Meanwhile, Jesus kept on growing wiser and more mature, and in favor with God and his fellow man.

He told them, "Stop collecting more money than the amount you are told to collect."

John replied to all of them, "I'm baptizing you with water, but one is coming who is more powerful than I, and I'm not worthy to untie his sandal straps. It is he who will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

But the news about Jesus spread even more, and many crowds began gathering to hear him and to be healed of their diseases.

Really, what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and even more than a prophet!

When they couldn't pay it back, he generously canceled the debts for both of them. Now which of them will love him more?"

So pay attention to how you listen, because to the one who has something, more will be given. However, from the one who doesn't have, even what he thinks he has will be taken away from him."

But he told them, "You give them something to eat." They replied, "We have nothing more than five loaves of bread and two fish unless we go and buy food for all these people."

The next day, he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, "Take good care of him. If you spend more than that, I'll repay you when I come back.'

So if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who keep asking him!"

Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all go in and settle there. And so the final condition of that person is worse than the first."

"But I tell you, my friends, never be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can't do anything more.

Why, even all the hairs on your head have been counted! Stop being afraid. You are worth more than a bunch of sparrows."

because life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.

Consider the crows. They don't plant or harvest, they don't even have a storeroom or barn, yet God feeds them. How much more valuable are you than birds!

Now if that's the way God clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today and thrown into an oven tomorrow, how much more will he clothe you you who have little faith?

But the servant who did things that deserved a beating without knowing it will receive a light beating. Much will be required from everyone to whom much has been given. But even more will be demanded from the one to whom much has been entrusted."

He asked them, "Do you think that these Galileans were more sinful than all the other Galileans because they suffered like this?

But the gardener replied, "Sir, leave it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and fertilize it.

"When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, don't sit down at the place of honor in case someone more important than you was invited by the host.

In the same way, I tell you that there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous people who don't need to repent."

"Then he came to his senses and said, "How many of my father's hired men have more food than they can eat, and here I am starving to death!

The master praised the dishonest servant manager for being so clever, because worldly people are more clever than enlightened people in dealing with their own.

Then the apostles told the Lord, "Give us more faith!"

The first servant came and said, "Sir, your coin has earned ten more coins.'

"I tell you, to everyone who has something, more will be given, but from the person who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away.

He said, "I tell you with certainty, this destitute widow has dropped in more than all of them,

In his anguish he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat became like large drops of blood falling on the ground.

But Jesus said, "No more of this!" So he touched the wounded man's ear and healed him.

"Why do we need any more testimony?" they asked. "We have heard it ourselves from his own mouth!"

But we kept hoping that he would be the one to redeem Israel. What is more, this is now the third day since these things occurred.