Elisha.” They went over to Elisha. They bowed down to him with their faces toward the ground.

Challenge to Who Jesus Claims to Be

²¹ Once more Jesus said to them, “I am going away. You will look for me, and you will die in your sin. You can’t come where I am going.”

²² This made the Jews ask, “Will he kill himself? Is that why he says, ‘You can’t come where I am going’?”

²³ But Jesus said, “You are from below. I am from heaven. You are from this world. I am not from this world. ²⁴ I told you that you would die in your sins. This will happen if you don’t believe that I am he. If you don’t believe, you will certainly die in your sins.”

²⁵ “Who are you?” they asked.

“Just what I have been telling you from the beginning,” Jesus replied. ²⁶ “I have a lot to say that will judge you. But the one who sent me can be trusted. And I tell the world what I have heard from him.”

²⁷ They did not understand that Jesus was telling them about his Father. ²⁸ So Jesus said, “You will lift up the Son of Man. Then you will know that I am he. You will also know that I do nothing on my own. I speak just what the Father has taught me. ²⁹ The one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, because I always do what pleases him.” ³⁰ Even while Jesus was speaking, many people believed in him.