It’s All in the Beginning

It’s All in the Beginning

Today’s Readings

Jeremiah 31:7-14

7 For this is what the Lord says:
“Sing aloud with joy for Jacob,
And be joyful with the chief of the nations;
Proclaim, give praise, and say,
‘Lord, save Your people,
The remnant of Israel!’
8 Behold, I am bringing them from the north country,
And I will gather them from the remote parts of the earth,
Among them those who are blind and those who limp,
The pregnant woman and she who is in labor, together;
They will return here as a great assembly.
9 They will come with weeping,
And by pleading I will bring them;
I will lead them by streams of waters,
On a straight path on which they will not stumble;
For I am a father to Israel,
And Ephraim is My firstborn.”

10 Hear the word of the Lord, you nations,
And declare it in the coastlands far away,
And say, “He who scattered Israel will gather him,
And He will keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock.”
11 For the Lord has ransomed Jacob
And redeemed him from the hand of him who was stronger than he.
12 “They will come and shout for joy on the height of Zion,
And they will be radiant over the bounty of the Lord—
Over the grain, the new wine, the oil,
And over the young of the flock and the herd.
And their life will be like a watered garden,
And they will never languish again.
13 Then the virgin will rejoice in the dance,
And the young men and the old together;
For I will turn their mourning into joy
And comfort them, and give them joy for their sorrow.
14 I will refresh the soul of the priests with abundance,
And My people will be satisfied with My goodness,” declares the Lord.

Psalm 147:12-20

12 Praise the Lord, Jerusalem!
Praise your God, Zion!
13 For He has strengthened the bars of your gates;
He has blessed your sons among you.
14 He makes peace in your borders;
He satisfies you with the finest of the wheat.
15 He sends His command to the earth;
His word runs very swiftly.
16 He showers snow like wool;
He scatters the frost like ashes.
17 He hurls His ice as fragments;
Who can stand before His cold?
18 He sends His word and makes them melt;
He makes His wind blow, and the waters flow.
19 He declares His words to Jacob,
His statutes and His judgments to Israel.
20 He has not dealt this way with any other nation;
And as for His judgments, they have not known them.
Praise the Lord!

Ephisians 1:3-14

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, with which He favored us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight 9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He set forth in Him, 10 regarding His plan of the fullness of the times, to bring all things together in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. 11 In Him we also have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things in accordance with the plan of His will, 12 to the end that we who were the first to hope in the Christ would be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of the promise, 14 who is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.

John 1:1-18

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of mankind. 5 And the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not grasp it.

6 A man came, one sent from God, and his name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light.

9 This was the true Light that, coming into the world, enlightens every person. 10 He was in the world, and the world came into being through Him, and yet the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own people did not accept Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name, 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of a man, but of God.

14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us; and we saw His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 John *testified about Him and called out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who is coming after me has proved to be my superior, because He existed before me.’” 16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. 17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has seen God at any time; God the only Son, who is in the arms of the Father, He has explained Him.