Daily Bible CEV March 02 Scroll

Jesus Heals a Crippled Man
(Mark 2.1-12; Luke 5.17-26)

Matthew 9 Jesus got into a boat and crossed back over to the town where he lived. ²Some people soon brought to him a crippled man lying on a mat. When Jesus saw how much faith they had, he said to the crippled man, "My friend, don't worry! Your sins are forgiven."

³Some teachers of the Law of Moses said to themselves, "Jesus must think he is God!"

⁴But Jesus knew what was in their minds, and he said, "Why are you thinking such evil things? ⁵Is it easier for me to tell this crippled man that his sins are forgiven or to tell him to get up and walk? ⁶But I will show you that the Son of Man has the right to forgive sins here on earth." So Jesus said to the man, "Get up! Pick up your mat and go on home." ⁷The man got up and went home. ⁸When the crowds saw this, they were afraid and praised God for giving such authority to people.

Jesus Chooses Matthew
(Mark 2.13-17; Luke 5.27-32)

⁹As Jesus was leaving, he saw a tax collector named Matthew sitting at the place for paying taxes. Jesus said to him, "Come with me." Matthew got up and went with him.

¹⁰Later, Jesus and his disciples were having dinner at Matthew's house. Many tax collectors and other sinners were also there. ¹¹Some Pharisees asked Jesus' disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and other sinners?"

¹²Jesus heard them and answered, "Healthy people don't need a doctor, but sick people do. ¹³Go and learn what the Scriptures mean when they say, 'Instead of offering sacrifices to me, I want you to be merciful to others.' I didn't come to invite good people to be my followers. I came to invite sinners."

People Ask about Going without Eating
(Mark 2.18-22; Luke 5.33-39)

¹⁴One day some followers of John the Baptist came and asked Jesus, "Why do we and the Pharisees often go without eating, while your disciples never do?"

¹⁵Jesus answered:

The friends of a bridegroom don't go without eating while he is still with them. But the time will come when he will be taken from them. Then they will go without eating.

¹⁶No one uses a new piece of cloth to patch old clothes. The patch would shrink and tear a bigger hole.

¹⁷No one pours new wine into old wineskins. The wine would swell and burst the old skins. Then the wine would be lost, and the skins would be ruined. New wine must be put into new wineskins. Both the skins and the wine will then be safe.

Sacrifices To Ask the LORD's Blessing

The LORD said:
Leviticus 3 When you offer sacrifices to ask my blessing, you may offer either a bull or a cow, but there must be nothing wrong with the animal. ²Lead it to the entrance of the sacred tent, lay your hand on its head, and have it killed there. A priest from Aaron's family will splatter its blood against the four sides of the altar.

³Offer all of the fat on the animal's insides, ⁴as well as the lower part of the liver and the two kidneys with their fat. ⁵Some of the priests will lay these pieces on the altar and send them up in smoke with a smell that pleases me, together with the sacrifice that is offered to please me.

⁶Instead of a bull or a cow, you may offer any sheep or goat that has nothing wrong with it. ⁷If you offer a sheep, you must present it to me at the entrance to the sacred tent. ⁸Lay your hand on its head and have it killed there. A priest will then splatter its blood against the four sides of the altar.

⁹Offer the fat on the tail, the tailbone, and the insides, ¹⁰as well as the lower part of the liver and the two kidneys with their fat. ¹¹One of the priests will lay these pieces on the altar and send them up in smoke as a food offering for me.

¹²If you offer a goat, you must also present it to me ¹³at the entrance to the sacred tent. Lay your hand on its head and have it killed there. A priest will then splatter its blood against the four sides of the altar.

¹⁴Offer all of the fat on the animal's insides, ¹⁵as well as the lower part of the liver and the two kidneys with their fat. ¹⁶One of the priests will put these pieces on the altar and send them up in smoke as a food offering with a smell that pleases me.

All fat belongs to me. ¹⁷So you and your descendants must never eat any fat or any blood, not even in the privacy of your own homes. This law will never change.

Sacrifices for Sin
(Leviticus 6.24-30)

Leviticus 4 The LORD told Moses ²to say to the community of Israel:

Offer a sacrifice to ask forgiveness when you sin by accidentally doing something I have told you not to do.

When the High Priest Sins

The LORD said:

³When the high priest sins, he makes everyone else guilty too. And so, he must sacrifice a young bull that has nothing wrong with it. ⁴The priest will lead the bull to the entrance of the sacred tent, lay his hand on its head, and kill it there. ⁵He will take a bowl of the blood inside the tent, ⁶dip a finger in the blood, and sprinkle some of it seven times toward the sacred chest behind the curtain. ⁷Then, in my presence, he will smear some of the blood on each of the four corners of the incense altar, before pouring out the rest at the foot of the bronze altar near the entrance to the tent.

^8-10The priest will remove the fat from the bull, just as he does when he sacrifices a bull to ask my blessing. This includes the fat on the insides, as well as the lower part of the liver and the two kidneys with their fat. He will then send it all up in smoke.

^11-12The skin and flesh of the bull, together with its legs, insides, and the food still in its stomach, are to be taken outside the camp and burned on a wood fire near the ash heap.

When the Whole Nation Sins

The LORD said:

¹³When the nation of Israel disobeys me without meaning to, the whole nation is still guilty. ¹⁴Once you realize what has happened, you must sacrifice a young bull to ask my forgiveness. Lead the bull to the entrance of the sacred tent, ¹⁵where your tribal leaders will lay their hands on its head, before having it killed in my presence.

¹⁶The priest will take a bowl of the animal's blood inside the sacred tent, ¹⁷dip a finger in the blood, and sprinkle some of it seven times toward the sacred chest behind the curtain. ¹⁸Then, in my presence, he must smear some of the blood on each of the four corners of the incense altar, before pouring out the rest at the foot of the bronze altar near the entrance to the tent. ^19-21After this, the priest will remove the fat from the bull and send it up in smoke on the altar. Finally, he will burn its remains outside the camp, just as he did with the other bull. By this sacrifice the sin of the whole nation will be forgiven.

When a Tribal Leader Sins

The LORD God said:

²²Any tribal leader who disobeys me without meaning to is still guilty. ²³As soon as the leader realizes what has happened, he must sacrifice a goat that has nothing wrong with it. ²⁴This is a sacrifice for sin. So he will lay his hand on the animal's head, before having it killed in my presence at the north side of the bronze altar. ²⁵The priest will dip a finger in the blood, smear some of it on each of the four corners of the altar, and pour out the rest at the foot of the altar. ²⁶Then he must send all of the fat up in smoke, just as he does when a sacrifice is offered to ask my blessing. By this sacrifice the leader's sin will be forgiven.

When Ordinary People Sin

The LORD said:

²⁷When any of you ordinary people disobey me without meaning to, you are still guilty. ²⁸As soon as you realize what you have done, you must sacrifice a female goat that has nothing wrong with it. ²⁹Lead the goat to the north side of the bronze altar and lay your hand on its head, before having it killed. ³⁰Then a priest will dip a finger in the blood; he will smear some of it on each of the four corners of the altar and pour out the rest at the foot of the altar. ³¹After this, the priest will remove all of the fat, just as he does when an animal is sacrificed to ask my blessing. The priest will then send the fat up in smoke with a smell that pleases me. This animal is sacrificed so that I will forgive you ordinary people when you sin.

³²If you offer a lamb instead of a goat as a sacrifice for sin, it must be a female that has nothing wrong with it. ³³Lead the lamb to the altar and lay your hand on its head, before having it killed. ³⁴The priest will dip a finger in the blood, smear some of it on each of the four corners of the altar, and pour out the rest at the foot of the altar. ³⁵After this, all of the fat must be removed, just as when an animal is sacrificed to ask my blessing. Then the priest will send it up in smoke to me, together with a food offering, and your sin will be forgiven.

Words of Wisdom Are Better than Gold

Proverbs 20 It isn't smart to get drunk!

Drinking makes a fool of you and leads to fights.

²An angry ruler is like a roaring lion--

make either one angry, and you are dead.

³It makes you look good when you avoid a fight--

only fools love to quarrel.

⁴If you are too lazy to plow, don't expect a harvest.

⁵Someone's thoughts may be as deep as the ocean,

but if you are smart, you will discover them.

⁶There are many who say, "You can trust me!"

But can they be trusted?

⁷Good people live right,

and God blesses the children who follow their example.

⁸When rulers decide cases, they weigh the evidence.

⁹Can any of us really say,

"My thoughts are pure, and my sins are gone"?

¹⁰Two things the LORD hates are dishonest scales

and dishonest measures.

¹¹The good or bad that children do

shows what they are like.

¹²Hearing and seeing are gifts from the LORD.

¹³If you sleep all the time, you will starve;

if you get up and work, you will have enough food.

¹⁴Everyone likes to brag about getting a bargain.

¹⁵

Sensible words are better than gold or jewels.

¹⁶You deserve to lose your coat

if you loan it to someone to guarantee payment

for the debt of a stranger.

¹⁷The food you get by cheating may taste delicious,

but it turns to gravel.

¹⁸Be sure you have sound advice before making plans

or starting a war.

¹⁹Stay away from gossips-- they tell everything.

²⁰Children who curse their parents

will go to the land of darkness long before their time.

²¹Getting rich quick may turn out to be a curse.

²²Don't try to get even.

Trust the LORD, and he will help you.

²³The LORD hates dishonest scales and dishonest weights.

So don't cheat!

²⁴How can we know what will happen to us

when the LORD alone decides?

²⁵Don't fall into the trap

of making promises to God before you think!

²⁶A wise ruler severely punishes every criminal.

²⁷Our inner thoughts are a lamp from the LORD,

and they search our hearts.

²⁸Rulers are protected by God's mercy and loyalty,

but they must be merciful for their kingdoms to last.

²⁹Young people take pride in their strength,

but the gray hairs of wisdom are even more beautiful.

³⁰A severe beating can knock all of the evil out of you!

These daily Bible readings from the Contemporary English Version (CEV) are published by BibleNetUSA. The web site and BibleCard® designs are by iCreative. BibleCard® images copyright iCreative. All rights reserved.