4/11/09 Lent Reading

John 21:1-25

¹Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way: ²Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. ³“I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

 ⁴Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.

 ⁵He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”
      ”No,” they answered.

 ⁶He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

 ⁷Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. ⁸The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. ⁹When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

 ¹⁰Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.”

 ¹¹Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. ¹²Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. ¹³Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. ¹⁴This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

Jesus Reinstates Peter

 ¹⁵When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?”
      ”Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”
      Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

 ¹⁶Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?”
      He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
      Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

 ¹⁷ The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
      Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”

    Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. ¹⁸ I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” ¹⁹Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”

 ²⁰Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is going to betray you?”) ²¹When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”

 ²²Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.” ²³Because of this, the rumor spread among the brothers that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say that he would not die; he only said, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?”

 ²⁴This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true.

 ²⁵Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.

Psalm 150

¹ Praise the LORD. 
       Praise God in his sanctuary;
       praise him in his mighty heavens.

 ² Praise him for his acts of power;
       praise him for his surpassing greatness.

 ³ Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
       praise him with the harp and lyre,

 ⁴ praise him with tambourine and dancing,
       praise him with the strings and flute,

 ⁵ praise him with the clash of cymbals,
       praise him with resounding cymbals.

 ⁶ Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.
       Praise the LORD.

4/10/09

John 20:26-31

²⁶A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” ²⁷Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

 ²⁸Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”

 ²⁹Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

 ³⁰Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. ³¹But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Psalm 118

¹ Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
       his love endures forever.

 ² Let Israel say:
       “His love endures forever.”

 ³ Let the house of Aaron say:
       “His love endures forever.”

 ⁴ Let those who fear the LORD say:
       “His love endures forever.”

 ⁵ In my anguish I cried to the LORD,
       and he answered by setting me free.

 ⁶ The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid.
       What can man do to me?

 ⁷ The LORD is with me; he is my helper.
       I will look in triumph on my enemies.

 ⁸ It is better to take refuge in the LORD
       than to trust in man.

 ⁹ It is better to take refuge in the LORD
       than to trust in princes.

 ¹⁰ All the nations surrounded me,
       but in the name of the LORD I cut them off.

 ¹¹ They surrounded me on every side,
       but in the name of the LORD I cut them off.

 ¹² They swarmed around me like bees,
       but they died out as quickly as burning thorns;
       in the name of the LORD I cut them off.

 ¹³ I was pushed back and about to fall,
       but the LORD helped me.

 ¹⁴ The LORD is my strength and my song;
       he has become my salvation.

 ¹⁵ Shouts of joy and victory
       resound in the tents of the righteous:
       “The LORD’s right hand has done mighty things!

 ¹⁶ The LORD’s right hand is lifted high;
       the LORD’s right hand has done mighty things!”

 ¹⁷ I will not die but live,
       and will proclaim what the LORD has done.

 ¹⁸ The LORD has chastened me severely,
       but he has not given me over to death.

 ¹⁹ Open for me the gates of righteousness;
       I will enter and give thanks to the LORD.

 ²⁰ This is the gate of the LORD
       through which the righteous may enter.

 ²¹ I will give you thanks, for you answered me;
       you have become my salvation.

 ²² The stone the builders rejected
       has become the capstone;

 ²³ the LORD has done this,
       and it is marvelous in our eyes.

 ²⁴ This is the day the LORD has made;
       let us rejoice and be glad in it.

 ²⁵ O LORD, save us;
       O LORD, grant us success.

 ²⁶ Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD.
       From the house of the LORD we bless you.

 ²⁷ The LORD is God,
       and he has made his light shine upon us.
       With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession
       up to the horns of the altar.

 ²⁸ You are my God, and I will give you thanks;
       you are my God, and I will exalt you.

 ²⁹ Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
       his love endures forever.

4/09/09 Lent Reading

John 20:19-25

¹⁹On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” ²⁰After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

 ²¹Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” ²²And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. ²³If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

Jesus Appears to Thomas

 ²⁴Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. ²⁵So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
      But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it.”

Psalm 103

¹ Praise the LORD, O my soul;
       all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

 ² Praise the LORD, O my soul,
       and forget not all his benefits-

 ³ who forgives all your sins
       and heals all your diseases,

 ⁴ who redeems your life from the pit
       and crowns you with love and compassion,

 ⁵ who satisfies your desires with good things
       so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

 ⁶ The LORD works righteousness
       and justice for all the oppressed.

 ⁷ He made known his ways to Moses,
       his deeds to the people of Israel:

 ⁸ The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
       slow to anger, abounding in love.

 ⁹ He will not always accuse,
       nor will he harbor his anger forever;

 ¹⁰ he does not treat us as our sins deserve
       or repay us according to our iniquities.

 ¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
       so great is his love for those who fear him;

 ¹² as far as the east is from the west,
       so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

 ¹³ As a father has compassion on his children,
       so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;

 ¹⁴ for he knows how we are formed,
       he remembers that we are dust.

 ¹⁵ As for man, his days are like grass,
       he flourishes like a flower of the field;

 ¹⁶ the wind blows over it and it is gone,
       and its place remembers it no more.

 ¹⁷ But from everlasting to everlasting
       the LORD’s love is with those who fear him,
       and his righteousness with their children’s children-

 ¹⁸ with those who keep his covenant
       and remember to obey his precepts.

 ¹⁹ The LORD has established his throne in heaven,
       and his kingdom rules over all.

 ²⁰ Praise the LORD, you his angels,
       you mighty ones who do his bidding,
       who obey his word.

 ²¹ Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,
       you his servants who do his will.

 ²² Praise the LORD, all his works
       everywhere in his dominion.
       Praise the LORD, O my soul.

4/08/09 Lent Reading

John 20:1-18

¹Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. ²So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”

 ³So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. ⁴Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. ⁵He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. ⁶Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, ⁷as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen. ⁸Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. ⁹(They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene

 ¹⁰Then the disciples went back to their homes, ¹¹but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb ¹²and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.

 ¹³They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”

   ”They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” ¹⁴At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.

 ¹⁵“Woman,” he said, “why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”
      Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

 ¹⁶Jesus said to her, “Mary.”
      She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).

 ¹⁷Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ “

 ¹⁸Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.

Psalm 100

¹ Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.

 ² Worship the LORD with gladness;
       come before him with joyful songs.

 ³ Know that the LORD is God.
       It is he who made us, and we are his ;
       we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

 ⁴ Enter his gates with thanksgiving
       and his courts with praise;
       give thanks to him and praise his name.

 ⁵ For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
       his faithfulness continues through all generations.

4/07/09 Lent Reading

John 19:31-42

³¹Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jews did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. ³²The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. ³³But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. ³⁴Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. ³⁵The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. ³⁶These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken,” ³⁷and, as another scripture says, “They will look on the one they have pierced.”

The Burial of Jesus

 ³⁸Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. ³⁹He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. ⁴⁰Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. ⁴¹At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. ⁴²Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

Psalm 98

¹ Sing to the LORD a new song,
       for he has done marvelous things;
       his right hand and his holy arm
       have worked salvation for him.

 ² The LORD has made his salvation known
       and revealed his righteousness to the nations.

 ³ He has remembered his love
       and his faithfulness to the house of Israel;
       all the ends of the earth have seen
       the salvation of our God.

 ⁴ Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth,
       burst into jubilant song with music;

 ⁵ make music to the LORD with the harp,
       with the harp and the sound of singing,

 ⁶ with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn—
       shout for joy before the LORD, the King.

 ⁷ Let the sea resound, and everything in it,
       the world, and all who live in it.

 ⁸ Let the rivers clap their hands,
      Let the mountains sing together for joy; ⁹ let them sing before the LORD,
       for he comes to judge the earth.
       He will judge the world in righteousness
       and the peoples with equity.

4/6/09 Lent Reading

John 19:17-30

The Crucifixion

    So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. ¹⁷Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). ¹⁸Here they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.

 ¹⁹Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read:|sc JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. ²⁰Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek. ²¹The chief priests of the Jews protested to Pilate, “Do not write ‘The King of the Jews,’ but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews.”

 ²²Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

 ²³When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.

 ²⁴“Let’s not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let’s decide by lot who will get it.”
      This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled which said,
   ”They divided my garments among them
      and cast lots for my clothing.”^[a] So this is what the soldiers did.

 ²⁵Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. ²⁶When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son,” ²⁷and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

The Death of Jesus

 ²⁸Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” ²⁹A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. ³⁰When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Psalm 92

¹ It is good to praise the LORD
       and make music to your name, O Most High,

 ² to proclaim your love in the morning
       and your faithfulness at night,

 ³ to the music of the ten-stringed lyre
       and the melody of the harp.

 ⁴ For you make me glad by your deeds, O LORD;
       I sing for joy at the works of your hands.

 ⁵ How great are your works, O LORD,
       how profound your thoughts!

 ⁶ The senseless man does not know,
       fools do not understand,

 ⁷ that though the wicked spring up like grass
       and all evildoers flourish,
       they will be forever destroyed.

 ⁸ But you, O LORD, are exalted forever.

 ⁹ For surely your enemies, O LORD,
       surely your enemies will perish;
       all evildoers will be scattered.

 ¹⁰ You have exalted my horn ^[a] like that of a wild ox;
       fine oils have been poured upon me.

 ¹¹ My eyes have seen the defeat of my adversaries;
       my ears have heard the rout of my wicked foes.

 ¹² The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
       they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;

 ¹³ planted in the house of the LORD,
       they will flourish in the courts of our God.

 ¹⁴ They will still bear fruit in old age,
       they will stay fresh and green,

 ¹⁵ proclaiming, “The LORD is upright;
       he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.”

4/4/09 Lent Reading

John 19:1-16

 Jesus Sentenced to be Crucified

 ¹Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. ²The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe ³and went up to him again and again, saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” And they struck him in the face.

 ⁴Once more Pilate came out and said to the Jews, “Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against him.” ⁵When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, Pilate said to them, “Here is the man!”

 ⁶As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, “Crucify! Crucify!”
      But Pilate answered, “You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him.”

 ⁷The Jews insisted, “We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God.”

 ⁸When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid, ⁹and he went back inside the palace. “Where do you come from?” he asked Jesus, but Jesus gave him no answer. ¹⁰“Do you refuse to speak to me?” Pilate said. “Don’t you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you?”

 ¹¹Jesus answered, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”

 ¹²From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jews kept shouting, “If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.”

 ¹³When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judge’s seat at a place known as the Stone Pavement (which in Aramaic is Gabbatha). ¹⁴It was the day of Preparation of Passover Week, about the sixth hour.
      ”Here is your king,” Pilate said to the Jews.

 ¹⁵But they shouted, “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!”
      ”Shall I crucify your king?” Pilate asked.
      ”We have no king but Caesar,” the chief priests answered.

 ¹⁶Finally Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified

4/03/09 Lent Reading

John 18:25-40

²⁵As Simon Peter stood warming himself, he was asked, “You are not one of his disciples, are you?”
      He denied it, saying, “I am not.”

 ²⁶One of the high priest’s servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, challenged him, “Didn’t I see you with him in the olive grove?” ²⁷Again Peter denied it, and at that moment a rooster began to crow.

Jesus Before Pilate

 ²⁸Then the Jews led Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness the Jews did not enter the palace; they wanted to be able to eat the Passover. ²⁹So Pilate came out to them and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?”

 ³⁰“If he were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have handed him over to you.”

 ³¹Pilate said, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.”

   ”But we have no right to execute anyone,” the Jews objected. ³²This happened so that the words Jesus had spoken indicating the kind of death he was going to die would be fulfilled.

 ³³Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

 ³⁴“Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, “or did others talk to you about me?”

 ³⁵“Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “It was your people and your chief priests who handed you over to me. What is it you have done?”

 ³⁶Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.”

 ³⁷“You are a king, then!” said Pilate.
      Jesus answered, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

 ³⁸“What is truth?” Pilate asked. With this he went out again to the Jews and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him. ³⁹But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover. Do you want me to release ‘the king of the Jews’?”

 ⁴⁰They shouted back, “No, not him! Give us Barabbas!” Now Barabbas had taken part in a rebellion.

Psalm 90

¹ Lord, you have been our dwelling place
       throughout all generations.

 ² Before the mountains were born
       or you brought forth the earth and the world,
       from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

 ³ You turn men back to dust,
       saying, “Return to dust, O sons of men.”

 ⁴ For a thousand years in your sight
       are like a day that has just gone by,
       or like a watch in the night.

 ⁵ You sweep men away in the sleep of death;
       they are like the new grass of the morning-

 ⁶ though in the morning it springs up new,
       by evening it is dry and withered.

 ⁷ We are consumed by your anger
       and terrified by your indignation.

 ⁸ You have set our iniquities before you,
       our secret sins in the light of your presence.

 ⁹ All our days pass away under your wrath;
       we finish our years with a moan.

 ¹⁰ The length of our days is seventy years—
       or eighty, if we have the strength;
       yet their span is but trouble and sorrow,
       for they quickly pass, and we fly away.

 ¹¹ Who knows the power of your anger?
       For your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.

 ¹² Teach us to number our days aright,
       that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

 ¹³ Relent, O LORD! How long will it be?
       Have compassion on your servants.

 ¹⁴ Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,
       that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.

 ¹⁵ Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
       for as many years as we have seen trouble.

 ¹⁶ May your deeds be shown to your servants,
       your splendor to their children.

 ¹⁷ May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us;
       establish the work of our hands for us—
       yes, establish the work of our hands.

4/02/09 Lent Reading

John 18:1-24

¹When he had finished praying, Jesus left with his disciples and crossed the Kidron Valley. On the other side there was an olive grove, and he and his disciples went into it.

 ²Now Judas, who betrayed him, knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with his disciples. ³So Judas came to the grove, guiding a detachment of soldiers and some officials from the chief priests and Pharisees. They were carrying torches, lanterns and weapons.

 ⁴Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, “Who is it you want?”

 ⁵“Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied.

   ”I am he,” Jesus said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.) ⁶When Jesus said, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground.

 ⁷Again he asked them, “Who is it you want?”
      And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.”

 ⁸“I told you that I am he,” Jesus answered. “If you are looking for me, then let these men go.” ⁹This happened so that the words he had spoken would be fulfilled: “I have not lost one of those you gave me.”

 ¹⁰Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.)

 ¹¹Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?”

Jesus Taken to Annas

 ¹²Then the detachment of soldiers with its commander and the Jewish officials arrested Jesus. They bound him ¹³and brought him first to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. ¹⁴Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews that it would be good if one man died for the people.

Peter’s First Denial

 ¹⁵Simon Peter and another disciple were following Jesus. Because this disciple was known to the high priest, he went with Jesus into the high priest’s courtyard, ¹⁶but Peter had to wait outside at the door. The other disciple, who was known to the high priest, came back, spoke to the girl on duty there and brought Peter in.

 ¹⁷“You are not one of his disciples, are you?” the girl at the door asked Peter.
      He replied, “I am not.”

 ¹⁸It was cold, and the servants and officials stood around a fire they had made to keep warm. Peter also was standing with them, warming himself.

The High Priest Questions Jesus

 ¹⁹Meanwhile, the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching.

 ²⁰“I have spoken openly to the world,” Jesus replied. “I always taught in synagogues or at the temple, where all the Jews come together. I said nothing in secret. ²¹Why question me? Ask those who heard me. Surely they know what I said.”

 ²²When Jesus said this, one of the officials nearby struck him in the face. “Is this the way you answer the high priest?” he demanded.

 ²³“If I said something wrong,” Jesus replied, “testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?” ²⁴Then Annas sent him, still bound, to Caiaphas the high priest.

^{Psalm 88}

¹ 
       O LORD, the God who saves me,
       day and night I cry out before you.

 ^{2 May my prayer come before you;
       turn your ear to my cry.}

 ^{3 For my soul is full of trouble
       and my life draws near the grave.}

 ^{4 I am counted among those who go down to the pit;
       I am like a man without strength.}

 ^{5 I am set apart with the dead,
       like the slain who lie in the grave,
       whom you remember no more,
       who are cut off from your care.}

 ^{6 You have put me in the lowest pit,
       in the darkest depths.}

 ^{7 Your wrath lies heavily upon me;
       you have overwhelmed me with all your waves.
       Selah}

 ^{8 You have taken from me my closest friends
       and have made me repulsive to them.
       I am confined and cannot escape;}

 ^{9 my eyes are dim with grief.
       I call to you, O LORD, every day;
       I spread out my hands to you.}

 ^{10 Do you show your wonders to the dead?
       Do those who are dead rise up and praise you?
       Selah}

 ^{11 Is your love declared in the grave,
       your faithfulness in Destruction ?}

 ^{12 Are your wonders known in the place of darkness,
       or your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?}

 ^{13 But I cry to you for help, O LORD;
       in the morning my prayer comes before you.}

 ^{14 Why, O LORD, do you reject me
       and hide your face from me?}

 ^{15 From my youth I have been afflicted and close to death;
       I have suffered your terrors and am in despair.}

 ^{16 Your wrath has swept over me;
       your terrors have destroyed me.}

 ^{17 All day long they surround me like a flood;
       they have completely engulfed me.}

 ^{18 You have taken my companions and loved ones from me;
       the darkness is my closest friend.}

4/01/09 Lent Reading

John 17:1-26

¹After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. ²For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. ³Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. ⁴I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. ⁵And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.

Jesus Prays for His Disciples

 ⁶“I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. ⁷Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. ⁸For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. ⁹I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. ¹⁰All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. ¹¹I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name—the name you gave me—so that they may be one as we are one. ¹²While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled. ¹³“I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. ¹⁴I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. ¹⁵My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. ¹⁶They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. ¹⁷Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. ¹⁸As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. ¹⁹For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.

Jesus Prays for All Believers

 ²⁰“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, ²¹that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. ²²I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: ²³I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. ²⁴“Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. ²⁵“Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. ²⁶I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

Psalm 84

¹ How lovely is your dwelling place,
       O LORD Almighty!

 ² My soul yearns, even faints,
       for the courts of the LORD;
       my heart and my flesh cry out
       for the living God.

 ³ Even the sparrow has found a home,
       and the swallow a nest for herself,
       where she may have her young—
       a place near your altar,
       O LORD Almighty, my King and my God.

 ⁴ Blessed are those who dwell in your house;
       they are ever praising you.
       Selah

 ⁵ Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
       who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.

 ⁶ As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
       they make it a place of springs;
       the autumn rains also cover it with pools.

 ⁷ They go from strength to strength,
       till each appears before God in Zion.

 ⁸ Hear my prayer, O LORD God Almighty;
       listen to me, O God of Jacob.
       Selah

 ⁹ Look upon our shield, O God;
       look with favor on your anointed one.

 ¹⁰ Better is one day in your courts
       than a thousand elsewhere;
       I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
       than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

 ¹¹ For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
       the LORD bestows favor and honor;
       no good thing does he withhold
       from those whose walk is blameless.

 ¹² O LORD Almighty,
       blessed is the man who trusts in you.