Contemplative Bible Reading

John 12:3-5 (New Living Translation) 3 Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance. 4 But Judas Iscariot, the disciple who would soon betray him, said, 5 “That perfume […]

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John 4:48-49 (New Living Translation) 48 Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?” 49 The official pleaded, “Lord, please come now before my little boy dies.” This is part of the (hi)story of Jesus healing the official’s son (from a great distance). Jesus asks if the man would […]

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John 11:45-48 (New Living Translation) 45 Many of the people who were with Mary believed in Jesus when they saw this happen. 46 But some went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. 47 Then the leading priests and Pharisees called the high council together. “What are we going to do?” they […]

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John 8:12 (New Living Translation) Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.” Here and there in the Bible I find one-sentence summaries of the Gospel. […]

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John 7:24 (New Living Translation) Jesus replied,…”Look beneath the surface so you can judge correctly.” Sometimes the words of Jesus are so simple they smash me into a wall. The Bible is full of examples of how people judge on the surface by human and worldly standards. How childish am I? Go past the superficial, […]

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John 7:2-4 (New Living Translation) 2 But soon it was time for the Jewish Festival of Shelters, 3 and Jesus’ brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, where your followers can see your miracles! 4 You can’t become famous if you hide like this! If you can do such wonderful things, show […]

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John 6:28-29 (New Living Translation) 28 They replied, “We want to perform God’s works, too. What should we do?” 29 Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.” The crowds came to Jesus. They wanted to know what they could and should do. Jesus […]

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John 4:25-26  (The Living Bible) 25 The woman said, “Well, at least I know that the Messiah will come—the one they call Christ—and when he does, he will explain everything to us.” 26 Then Jesus told her, “I am the Messiah!” These verses are part of the conversation between Jesus and the woman at the […]

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John 3:26 (The Living Bible) So they came to John and said, “Master, the man you met on the other side of the Jordan River—the one you said was the Messiah—he is baptizing too, and everybody is going over there instead of coming here to us.” These are follows of John the Baptist. They are […]

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John 20:8 (New Living Translation) Then the disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in, and he saw and believed Note the marvelous shift from physical sense to spiritual faith. The disciple saw (a physical sense) the empty tomb, but then believed (spiritual faith). There were many physical conclusions available given the physical […]

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