Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Freedom in Christ
5 The Messiah set us free so that we could enjoy freedom! So stand firm, and don’t get yourselves tied down by the chains of slavery.
The law and the spirit
13 When God called you, my dear family, he called you to make you free. But you mustn’t use that freedom as an opportunity for the flesh. Rather, you must become each other’s servants, through love. 14 For the whole law is summed up in one word, namely this: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite each other and devour each other, watch out! You may end up being destroyed by each other.
16 Let me say this to you: live by the spirit, and you won’t do what the flesh wants you to. 17 For the flesh wants to go against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh. They are opposed to each other, so that you can’t do what you want. 18 But if you are led by the spirit, you are not under the law.
19 Now the works of the flesh are obvious. They are such things as fornication, uncleanness, licentiousness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hostilities, strife, jealousy, bursts of rage, selfish ambition, factiousness, divisions, 21 moods of envy, drunkenness, wild partying, and similar things. I told you before, and I tell you again: people who do such things will not inherit God’s kingdom.
Fruit of the spirit
22 But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, great-heartedness, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. There is no law that opposes things like that! 24 And those who belong to the Messiah, Jesus, crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the spirit, let’s line up with the spirit.
51 As the time came nearer for Jesus to be taken up, he settled it in his mind to go to Jerusalem. 52 He sent messengers ahead of him. They came into a Samaritan village to get them ready, 53 and they refused to receive him, because his mind was set on going to Jerusalem. 54 When the disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Master, do you want us to call down fire from heaven and burn them up?” 55 He turned and rebuked them, 56 and they went on to another village.
57 As they were going along the road a man addressed Jesus.
“Wherever you’re going,” he said, “I’ll follow you!”
58 “Foxes have lairs,” Jesus replied, “and the birds in the sky have nests; but the son of man doesn’t have anywhere to lay his head.”
59 To another person he said, “Follow me.”
“Master,” he replied, “let me first go and bury my father.”
60 “Let the dead bury their dead,” said Jesus. “You must go and announce God’s kingdom.”
61 “I will follow you, Master,” said another, “but first let me say goodbye to the people at home.”
62 “Nobody,” replied Jesus, “who begins to plow and then looks over his shoulder is fit for God’s kingdom.”
Scripture quotations from The New Testament for Everyone are copyright © Nicholas Thomas Wright 2011, 2018, 2019.