Unity of the Church
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 Corinthians (ESV)[3:1] But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ.
[3:2] I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready,
[3:3] for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?
[3:4] For when one says, "I follow Paul," and another, "I follow Apollos," are you not being merely human?
[3:5] What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each.
[3:6] I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.
[3:7] So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.
[3:8] He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor.
[3:9] For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building.
1 Corinthians 3:16-17
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 Corinthians (ESV)[3:16] Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?
[3:17] If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.
1 Corinthians 3:10-15
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 Corinthians (ESV)[3:10] According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it.
[3:11] For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
[3:12] Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw--
[3:13] each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.
[3:14] If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward.
[3:15] If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
1 Corinthians 3:1-9
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 Corinthians (ESV)[3:1] But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ.
[3:2] I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready,
[3:3] for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?
[3:4] For when one says, "I follow Paul," and another, "I follow Apollos," are you not being merely human?
[3:5] What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each.
[3:6] I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.
[3:7] So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.
[3:8] He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor.
[3:9] For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building.
1 Corinthians 2:10-16
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 Corinthians (ESV)[2:10] these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.
[2:11] For who knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
[2:12] Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.
[2:13] And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.
[2:14] The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.
[2:15] The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one.
[2:16] "For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?" But we have the mind of Christ.
1 Corinthians 2:6-9
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 Corinthians (ESV)[2:6] Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away.
[2:7] But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.
[2:8] None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
[2:9] But, as it is written, "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him"--
Humbly Bragging
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 Corinthians (ESV)[1:18] For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
[1:19] For it is written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart."
[1:20] Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
[1:21] For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.
[1:22] For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom,
[1:23] but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles,
[1:24] but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
[1:25] For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
[1:26] For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.
[1:27] But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;
[1:28] God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are,
[1:29] so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.
[1:30] He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption.
[1:31] Therefore, as it is written, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord."
[2:1] And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom.
[2:2] For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
[2:3] And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling,
[2:4] and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
[2:5] that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
1 Corinthians 1:26-31
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 Corinthians (ESV)[1:26] For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.
[1:27] But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;
[1:28] God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are,
[1:29] so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.
[1:30] He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption.
[1:31] Therefore, as it is written, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord."
1 Corinthians 1:21-25
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 Corinthians (ESV)[1:21] For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.
[1:22] For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom,
[1:23] but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles,
[1:24] but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
[1:25] For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
1 Corinthians 1:18-20
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 Corinthians (ESV)[1:18] For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
[1:19] For it is written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart."
[1:20] Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
1 Corinthians 1:10-17
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 Corinthians (ESV)[1:10] I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.
[1:11] For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers.
[1:12] What I mean is that each one of you says, "I follow Paul," or "I follow Apollos," or "I follow Cephas," or "I follow Christ."
[1:13] Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
[1:14] I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius,
[1:15] so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name.
[1:16] (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.)
[1:17] For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
Mark 12:28-37
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Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[12:28] And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, "Which commandment is the most important of all?"
[12:29] Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
[12:30] And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'
[12:31] The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."
[12:32] And the scribe said to him, "You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him.
[12:33] And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices."
[12:34] And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.
[12:35] And as Jesus taught in the temple, he said, "How can the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David?
[12:36] David himself, in the Holy Spirit, declared, "'The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet.'
[12:37] David himself calls him Lord. So how is he his son?" And the great throng heard him gladly.
Dangerous Beliefs
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
Jude (ESV)[1:1] Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James,To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ:
[1:2] May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.
[1:3] Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.
[1:4] For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
Mark 13:14-27
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Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[13:14] "But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where it ought not to be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
[13:15] Let the one who is on the housetop not go down, nor enter his house, to take anything out,
[13:16] and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak.
[13:17] And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days!
[13:18] Pray that it may not happen in winter.
[13:19] For in those days there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, and never will be.
[13:20] And if the Lord had not cut short the days, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he shortened the days.
[13:21] And then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'Look, there he is!' do not believe it.
[13:22] False christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect.
[13:23] But be on guard; I have told you all things beforehand.
[13:24] "But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light,
[13:25] and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
[13:26] And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.
[13:27] And 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.
Jude 1:17-25
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
Jude (ESV)[1:17] But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ.
[1:18] They said to you, "In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions."
[1:19] It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.
[1:20] But you, beloved, build yourselves up in your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit;
[1:21] keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.
[1:22] And have mercy on those who doubt;
[1:23] save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.
[1:24] Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy,
[1:25] to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.
Mark 13:1-13
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Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[13:1] And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, "Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!"
[13:2] And Jesus said to him, "Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down."
[13:3] And as he sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately,
[13:4] "Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?"
[13:5] And Jesus began to say to them, "See that no one leads you astray.
[13:6] Many will come in my name, saying, 'I am he!' and they will lead many astray.
[13:7] And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet.
[13:8] For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.
[13:9] "But be on your guard. For they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them.
[13:10] And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all nations.
[13:11] And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit.
[13:12] And brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death.
[13:13] And you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.
Jude 1:5-16
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
Jude (ESV)[1:5] Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe.
[1:6] And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day--
[1:7] just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.
[1:8] Yet in like manner these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones.
[1:9] But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, "The Lord rebuke you."
[1:10] But these people blaspheme all that they do not understand, and they are destroyed by all that they, like unreasoning animals, understand instinctively.
[1:11] Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam's error and perished in Korah's rebellion.
[1:12] These are blemishes on your love feasts, as they feast with you without fear, looking after themselves; waterless clouds, swept along by winds; fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted;
[1:13] wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever.
[1:14] It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, "Behold, the Lord came with ten thousands of his holy ones,
[1:15] to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him."
[1:16] These are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are loud-mouthed boasters, showing favoritism to gain advantage.
Mark 12:35-44
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Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[12:35] And as Jesus taught in the temple, he said, "How can the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David?
[12:36] David himself, in the Holy Spirit, declared, "'The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet.'
[12:37] David himself calls him Lord. So how is he his son?" And the great throng heard him gladly.
[12:38] And in his teaching he said, "Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the marketplaces
[12:39] and have the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts,
[12:40] who devour widows' houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation."
[12:41] And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums.
[12:42] And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny.
[12:43] And he called his disciples to him and said to them, "Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box.
[12:44] For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on."
Jude 1:3-4
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
Jude (ESV)[1:3] Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.
[1:4] For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
Mark 12:28-34
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Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[12:28] And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, "Which commandment is the most important of all?"
[12:29] Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
[12:30] And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'
[12:31] The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."
[12:32] And the scribe said to him, "You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him.
[12:33] And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices."
[12:34] And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.
Jude 1:1-2
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
Jude (ESV)[1:1] Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James,To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ:
[1:2] May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.
Mark 12:13-27
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Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[12:13] And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians, to trap him in his talk.
[12:14] And they came and said to him, "Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone's opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?"
[12:15] But, knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, "Why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it."
[12:16] And they brought one. And he said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" They said to him, "Caesar's."
[12:17] Jesus said to them, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." And they marveled at him.
[12:18] And Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a question, saying,
[12:19] "Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.
[12:20] There were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no offspring.
[12:21] And the second took her, and died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise.
[12:22] And the seven left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died.
[12:23] In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife."
[12:24] Jesus said to them, "Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God?
[12:25] For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.
[12:26] And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?
[12:27] He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong."
3 John 1:13-15
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
3 John (ESV)[1:13] I had much to write to you, but I would rather not write with pen and ink.
[1:14] I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face.
Mark 12:1-12
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Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[12:1] And he began to speak to them in parables. "A man planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and leased it to tenants and went into another country.
[12:2] When the season came, he sent a servant to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard.
[12:3] And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed.
[12:4] Again he sent to them another servant, and they struck him on the head and treated him shamefully.
[12:5] And he sent another, and him they killed. And so with many others: some they beat, and some they killed.
[12:6] He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.'
[12:7] But those tenants said to one another, 'This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.'
[12:8] And they took him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard.
[12:9] What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others.
[12:10] Have you not read this Scripture: "'The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone;
[12:11] this was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes'?"
[12:12] And they were seeking to arrest him but feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them. So they left him and went away.
3 John 1:9-12
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
3 John (ESV)[1:9] I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority.
[1:10] So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers, and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church.
[1:11] Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good. Whoever does good is from God; whoever does evil has not seen God.
[1:12] Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself. We also add our testimony, and you know that our testimony is true.
Mark 11:11-19
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Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[11:11] And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.
[11:12] On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry.
[11:13] And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.
[11:14] And he said to it, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." And his disciples heard it.
[11:15] And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.
[11:16] And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple.
[11:17] And he was teaching them and saying to them, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations'? But you have made it a den of robbers."
[11:18] And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching.
[11:19] And when evening came they went out of the city.
Practical Faith
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At the heart of the New Testament vision of the church is that sense of family of being brothers and sisters.
Today's reading
3 John (ESV)[1:1] The elder to the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth.
[1:2] Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.
[1:3] For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth.
[1:4] I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.
[1:5] Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are,
[1:6] who testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God.
[1:7] For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles.
[1:8] Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth.
Mark 11:11-19
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0
Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[11:11] And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.
[11:12] On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry.
[11:13] And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.
[11:14] And he said to it, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." And his disciples heard it.
[11:15] And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.
[11:16] And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple.
[11:17] And he was teaching them and saying to them, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations'? But you have made it a den of robbers."
[11:18] And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching.
[11:19] And when evening came they went out of the city.
3 John 1:5-8
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
3 John (ESV)[1:5] Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are,
[1:6] who testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God.
[1:7] For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles.
[1:8] Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth.
Mark 11:1-10
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0
Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[11:1] Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples
[11:2] and said to them, "Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it.
[11:3] If anyone says to you, 'Why are you doing this?' say, 'The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.'"
[11:4] And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it.
[11:5] And some of those standing there said to them, "What are you doing, untying the colt?"
[11:6] And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go.
[11:7] And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it.
[11:8] And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields.
[11:9] And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!
[11:10] Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!"
3 John 1:1-4
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
3 John (ESV)[1:1] The elder to the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth.
[1:2] Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.
[1:3] For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth.
[1:4] I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.
Mark 10:46-52
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Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[10:46] And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside.
[10:47] And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"
[10:48] And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"
[10:49] And Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." And they called the blind man, saying to him, "Take heart. Get up; he is calling you."
[10:50] And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus.
[10:51] And Jesus said to him, "What do you want me to do for you?" And the blind man said to him, "Rabbi, let me recover my sight."
[10:52] And Jesus said to him, "Go your way; your faith has made you well." And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.
2 John 1:12-13
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Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
2 John (ESV)[1:12] Though I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and ink. Instead I hope to come to you and talk face to face, so that our joy may be complete.
[1:13] The children of your elect sister greet you.
Mark 10:32-45
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Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[10:32] And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him,
[10:33] saying, "See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles.
[10:34] And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise."
[10:35] And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, "Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you."
[10:36] And he said to them, "What do you want me to do for you?"
[10:37] And they said to him, "Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory."
[10:38] Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?"
[10:39] And they said to him, "We are able." And Jesus said to them, "The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized,
[10:40] but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared."
[10:41] And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John.
[10:42] And Jesus called them to him and said to them, "You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.
[10:43] But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,
[10:44] and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all.
[10:45] For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
2 John 1:7-11
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0
Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
2 John (ESV)[1:7] For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist.
[1:8] Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward.
[1:9] Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.
[1:10] If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting,
[1:11] for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works.
Mark 10:17-31
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0
Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[10:17] And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
[10:18] And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.
[10:19] You know the commandments: 'Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.'"
[10:20] And he said to him, "Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth."
[10:21] And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, "You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."
[10:22] Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
[10:23] And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!"
[10:24] And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, "Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God!
[10:25] It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God."
[10:26] And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, "Then who can be saved?"
[10:27] Jesus looked at them and said, "With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God."
[10:28] Peter began to say to him, "See, we have left everything and followed you."
[10:29] Jesus said, "Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel,
[10:30] who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.
[10:31] But many who are first will be last, and the last first."
2 John 1:4-6
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0
Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
2 John (ESV)[1:4] I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father.
[1:5] And now I ask you, dear lady--not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning--that we love one another.
[1:6] And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it.
Mark 10:1-16
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0
Source: Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[10:1] And he left there and went to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan, and crowds gathered to him again. And again, as was his custom, he taught them.
[10:2] And Pharisees came up and in order to test him asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?"
[10:3] He answered them, "What did Moses command you?"
[10:4] They said, "Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce and to send her away."
[10:5] And Jesus said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment.
[10:6] But from the beginning of creation, 'God made them male and female.'
[10:7] 'Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife,
[10:8] and they shall become one flesh.' So they are no longer two but one flesh.
[10:9] What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate."
[10:10] And in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter.
[10:11] And he said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her,
[10:12] and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."
[10:13] And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them.
[10:14] But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, "Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God.
[10:15] Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it."
[10:16] And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.
2 John 1:1-3
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0
Source: Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
2 John (ESV)[1:1] The elder to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all who know the truth,
[1:2] because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever:
[1:3] Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father's Son, in truth and love.
Esther tells a lot
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This is a Sunday worship. I cannot see God. But I know You are here in my heart and beside me every single moment. Esther is a book of secret.
Today's reading
Esther (ESV)[9:20] And Mordecai recorded these things and sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far,
[9:21] obliging them to keep the fourteenth day of the month Adar and also the fifteenth day of the same, year by year,
[9:22] as the days on which the Jews got relief from their enemies, and as the month that had been turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness, days for sending gifts of food to one another and gifts to the poor.
[9:23] So the Jews accepted what they had started to do, and what Mordecai had written to them.
[9:24] For Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast Pur (that is, cast lots), to crush and to destroy them.
[9:25] But when it came before the king, he gave orders in writing that his evil plan that he had devised against the Jews should return on his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows.
[9:26] Therefore they called these days Purim, after the term Pur. Therefore, because of all that was written in this letter, and of what they had faced in this matter, and of what had happened to them,
[9:27] the Jews firmly obligated themselves and their offspring and all who joined them, that without fail they would keep these two days according to what was written and at the time appointed every year,
Mark 9:38-50
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From Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[9:38] John said to him, "Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us."
[9:39] But Jesus said, "Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me.
[9:40] For the one who is not against us is for us.
[9:41] For truly, I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.
[9:42] "Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.
[9:43] And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.
[9:44] See Footnote
[9:45] And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell.
[9:46] See Footnote
[9:47] And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell,
[9:48] 'where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.'
[9:49] For everyone will be salted with fire.
[9:50] Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another."
Love Over Fear
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John makes the remarkable statement that a life inspired by God, a life shaped by this quality of Christian discipleship - such a life exhibits a love that is made complete.
Today's reading
1 John (ESV)[4:15] Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.
[4:16] So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
[4:17] By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.
[4:18] There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
[4:19] We love because he first loved us.
[4:20] If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.
[4:21] And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.
Mark 9:30-37
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From Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[9:30] They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he did not want anyone to know,
[9:31] for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, "The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise."
[9:32] But they did not understand the saying, and were afraid to ask him.
[9:33] And they came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house he asked them, "What were you discussing on the way?"
[9:34] But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest.
[9:35] And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, "If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all."
[9:36] And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them,
[9:37] "Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me."
1 John 5:18-21
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From Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 John (ESV)[5:18] We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.
[5:19] We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.
[5:20] And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
[5:21] Little children, keep yourselves from idols.
Mark 9:14-29
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From Milal Church (www.bridgewaychurch.ca)
Today's reading
Mark (ESV)[9:14] And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and scribes arguing with them.
[9:15] And immediately all the crowd, when they saw him, were greatly amazed and ran up to him and greeted him.
[9:16] And he asked them, "What are you arguing about with them?"
[9:17] And someone from the crowd answered him, "Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a spirit that makes him mute.
[9:18] And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able."
[9:19] And he answered them, "O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me."
[9:20] And they brought the boy to him. And when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth.
[9:21] And Jesus asked his father, "How long has this been happening to him?" And he said, "From childhood.
[9:22] And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us."
[9:23] And Jesus said to him, "If you can! All things are possible for one who believes."
[9:24] Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, "I believe; help my unbelief!"
[9:25] And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, "You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again."
[9:26] And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, "He is dead."
[9:27] But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose.
[9:28] And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, "Why could we not cast it out?"
[9:29] And he said to them, "This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer."
1 John 5:13-17
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From Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 John (ESV)[5:13] I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.
[5:14] And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.
[5:15] And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.
[5:16] If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life--to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that.
[5:17] All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.
1 John 5:4-12
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From Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 John[5:4] For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.
[5:5] Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?
[5:6] This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth.
[5:7] For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
[5:8] And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.
[5:9] If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.
[5:10] He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.
[5:11] And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
[5:12] He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
1 John 5:1-3
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From Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 John[5:1] Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. is born: Gr. has been born
[5:2] By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
[5:3] For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
1 John 4:19-21
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From Vaughan Community Church (www.vccc.ca)
Today's reading
1 John[4:19] We love him, because he first loved us.
[4:20] If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?
[4:21] And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.
