The one who finds his life will lose it, and the one who loses his life because of me will find it."

"The one who receives you receives me, and the one who receives me receives the one who sent me.

The one who receives a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and the one who receives a righteous person as a righteous person will receive a righteous person's reward.

How blessed is anyone who is not offended by me!"

Really, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fancy clothes? See, those who wear fancy clothes live in kings' houses.

This is the man about whom it is written, "See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.'

I tell all of you with certainty, among those born of women no one has appeared who is greater than John the Baptist. Yet even the least important person in the kingdom from heaven is greater than he.

If you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come.

Let the person who has ears listen!

"To what can I compare the people living today? They're like little children who sit in the marketplaces and shout to each other,

All things have been entrusted to me by my Father. No one fully knows the Son except the Father, and no one fully knows the Father except the Son and the person to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

"Come to me, all of you who are weary and loaded down with burdens, and I will give you rest.

But he asked them, "Is there a man among you who, if he had one sheep and it fell into a ditch on the Sabbath, wouldn't take hold of it and pull it out?

"Here is my Servant whom I have chosen, whom I love, and with whom I am pleased! I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to unbelievers.

Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and unable to talk was brought to him. Jesus healed him so that the man could speak and see.

If I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own followers drive them out? That is why they will be your judges!

The person who isn't with me is against me, and the person who isn't gathering with me is scattering.

He asked the man who told him, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?"

Let the person who has ears listen!"

because to anyone who has something, more will be given, and he will have more than enough. But from the one who doesn't have anything, even what he has will be taken away from him.

As for what was sown on the stony ground, this is the person who hears the word and accepts it joyfully at once,

As for what was sown among the thorn bushes, this is the person who hears the word, but the worries of life and the deceitful pleasures of wealth choke the word so that it can't produce a crop.

But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the person who hears the word, understands it, and produces a crop that yields 100, 60, or 30 times what was sown."

He presented another parable to them: "The kingdom from heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field.

He answered, "The person who sowed good seed is the Son of Man,

while the field is the world. The good seed are those who belong to the kingdom, while the weeds are those who belong to the evil one.

The enemy who sowed them is the Devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels.

The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather from his kingdom everything that causes others to sin and those who practice lawlessness

Then the righteous will shine like the sun in their Father's kingdom. Let the person who has ears listen!"

Then he told them, "That is why every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom from heaven is like the master of a household who brings both new and old things out of his treasure chest."

Now those who had eaten were about 5,000 men, besides women and children.

At once Jesus reached out his hand, caught him, and asked him, "You who have so little faith, why did you doubt?"

When the men of that place recognized Jesus, they sent word throughout that region and brought him everyone who was sick.

They kept begging him to let them touch just the tassel of his garment, and everyone who touched it was completely healed.

As a result, the crowd was amazed to see those who were unable to talk speaking, the crippled healed, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. So they praised the God of Israel.

Now those who had eaten were four thousand men, besides women and children.

Knowing this, Jesus asked them, "You who have little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you don't have any bread?

When Jesus had come to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?"

He asked them, "But who do you say I am?"

He was still speaking when a bright cloud suddenly overshadowed them. A voice from the cloud said, "This is my Son, whom I love. I am pleased with him. Keep on listening to him!"

He answered, "Yes." When Peter went home, Jesus spoke to him first and asked him, "What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings on the earth collect tolls or tributes? From their own subjects, or from foreigners?"

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom from heaven?"

"If anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a large millstone were hung around his neck and he were drowned at the bottom of the sea.

How terrible it will be for the world due to its temptations to sin! Temptations to sin are bound to happen, but how terrible it will be for that person who causes someone to sin!

"That is why the kingdom from heaven may be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.

When he had begun to settle the accounts, a person who owed him 10,000 talents was brought to him.

"But when that servant went away, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him, seized him by the throat, and said, "Pay what you owe!'

He answered them, "Haven't you read that the one who made them at the beginning "made them male and female'

"Not everyone can accept this saying," he replied, "except those to whom celibacy has been granted,

because some men are celibate from birth, while some are celibate because they have been made that way by others. Still others are celibate because they have made themselves that way for the sake of the kingdom from heaven. Let anyone accept this who can."

Then some little children were brought to him so that he might lay his hands on them and pray. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them.

Jesus asked him, "Why ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you want to get into that life, you must keep the commandments."

When the disciples heard this, they were completely astonished. "Who, then, can be saved?" they asked.

Jesus told them, "I tell all of you with certainty, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne in the renewed creation, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, governing the twelve tribes of Israel.

In fact, everyone who has left his homes, brothers, sisters, father, mother, children, or fields because of my name will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.

But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first."

"The kingdom from heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.

Those who were hired at five o'clock came, and each received a denarius.

When two blind men who were sitting by the roadside heard that Jesus was passing by, they shouted, "Have mercy on us, Lord, Son of David!"

Both the crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed him kept shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! How blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!"

When he came into Jerusalem, the whole city was trembling with excitement. The people were asking, "Who is this?"

Then Jesus went into the Temple, threw out everyone who was selling and buying in the Temple, and overturned the moneychangers' tables and the chairs of those who sold doves.

Then Jesus went into the Temple. While he was teaching, the high priests and the elders of the people came to him and asked, "By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?"

"Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a wall around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and went abroad.

They told him, "He will put those horrible men to a horrible death. Then he will lease the vineyard to other farmers who will give him his produce at harvest time."

That is why I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce fruit for it.

The person who falls over this stone will be broken to pieces, but it will crush anyone on whom it falls."

Although they wanted to arrest him, they were afraid of the crowds, who considered Jesus to be a prophet.

"The kingdom from heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son.

He sent his servants to call those who had been invited to the wedding, but they refused to come.

So he sent other servants after saying, "Tell those who have been invited, "Look! I've prepared my dinner. My oxen and fattened calves have been slaughtered. Everything is ready. Come to the wedding!"'

"Then he told his servants, "The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.

"When the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes.

That same day some Sadducees, who claim there is no resurrection, came to Jesus and asked him,

The person who is greatest among you must be your servant.

"How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door to the kingdom from heaven in people's faces. You don't go in yourselves, and you don't allow those who are trying to enter to go in.

Therefore, the one who swears an oath by the altar swears by it and by everything on it.

The one who swears an oath by the sanctuary swears by it and by the one who lives there.

And the one who swears an oath by heaven swears by God's throne and by the one who sits on it.

Therefore, you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

As a result, you will be held accountable for all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of the righteous Abel to the blood of Berechiah's son Zechariah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar.

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones to death those who have been sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!

I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, "How blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!'"

But the person who endures to the end will be saved.

then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains.

Anyone who's on the housetop must not come down to get what is in his house,

and anyone who's in the field must not turn back to get his coat.

"How terrible it will be for women who are pregnant or who are nursing babies in those days!

"Who, then, is the faithful and wise servant whom his master has put in charge of his household to give the others their food at the right time?

How blessed is that servant whom his master finds doing this when he comes!

"At that time, the kingdom from heaven will be comparable to ten bridesmaids who took their oil lamps and went out to meet the groom.

"While they were away buying it, the groom arrived. Those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet, and the door was closed.

"Similarly, it is like a man going on a trip, who called his servants and turned his money over to them.

"The one who received five talents went out at once and invested them and earned five more.

In the same way, the one who had two talents earned two more.

But the one who received one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground, and buried his master's money.

The one who had received five talents came up and brought five more talents. "Master,' he said, "you gave me five talents. See, I've earned five more talents.'

"Then the one who had received one talent came forward and said, "Master, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you haven't planted and gathering where you haven't scattered any seed.

Then the master said, "Take the talent from him and give it to the man who has the ten talents,

because to everyone who has something, more will be given, and he'll have more than enough. But from the person who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away from him.