"Seek the LORD while he may be found, call upon him while he is near." (Isa 55:6)

"Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. / For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened."  (Matt 7:7-8)

• "Wisdom is radiant and unfading, and she is easily discerned by those who love her, and is found by those who seek her. / She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her." (Wis 6:12-13)
• "In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, / the earth was a formless void... / Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. / And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. / God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day." (Gen 1:1-5)
• "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. / He was in the beginning with God. / All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being." (John 1:1-3)
• "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life." (John 3:16)
• "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." (Heb 11:1)
• "If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless.  Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world." (James 1:26-27)

• "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. / For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. / Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven." (Matt 5:17-19)
• "Then he (Jesus) said to them, 'These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you--that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.' / Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures." (Luke 24:44-45)
• "All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, / so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work." (2 Tim 3:16-17)

• "The beginning of the good news (or "Gospel") of Jesus Christ, the Son of God... /// Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news (or "gospel") of God, / and saying, 'The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.' " (Mark 1:1, 14-15)
• "For this purpose he called you through our proclamation of the good news, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. / So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by our letter." (2Thess 2:14-15)
• "Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the cross. It read, 'Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.' / Many of the Jews read this inscription, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek." (John 19:12-20)

• "When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up. / If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be only two or at most three, and each in turn; and let one interpret. / ... / Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others weigh what is said." (1Cor 14:26-29)
• "So also our beloved brother Paul wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, / speaking of this as he does in all his letters. There are some things in them hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other scriptures." (2Pet 3:15-16)
• "Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed." (Luke 1:1-4)

• "Jesus was about thirty years old when he began his work. He was the son (as was thought) of Joseph, . son of David, . son of Judah, son of Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham, . son of Noah, . son of Enoch, . son of Seth, son of Adam, son of God." (Luke 3:23-38)
• "And great crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan." (Matt 4:25)
• "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1:8).
• "As he [Jesus] came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, 'Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!' / Then Jesus asked him, 'Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.' " (Mark 13:1-2)

• "Jesus went out again beside the sea; the whole crowd gathered around him, and he taught them. / As he was walking along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, "Follow me." And he got up and followed him. / And as he sat at dinner in Levi's house, many tax collectors and sinners were also sitting with Jesus and his disciples--for there were many who followed him." (Mark 2:13-15)
• "Then his mother and his brothers came; and standing outside, they sent to him and called him. / A crowd was sitting around him; and they said to him, 'Your  mother and your brothers and sisters are outside, asking  for you.' / And he replied, 'Who are my mother and my brothers?' / And looking at those who sat around him, he said, 'Here  are my mother and my brothers! / Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and  mother.' " (Mark 3:31-35)
• "The Pharisees went out and immediately conspired with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him." (Mark 3:6)
• "Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again." (Mark 8:31; cf. 9:31; 10:32)

• "He also said, 'With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? / It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; / yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.' " (Mark 4:30-32)
• "Now when Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astounded at his teaching, / for he taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes." (Matt 7:28-29)
• "With many such parables he spoke the word to them [ the crowds], as they were able to hear it; / he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples." (Mark 4:33-34)

• "The Samaritan woman said to him, 'How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?' [Jews do not  share things in common with Samaritans.]" (John 4:9)
• These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: "Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, / but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. / As you go, proclaim the good news, 'The kingdom of heaven has come near.'" (Matt 10:5-7)
• "Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. / ... / 'Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, / Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, / Cretans and Arabs--in our own languages we hear them speaking about God's deeds of power.' " (Acts 2:5, 9-11)
• "I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as I have among the rest of the Gentiles. / I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish / --hence my eagerness to proclaim the gospel to you also who are in Rome. / For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek." (Romans 1:13-16)

• "That evening, at sundown, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. / And the whole city was gathered around the door. / And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him." (Mark 1:32-34)
• "And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, 'He has Beelzebul, and by the ruler of the demons he casts out demons.' / And he called them to him, and spoke to them in parables, 'How can Satan cast out Satan? / If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. / And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. / And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but his end has come.' " (Mark 3:22-26)
• "A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. / But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, 'Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?' / He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, 'Peace! Be still!' Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. / He said to them, 'Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?' 4:41 And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, 'Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?' "  (Mark 4:37-41)

• "Beware that no one leads  you astray. / Many will come in my name and say, 'I am he!' and they will  lead many astray. / When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. / For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birthpangs." (Mark 13:5-8)
• "But in those days, after that suffering, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, / and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. / Then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in clouds' with great power and glory. / Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven." (Mark 13:24-27)
• "But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels  in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. / Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come." (Mark 13:32-33)

• "And going a little farther, he threw himself on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass  from him. / He said, 'Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I want, but what you want.' " (Mark 14:35-36)
• "It was nine o'clock in the morning when they crucified him. / The inscription of the charge against him read, 'The King  of the Jews.' " (Mark 15:25-26)
• "Then Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last. / And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. / Now when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, 'Truly this man was God's Son!' " (Mark 15:37-39)

• "Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. / But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told  you." (Mark 16:6-7)
• "Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them. / While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven. / And they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy; / and they were continually in the temple blessing God." (Luke 24:50-53)

• "Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief  priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again." (Mark 8:31)
• "But he was silent and did not answer. Again the high priest asked him, 'Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed  One?' / Jesus said, 'I am; and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.' / Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, 'Why do we still need witnesses? / You have heard his blasphemy! What is your decision?' All  of them condemned him as deserving death." (Mark 14:61-64)

• "An account of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham... So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to the Messiah, fourteen generations. (Matt 1:1-2, 17)
• "These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions:  'Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the  Samaritans, / but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.' " (Matt 10:5-6)
• "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. / Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, / and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age." (Matt 28:18-20)

• "When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his  custom. He stood up to read, / and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: / 'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, / to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.' / And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. / Then he began to say to them, 'Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.' " (Luke 4:16-21)
• "When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. / And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way they entered a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him; / but they did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem." (Luke 9:51-53)

• "But Jesus answered them, 'My Father is still working, and I also am working.' / For this reason the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because he was not only breaking the sabbath, but was also calling God his own Father, thereby making himself  equal to God." (John 5:17-18)
• "Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. / But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name." (John 20:30-31)

• "Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, 'Who do  people say that I am?' / And they answered him, 'John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.' / He asked them, 'But who do you say that I am?' Peter answered him, 'You are the Messiah.' / And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him." (Mark 8:27-30)
• "I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. / By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:34-35)

• "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? / ... / But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you--you of little faith? / ... / But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." (Matt 6:25-33)
• "My brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy, / because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance; / and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing... Blessed is anyone who endures temptation (or testing). Such a one has stood the test and will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him." (James 1:2-4, 14)

• "When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. / And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. / Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. / All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability." (Acts 2:1-4)
• "So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added. / They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. / Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. / All who believed were together and had all things in common; / they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. / Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and  generous hearts, / praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved." (Acts 2:41-47)

• "Now as he was going along and approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. / He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?' / He asked, 'Who are you, Lord?' The reply came, 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.' " (Acts 9:3-5)
• "Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, / and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for an entire year they met with the church and taught a great many people, and it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called 'Christians.' " (Acts 11:25-26)
• "Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a member of the court of Herod the ruler, and Saul./ While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.' / Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off." (Acts 13:1-3)

• "I did not shrink from doing anything helpful, proclaiming the message to you and teaching you publicly and from house to house, / as I testified to both Jews and Greeks about repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus." (Acts 20:20-21)
• "He lived there [Rome] two whole years at his own expense and welcomed all who came to him, / proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance." (Acts 28:30-31)

• "For I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel that was proclaimed by me is not of human origin; / for I did not receive it from a human source, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ." (Gal 1:11-12)
• "You have heard, no doubt, of my earlier life in Judaism. I was violently persecuting the church of God and was trying to destroy it... / But when God, who had set me apart before I was born and called me through his grace, was pleased / to reveal his Son to me, so that I might proclaim him among the Gentiles, ... / I went away at once into Arabia, and afterwards I returned to Damascus. / Then after three years I did go up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and stayed with him fifteen days... / Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia... / Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me. / I went up in response to a revelation." (Galatians 1:13, 15, 17-18, 21; 2:1)

• "Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our dear friend and co-worker, / to Apphia our sister, to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house: / Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." (Philemon 1-3)
• "Perhaps this is the reason he [Onesimus] was separated from you [Philemon] for a while, so that you might have him back forever, / no longer as a slave but more than a slave, a beloved brother--especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord." (Philemon 15-16)

• "For the people of those regions report about us what kind of welcome we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God, / and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead--Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath that is coming." (1 Thess 1:9-10)
• "For the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel's call and with the sound of God's trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. / Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be with the Lord forever." (1 Thess 2:16-17)
• "Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first and the lawless one is revealed, the one destined for destruction." (2 Thess 2:3)

• "I thank my God every time I remember you, / constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, / because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now." (Phil 1:3-5)
• "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. / Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. / Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. / And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Phil 4:4-7)
• "I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me... / You Philippians indeed know that in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you alone. / For even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me help for my needs more than once." (Phil 4:10a, 15-16)

• "Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; / and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; / and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. / To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good." (1 Cor 12:4-7)
• "And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love. / Pursue love and strive for the spiritual gifts, and especially that you may prophesy. / For those who speak in a tongue do not speak to other people but to God; for nobody understands them, since they are speaking mysteries in the Spirit." (1 Cor 13:13--14:2)

• "So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! / All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; / that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us. / So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God." (2 Cor 5:17-20)
• "Do not be mismatched with unbelievers. For what partnership is there between righteousness and lawlessness? Or what fellowship is there between light and darkness? / What agreement does Christ have with Beliar? Or what does a believer share with an unbeliever? / What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, 'I will live in them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. / Therefore come out from them, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch nothing unclean...' " (2 Cor 6:14-17)

• "Yet we know that a person is justified not by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ. And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that we might be justified by faith in Christ, and not by doing the works of the law, because no one will be justified by the works of the law." (Gal 2:16)
• "For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the things written in the book of the law.' / Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law; for 'The one who is righteous will live by faith.' / But the law does not rest on faith; on the contrary, 'Whoever does the works of the law will live by them.' " (Gal 3:10-12)
• "Once again I testify to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obliged to obey the entire law. / You who want to be justified by the law have cut yourselves off from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. / ... / For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything; the only thing that counts is faith working through love." (Gal 5:3-4, 6)
• "It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh that try to compel you to be circumcised--only that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. / ... / May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. / For neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything; but a new creation is everything! / As for those who will follow this rule--peace be upon them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God." (Gal 6:12, 14-16)

• "For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. / For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, 'The one who is righteous will live by faith.'" (Rom 1:16-17)
• "For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law. / Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, / since God is one; and he will justify the circumcised on the ground of faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith." (Rom 3:28-30)
• " 'It is through Isaac that descendants shall be named for you.' / This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as descendants." (Rom 9:7b-8)
• "I want you to understand this mystery: a hardening has come upon part of Israel, until the full number of the Gentiles has come in./ And so all Israel will be saved; as it is written, 'Out of Zion will come the Deliverer; he will banish ungodliness from Jacob.' /.../ As regards the gospel they are enemies of God for your sake; but as regards election they are beloved, for the sake of their ancestors; / for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable." (Rom 11:25b-26, 28-29)

• "Let the believer who is lowly boast in being raised up, / and the rich in being brought low, because the rich will disappear like a flower in the field. / For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the field; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. It is the same way with the rich; in the midst of a busy life, they will wither away." (James 1:9-11)
• "If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, / and one of you says to them, 'Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,' and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? / So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. / But someone will say, 'You have faith and I have works.' Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith." (James 2:15-18)
• "Above all, my beloved, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your 'Yes' be yes and your 'No' be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation." (James 5:12)

• "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; / for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers--all things have been created through him and for him. / He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. / He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. / For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, / and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross." (Col 1:15-20)
• "See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ." (Col 2:8)

• "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, / built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. / In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; / in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God." (Eph 2:19-22)
• "Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ. / Wives, be subject to your husbands as you are to the Lord. / ... / Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, / ... / Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. / ... / And, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord." / Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, in singleness of heart, as you obey Christ; / ... / And, masters, do the same to them. Stop threatening them, for you know that both of you have the same Master in heaven, and with him there is no partiality." (Eph 5:21, 22, 25; 6:1, 4, 5, 9)

• "So also Christ did not glorify himself in becoming a high priest, but was appointed by the one who said to him, 'You are my Son, today I have begotten you'; / as he says also in another place, 'You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.' " (Heb 5:5-6)
• "But when Christ came as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation), / he entered once for all into the Holy Place, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption." (Heb 9:11-12)

• "Now a bishop must be above reproach, married only once, temperate, sensible, respectable, hospitable, an apt teacher, / not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, and not a lover of money. / He must manage his own household well, keeping his children submissive and respectful in every way-- / for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how can he take care of God's church?" (1 Tim 3:2-5)
• "Deacons likewise must be serious, not double-tongued, not indulging in much wine, not greedy for money; / they must hold fast to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. / And let them first be tested; then, if they prove themselves blameless, let them serve as deacons." (1 Tim 3:8-10)
• "The real widow, left alone, has set her hope on God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day; / ... / Let a widow be put on the list if she is not less than sixty years old and has been married only once; / she must be well attested for her good works, as one who has brought up children, shown hospitality, washed the saints' feet, helped the afflicted, and devoted herself to doing good in every way." (1 Tim 5:6, 9-10)
• "Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching; / for the scripture says, 'You shall not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain,' and, 'The laborer deserves to be paid.'" (1 Tim 5:17-18)

• "Therefore prepare your minds for action; discipline yourselves; set all your hope on the grace that Jesus Christ will bring you when he is revealed. / Like obedient children, do not be conformed to the desires that you formerly had in ignorance. / Instead, as he who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in all your conduct; / for it is written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy.'" (1 Peter 1:13-16)
• "Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice, and all guile, insincerity, envy, and all slander. / Like newborn infants, long for the pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow into salvation." (1 Peter 2:1-2)
• "Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame. / For it is better to suffer for doing good, if suffering should be God's will, than to suffer for doing evil." (1 Peter 3:16b-17)

• "It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, / while the sun's light failed; and the curtain of the temple was torn in two. / Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, 'Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.' Having said this, he breathed his last." (Luke 23:44-46)
• "After this, when Jesus knew that all was now finished, he said (in order to fulfill the scripture), 'I am thirsty.' / A jar full of sour wine was standing there. So they put a sponge full of the wine on a branch of hyssop and held  it to his mouth. / When Jesus had received the wine, he said, 'It is finished.'  Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit." (John 19:28-30)

• "For I [Paul] handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, / and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, /  and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. / Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. / Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. / Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me." (1 Cor 15:3-8)
• "They [two disciples going to Emmaus] said to each other, 'Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?' / That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. / They were saying, 'The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!' / Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread. / While they were talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, 'Peace be with you.'" (Luke 24:32-36)

• "We declare to you what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life--/ this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us--/ we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ." (1 John 1:1-3)
• "Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son. / No one who denies the Son has the Father; everyone who confesses the Son has the Father also." (1 John 2:22-23)
• "By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, / and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. And this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming; and now it is already in the world." (1 John 4:2-3)

• "The revelation (apocalypse) of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place; he made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, / who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. / Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of the prophecy, and blessed are those who hear and who keep what is written in it; for the time is near." (Rev 1:1-3)
• "After this I looked, and there in heaven a door stood open! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, 'Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.' " (Rev 4:1-2)

• "I also saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their testimony to Jesus and for the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. / (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. / Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. Over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him a thousand years." (Rev 20:4b-6)
• "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. / And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. / And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; / he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.' " (Rev 21:1-4)

• "And when this letter has been read among you, have it read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you read also the letter from Laodicea." (Col 4:16)
• "Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish; / and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation. So also our beloved brother Paul wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, / speaking of this as he does in all his letters. There are some things in them hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other scriptures." (2 Peter 3:14-16)

• "Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, / through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. / And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, / and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, / and hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us." (Rom 5:1-5)
• "May grace and peace be yours in abundance in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. / His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. / ... / For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge, / and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, / and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love." (2 Peter 1:2-3, 5-7)