FIRST BAPTIST CRAMERTON

1 Thessalonians 5:1-5 Be Prepared 1 Now, brothers and sisters, we don’t need to write to you about times and dates. 2 You know very well that the day when the Lord comes again will be a surprise, like a thief who comes at night. 3 People will say, “We have peace and we are safe.” At that time destruction will come to them quickly, like the pains of a woman giving birth. And those people will not escape. 4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not living in darkness. And so that day will not surprise you like a thief. 5 You are all people who belong to the light. You belong to the day. We don’t belong to the night or to darkness. God Provides 6 So we should not be like other people. We should not be sleeping. We should be awake and have self-control. 7 People who sleep, sleep at night. People who drink too much, drink at night. 8 But we belong to the day, so we should control ourselves. We should wear faith and love to protect us. And the hope of salvation should be our helmet. 9 God did not choose us to suffer his anger. God chose us to have salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. 10 Jesus died for us so that we can live together with him. It is not important if we are alive or dead when Jesus comes. 11 So encourage each other and help each other grow stronger in faith, just as you are already doing. Build One Another Up 14 We ask you, brothers and sisters, to warn those who will not work. Encourage those who are afraid. Help those who are weak. Be patient with everyone. 15 Be sure that no one pays back wrong for wrong. But always try to do what is good for each other and for all people. 16 Always be full of joy. 17 Never stop praying. Suggested Bible Readings: Thursday: Psalm 63 Friday: Joel 1:1-14 Saturday: Jeremiah 31:31-34 Sunday: Ezekiel 6:1-14 Monday: Ezekiel 7:1-9 Tuesday: Psalm 90:1-12 Verse To Remember: 1 Thessalonians 5:10 10 Jesus died for us so that we can live together with him. It is not important if we are alive or dead when Jesus comes.

Matthew 22:34-40 Love God, Love People 34 The Pharisees learned that Jesus had made the Sadducees look so foolish that they stopped trying to argue with him. So the Pharisees had a meeting. 35 Then one of them, an expert in the Law of Moses, asked Jesus a question to test him. 36 He said, “Teacher, which command in the law is the most important?” 37 Jesus answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’[a] 38 This is the first and most important command. 39 And the second command is like the first: ‘Love your neighbor[b] the same as you love yourself.’[c] 40 All of the law and the writings of the prophets take their meaning from these two commands.” Know Your Ancestry 41 So while the Pharisees were together, Jesus asked them a question. 42 He said, “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?” The Pharisees answered, “The Messiah is the Son of David.” 43 Jesus said to them, “Then why did David call him ‘Lord’? David was speaking by the power of the Spirit. He said, 44 ‘The Lord God said to my Lord: Sit by me at my right side, and I will put your enemies under your control.[a]’ 45 David calls the Messiah ‘Lord.’ So how can he be David’s son?” 46 None of the Pharisees could answer Jesus’ question. And after that day, no one was brave enough to ask him any more questions. Neighborliness Is Next To Holiness Leviticus 19: 1, 2, 15-18 1. The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell all the Israelites: I am the Lord your God. I am holy, so you must be holy. 15 “You must be fair in judgment. You must not show special favor to the poor. And you must not show special favor to important people. You must be fair when you judge your neighbor. 16 You must not go around spreading false stories against other people. Don’t do anything that would put your neighbor’s life in danger. I am the Lord. 17 “Don’t secretly hate any of your neighbors. But tell them openly what they have done wrong so that you will not be just as guilty of sin as they are. 18 Forget about the wrong things people do to you. Don’t try to get even. Love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord. Suggested Daily Bible Readings: Thursday: Daniel 3:1-18 Friday: Daniel 3:19-30 Saturday: Psalm 63 Sunday: Titus 1:5-16 Monday: Titus 2:7-8, 11-15 Tuesday: John 5:39-47 Verse To Remember: Leviticus 19:2 2 “Tell all the Israelites: I am the Lord your God. I am holy, so you must be holy.

Matthew 22:15-18 It's A Trap! 15 Then the Pharisees left the place where Jesus was teaching. They made plans to catch him saying something wrong. 16 They sent some men to Jesus. They were some of their own followers and some from the group called Herodians. They said, “Teacher, we know you are an honest man. We know you teach the truth about God’s way. You are not afraid of what others think about you. All people are the same to you. 17 So tell us what you think. Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” 18 But Jesus knew that these men were trying to trick him. So he said, “You hypocrites! Why are you trying to catch me saying something wrong? Made In Whose Image? 19 Show me a coin used for paying the tax.” They showed Jesus a silver coin. 20 Then he asked, “Whose picture is on the coin? And whose name is written on the coin?” 21 They answered, “It is Caesar’s picture and Caesar’s name.” Then Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.” 22 When they heard what Jesus said, they were amazed. They left him and went away. A Word From Our Sponsor Isaiah 45:1-7 1. This is what the Lord said to Cyrus, his chosen king: “I took you by your right hand to help you defeat nations, to strip other kings of their power, and to open city gates that will not be closed again. 2 I will go in front of you and make the mountains flat. I will break the city gates of bronze and cut the iron bars on the gates. 3 I will give you the wealth that is stored in secret places. I will give you those hidden treasures. Then you will know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who calls you by name. 4 I do this for my servant, Jacob. I do it for my chosen people, Israel. Cyrus, I am calling you by name. You don’t know me, but I know you.[b] 5 I am the Lord, the only God. There is no other God except me. I put your clothes on you,[c] but still you don’t know me. 6 I am doing this so that everyone will know that I am the only God. From the east to the west, people will know that I am the Lord and that there is no other God. 7 I made the light and the darkness. I bring peace, and I cause trouble. I, the Lord, do all these things. Suggested Daily Bible Readings: Thursday: Jude 17-25 Friday: Philippians 3:13-4:1 Saturday: John 6:25-35 Sunday: Psalm 99 Monday: 1 Peter 5:1-5 Tuesday: Psalm 96: 1-9 Verse To Remember: Matthew 22:21 21 They answered, “It is Caesar’s picture and Caesar’s name.” Then Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”

The Authority of Jesus Challenged 23 And when he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came up to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” 24 Jesus answered them, “I also will ask you one question, and if you tell me the answer, then I also will tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 The baptism of John, from where did it come? From heaven or from man?” And they discussed it among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘From man,’ we are afraid of the crowd, for they all hold that John was a prophet.” 27 So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things. The Parable of the Two Sons 28 “What do you think? A man had two sons. And he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ 29 And he answered, ‘I will not,’ but afterward he changed his mind and went. 30 And he went to the other son and said the same. And he answered, ‘I go, sir,’ but did not go. 31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you. 32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not afterward change your minds and believe him. Suggested Bible Readings: Thursday: Philippians 1:3-14 Friday: Exodus 18:13-27 Saturday: Matthew 9:2-8 Monday: Psalm 19 Tuesday: Philippians: 2:14-28, 3:1-4 Wednesday: John 7:40-52

Matthew 21:33-36 "God Sends His Son " 33 “Listen to this story: There was a man who owned a vineyard. He put a wall around the field and dug a hole for a winepress. Then he built a tower. He leased the land to some farmers and then left on a trip. 34 Later, it was time for the grapes to be picked. So the man sent his servants to the farmers to get his share of the grapes. 35 “But the farmers grabbed the servants and beat one. They killed another one and then stoned to death a third servant. 36 So the man sent some other servants to the farmers. He sent more servants than he sent the first time. But the farmers did the same thing to them that they did the first time. Matthew 21:37-41 "When The Son Comes" 37 So the man decided to send his son to the farmers. He said, ‘The farmers will respect my son.’ 38 “But when the farmers saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the owner’s son. This vineyard will be his. If we kill him, it will be ours.’ 39 So the farmers took the son, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 40 “So what will the owner of the vineyard do to these farmers when he comes?” 41 The Jewish priests and leaders said, “He will surely kill those evil men. Then he will lease the land to other farmers, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.” Matthew 21:42-46 "Fruit And Stones" 42 Jesus said to them, “Surely you have read this in the Scriptures: ‘The stone that the builders refused to accept became the cornerstone. The Lord did this, and it is wonderful to us.’ 43 “So I tell you that God’s kingdom will be taken away from you. It will be given to people who do what God wants in his kingdom. 44 Whoever falls on this stone will be broken. And it will crush anyone it falls on.”[a] 45 When the leading priests and the Pharisees heard these stories, they knew that Jesus was talking about them. 46 They wanted to find a way to arrest Jesus. But they were afraid to do anything, because the people believed that Jesus was a prophet. Suggested Daily Bible Reading Thursday: Philippians 1:3-14 Friday: Exodus 18:13-27 Saturday: Psalm 42 Sunday: Colossians 2:16-23 Monday: Philippians 2:14-18, 3:1-4 Tuesday: John 7:40-52 A Verse To Remember: Matthew 21:43 43 “So I tell you that God’s kingdom will be taken away from you. It will be given to people who do what God wants in his kingdom.

Matthew 22: 1-6 Everything Is Ready 22 Jesus used some more stories to teach the people. He said, 2 “God’s kingdom is like a king who prepared a wedding feast for his son. 3 He invited some people to the feast. When it was ready, the king sent his servants to tell the people to come. But they refused to come to the king’s feast. 4 “Then the king sent some more servants. He said to them, ‘I have already invited the people. So tell them that my feast is ready. I have killed my best bulls and calves to be eaten. Everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.’ 5 “But when the servants told the people to come, they refused to listen. They all went to do other things. One went to work in his field, and another went to his business. 6 Some of the other people grabbed the servants, beat them, and killed them. The King Responds 7 The king was very angry. He sent his army to kill those who murdered his servants. And the army burned their city. 8 “After that the king said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready. I invited those people, but they were not good enough to come to my feast. 9 So go to the street corners and invite everyone you see. Tell them to come to my feast.’ 10 So the servants went into the streets. They gathered all the people they could find, good and bad alike, and brought them to where the wedding feast was ready. And the place was filled with guests. Black Tie Affair 11 “When the king came in to meet the guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in the right clothes for a wedding. 12 The king said, ‘Friend, how were you allowed to come in here? You are not wearing the right clothes.’ But the man said nothing. 13 So the king told some servants, ‘Tie this man’s hands and feet. Throw him out into the darkness, where people are crying and grinding their teeth with pain.’ 14 “Yes, many people are invited. But only a few are chosen.” Suggested Daily Bible Readings: Thursday: Deuteronomy 5: 1-21 Friday: 2 Corinthians 5: 17-21 Saturday: John 11: 45-57 Sunday: 1 Peter 5: 1-5 Monday: James 4: 4-10 Tuesday: Psalm 106: 1-6, 19-23 Verse To Remember: Matthew 22:8-9 8 “After that the king said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready. I invited those people, but they were not good enough to come to my feast. 9 So go to the street corners and invite everyone you see. Tell them to come to my feast.’