Now the birth of Christ Jesus occurred under these conditions: After His mother, Mary, was engaged to Joseph, but before they had lived together, she was found to be an expectant mother through the influence of the Holy Spirit.

But just as this thought occurred to him, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, and said, "Joseph, descendant of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for it is through the influence of the Holy Spirit that she has become an expectant mother.

I am baptizing you in water to picture your repentance. But He that is coming after me is stronger than I am, and I am not fit to carry His shoes. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and in fire;

And as soon as Jesus was baptized, He at once went up out of the water, and look! the heavens opened, and John saw the Spirit of God coming down like a dove upon Him,

Then Jesus was guided by the Spirit into the desert, to be tempted by the devil.

So the news about Him spread all over Syria, and people brought to Him all who were sick with various diseases, especially those who were suffering with torturing diseases; and he cured them.

And the news about her spread all over that country.

But they went out and spread the news about Him all over that country.

and do not take a bag for your journey, nor two shirts, nor any shoes, nor a staff, for the workman deserves his support.

For it is not you who are speaking, but the Spirit of your Father that is speaking through you.

"Here is my Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved, in whom my soul delights itself. I will endow Him with my Spirit, and He will announce a judgment to the heathen.

But if I by the Spirit of God am driving the demons out, then the kingdom of God has come to you.

So I tell you, every sin and all abusive speech will be forgiven men, but abuse against the Spirit cannot be forgiven.

And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven for it, but whoever speaks abusively against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven for it, either in this world or in the world to come.

"Whenever the foul spirit goes out of a man, it wanders about in deserts in search of rest, but cannot find it.

And most of the crowd spread their coats along the road, but some were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them along the road.

He asked them, "How then does David, under the guidance of the Spirit, call Him Lord, when he says:

You must all keep watching and praying that you may not be exposed to temptation. Man's spirit is willing but human nature is weak."

and made a crown of thorns and set it on His head, and they put a stick in His hand, and kneeling before Him they made sport of Him, saying, "All hail, you king of the Jews!"

And when they had finished making sport of Him, they took off the cloak, and put His own clothes back on Him, and led Him away to be crucified.

And the high priests, too, made sport of Him, with the scribes and elders, and said,

Even the robbers who were crucified with Him made sport of Him in the same way.

But Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and gave up His spirit.

Go then and make disciples of all the nations, baptize them into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,

I have baptized you in water, but He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit."

And just as soon as He started to come up out of the water, He saw the heavens split open and the Spirit coming down like a dove to enter Him.

Then the Spirit at once drove Him out into the desert.

Just at that moment there was a man in their synagogue who was under the spell of a foul spirit, and so he screamed,

Then the foul spirit convulsed him and with a deafening shriek got out of him.

And His fame at once spread in all directions all over that part of Galilee.

But he went out and began to publish it so much and to spread the story so far, that Jesus could not any more go into any town openly, but had to stay out in thinly settled places. But the people kept coming to Him from every quarter.

Now Jesus at once felt in His spirit that they were arguing about this, and said, "Why are you arguing to yourselves about this?

But whoever speaks abusively against the Holy Spirit can never get forgiveness, but is guilty of a sin that has no end."

He said so, because they kept saying, "He is under the spell of a foul spirit."

As soon as He got out of the boat, a man under the power of a foul spirit and from the tombs met Him.

For Jesus was saying to him, "You foul spirit, come out of him."

Then the hog-feeders fled and spread the news in the town and in the country around; and the people came to see what had taken place.

On the contrary, a woman, whose little daughter had a foul spirit, at once heard about Him and came and flung herself at His feet.

But He sighed in spirit and said, "Why do the people of these times ask for a spectacular sign? I solemnly say, no sign at all will be given them."

A man from the crowd answered Him, "Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a dumb spirit.

And they brought the boy to Him. As soon as the spirit saw Him, it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and kept rolling over and foaming at the mouth.

Then Jesus, because He saw that a crowd was rushing up to Him, reproved the foul spirit and said to it, "You deaf and dumb spirit, get out of him, I charge you, and never get into him again."

and they will make sport of Him, and spit on Him, and flog Him, and kill Him, but three days after He will rise again."

And many of the people spread their coats in the road, while others scattered layers of leaves cut from the fields.

David himself, Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, said: 'The Lord has said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand Until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet."'

Now when they take you to court for trial, do not be worrying beforehand about what you should say, but say whatever is given you at that time, for it is not you that will be speaking, but the Holy Spirit.

You must all keep watching and praying that you may not be exposed to temptation. Man's spirit is willing but human nature is weak."

When they had finished making sport of Him, they took off the purple robe and put His own clothes on Him. Then they led Him out of the city to crucify Him.

The high priests too made sport of Him to one another with the scribes, and kept saying, "He saved others but He cannot save Himself!

Let the Christ, the king of Israel, come down now from the cross, so that we may see it and believe!" Even the men who were crucified with Him made sport of Him.

For he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must drink no wine nor strong drink, and so he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his birth.

He will go before Him in the spirit and the power of Elijah to turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the upright, to make ready for the Lord a people perfectly prepared."

Then the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you, and so your child will be called holy, the Son of God.

When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped within her. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit,

my spirit exults in God my Saviour;

Now his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he uttered the following prophecy:

Now the child continued to grow and to gain strength in the Spirit, and he lived in the desert until the day when he announced himself to Israel.

Now there was in Jerusalem a man named Symeon, an upright, devout man; he was expecting to see the consolation of Israel, and he was under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not die without seeing the Lord's Messiah.

So under the Spirit's guidance he went into the temple, and when the parents brought the child Jesus there to do for Him as the custom of the law required,

John expressly answered them all, "I am baptizing you in water only, but there is coming the One who is stronger than I am, whose shoestrings I am not fit to untie. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and in fire;

and the Holy Spirit came down upon Him in bodily form as a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, "You are my Son, my Beloved! In you I am delighted!"

Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and for forty days He was led about in the desert under the Spirit's guidance,

Then Jesus in the power of the Spirit returned to Galilee, and news of Him spread all over the surrounding country.

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for He has consecrated me to preach the good news to the poor; He has sent me to announce release to captives and recovery of sight to the blind; to send the downtrodden away in liberty and

Now there was a man in the synagogue who was under the power of the spirit of a foul demon, and he screamed with a loud voice,

And so news of Him continued to spread to every place in the surrounding region.

But the news about Him continued to spread, and great crowds were gathering to hear Him and to be cured of their diseases.

This story about Him spread all over Judea and all the surrounding country.

For He was commanding the foul spirit to get out of the man. For on many occasions it had seized him, and repeatedly he had been fastened with chains and fetters under constant guard, and yet he would snap his bonds, and the demon would drive him into desert places.

When the men who fed them saw what had taken place, they fled and spread the news in the town and in the country around.

So her spirit returned and she got up at once, and He directed that something be given her to eat.

all at once a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly screams, and it convulses him until he foams at the mouth, and in a struggle it bruises him and then leaves him.

Even while the boy was coming to Him, the demon dashed him down and convulsed him, but Jesus reproved the foul spirit and cured the boy and gave back to his father.

Then He answered him, "Leave the dead to bury their own dead; but you go on and continue to spread the good news of the kingdom of God."

Stay on at the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the workman deserves his support. Do not keep moving about from house to house.

At that very moment, by the power of the Holy Spirit, He exulted and said, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for concealing these matters from wise and learned men, and for revealing them to little children. Yes, Father, I thank you that your good pleasure made it so.

So if you, in spite of your being bad, know how to give your children what is good, how much more surely will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who continue to ask Him?"

"When the foul spirit goes out of a man, it wanders about in deserts in search for rest, and since it finds none, it says, 'I will go back to my house which I left.'

And anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but no one who speaks abusively about the Holy Spirit will be forgiven.

for at that very moment the Holy Spirit will teach you what you ought to say."

and there was a woman there who for eighteen years had had a disease caused by a spirit. She was bent double and could not straighten herself up at all.

Lest, perchance, after he has laid the foundation but cannot complete the building, all who see it begin to make sport of him,

For He will be turned over to the heathen and sport made of Him, He will be insulted and spit upon,

Then they threw their coats upon it and mounted Jesus upon it. As He was going on, the people continued to spread their coats under Him on the road.

Then the men who held Him in custody flogged Him and made sport of Him,

Then Herod and his bodyguard treated Him with contempt and made sport of Him and put a gorgeous robe on Him and sent Him back to Pilate.

The soldiers also made sport of Him as they continued to come up and offer Him vinegar,

Then Jesus uttered a loud cry, and said, "Father, I now commit my spirit to your care." As He said this He breathed His last.

Then John gave this testimony: "I saw the Spirit coming down from heaven like a dove, and it remained on Him.

I did not know Him myself, but the very One who sent me to baptize in water said to me, 'The One on whom you see the Spirit coming down and remaining, is the One who is to baptize in the Holy Spirit.'

Jesus answered, "I most solemnly say to you, no one can ever get into the kingdom of God, unless he is born of water and the Spirit.

Whatever is born of the physical is physical, and whatever is born of the Spirit is spiritual.

The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. That is just the way it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."

For He whom God has sent continues to speak the words of God, for God continues to give Him the Spirit without measure.

But a time is coming -- indeed, it is already here -- when the real worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and reality, for the Father is looking for just such worshipers.

God is a spiritual Being, and His worshipers must worship Him in spirit and reality."

The Spirit is what gives life; the flesh does not help at all. The truths that I have told you are spirit and life.

By this He referred to the Spirit that those believing in Him were going to receive -- for the Spirit had not yet come, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.

After saying this Jesus was deeply moved in spirit and solemnly said, "I most solemnly say to you, one of you is going to betray me."