On This Day: Receiving the Kingdom Like a Child

   Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” (Luke 18:15-17)

   

   I love it when I come to a very familiar passage of Scripture, wonder how “our Father in heaven” will get through to me with anything new and applicable to my present life situation, and then feel the wonder of God taking my little chin in his hands and turning my attention to the exact thing he wants me to see. And today, that hit me more meaningfully than ever!

   I have been a kid my whole life (6+ decades). I have been a parent for over 40 years. I have helped my wife with our family daycare for over 20 years. I have had young folk come and go through our lives like children and grandchildren in our hearts. 

   With that as part of the backdrop to this scene, I realized today that when Jesus talked about receiving the kingdom of God like a child, I have always put the focus on what children are like. What are the childlike qualities that Jesus had in mind to illustrate what it is like to come into his kingdom like children?

   But when the Holy Spirit turned my attention to “receive… like a child”, I suddenly realized this was God’s gift for today. It isn’t just what children are like that Jesus was referring to, but what they are like when they receive a gift. And THAT made me smile with tears of wonder. I KNOW what children look like when they receive things from us.

   There is a certain joyful anticipation in children the moment they hear that we have something in mind for them. They are giddy with excitement to know what it is. They can’t keep quiet about it. They are full of questions. They are helplessly bound to speaking to each other about it, sharing their thoughts out loud about what it could possibly be. 

   In other words, when children know they are going to receive something, it captivates them. They can’t stop and change to thinking about anything else. Try to get them to sit still, or sit straight, and you will fail. The way children anticipate the thought of us giving them something is a delightful picture of joyful anticipation and eagerness to have whatever we have in mind. 

   And then there is the look of comprehension, the moment when they see what it is and are overwhelmed with the excitement of the gift. Whether it be a present for their birthday, or a surprise gift from our garage saling, or just that it’s a really good day to have ice cream, the “like a child” side of receiving things is distinct and universal. 

   When I replayed that amazing morning in Sandspit around 1965 when I was seven years old and I looked up at the sky with the sudden awareness that God was watching me, I can still recall the way it felt to be a child receiving such a gift. And when I sat in church in the community hall in Sandspit and heard the tubes on that old organ warming up to a hum, and we would start singing, “Holy, Holy, Holy,” and I knew in my heart what that meant even though I could never explain it, I knew what it felt like o be a child receiving a gift from God. 

   I could go on. In fact, I’m sure God will keep me on this path for a while, reconsidering my own heart and how well I receive the gifts of his kingdom like a child. But the whole scene has touched my heart deeply already in that like-a-child kind of way that leaves me in awe and wonder at the colorful threads God is weaving into his tapestry, intentionally including me in the picture. 

   And now I hope you are encouraged to let yourself receive God’s gifts like a child, and then follow him in “the obedience of faith” as you use your gifts to his glory and the good of everyone you meet. 

© 2025 Monte Vigh ~ Box 517, Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8

Email: in2freedom@gmail.com 

Unless otherwise noted, Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.)

On This Day: How to Forcefully Enter Jesus’ Kingdom

   “The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it. But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void. (Luke 16:16-17)

   It has been a very long time that I have struggled to really “get it” about what Jesus meant by this. On one side, “forces” sounds like something we do when we’re not invited, or not welcome. On another side, it sounds like we are adding words to grace, something Paul was so clear is not an option. 

   This time, traveling along this section of the trail brought out some new thoughts on the matter. I asked God where I could see people doing this. Where do I see people forcefully entering Jesus’ kingdom? What did it look like for them to do that, and what would it look like for me to follow their example?

   The first person who came to mind was the “sinful” woman going into the Pharisee's house uninvited because Jesus was there. She was quiet. She didn’t interrupt. She didn’t even say anything to Jesus. 

   However, she was unstoppable. If ever someone had a list of reasons to NOT go see Jesus, it was this woman in the scene of a Pharisee’s home. But Jesus was there, and that’s all that mattered to her. She had an insatiable need to know this Savior who had forgiven her sins, and so she quietly, politely, and determinedly forced herself into the scene. 

   The next one that came to mind was this man named Zacchaeus. A despised tax-collector. A thief who had used the political system to his advantage. He heard that Jesus was coming through his town. However, he was short. He had no chance of seeing Jesus with the crowd that was surrounding him. So, he forced himself into the scene by climbing a tree to get a better view. Jesus saw him, invited himself to dinner at Zacchaeus’s house, and welcomed Zacchaeus into the kingdom of God.

   Then there were the blind men who heard a commotion of people heading in their direction and shouted out to someone to tell them what was going on. When they heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth passing by, they began shouting out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on us!” They would not stop calling Jesus’ name from their blindness. They were desperate. This would likely be their one opportunity to connect with him and, even when told to be quiet, they could not. They kept forcing their need into the scene until Jesus heard them, stopped, and restored their sight. 

   The main quality of those who force themselves into God’s kingdom is that they have an unstoppable faith. Once they connect to Jesus in repentance and faith, and once they know he has saved them by grace through faith, not of works, they cannot be dissuaded from following the Savior.

   And then I realized I could see myself in the picture. As a young man, I was very quiet. I was respectful. I was a hard-working teenager. I didn’t try to provoke anyone who saw life differently than I did. I simply knew that Jesus Christ was Lord. I knew that what is written about his teaching, his death, his burial, his resurrection, and the building of his church is true. I knew that Jesus was and is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and that no one can come into God’s kingdom except through faith in him. 

   However, I can look at times when I was told to disobey Jesus in some way, but I couldn’t do it. I didn’t get loud. I didn’t shout and scream. I simply had a forcefulness of faith that was given to me by God and I could not be different than he had made me, or than he was making me. 

   While I bemoan how my body is deteriorating with age no matter how much I exercise, my faith in Jesus Christ as Creator, Savior, and Lord, is as strong as ever. I am alive to the one who found me; he has set me free indeed, and I take hold of my identity and standing in Jesus Christ the Lord in the “obedience of faith” to the glory of God and the good of those who need this encouragement. 

© 2025 Monte Vigh ~ Box 517, Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8

Email: in2freedom@gmail.com 

Unless otherwise noted, Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.)

On This Day: The Words That Comfort Richly

   “No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him. And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God. (Luke 16:13-15)

   While my first interest in seeking God in his word is always what he is teaching me (because however I put his words to me into practice affects everything I do in seeking to love and bless others), there are times when God’s ministry to me comes in the way of him telling me how he thinks of others. 

   Often this is positive, as in helping me see how to apply his word to me because he shows me his love for others, his forgiveness of others, his gifting of others, and he wants me to share that with him.

   Other times it is negative, as in identifying his view of what people have done to me by showing how he related to the same things himself, through his messengers, or especially through his Son. 

   All that to say that every word of today’s Scripture told me God’s view of people who were relating to Jesus a particular way. And by showing me God’s view, it comforted me so much about my experiences with similar people since God is good and will bring every wrong to justice one way or another.

   A Scripture that often guides me in how personally I interact with God’s word is this: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God” (Colossians 3:16). When I picture what God has in mind for me to let his word dwell in me richly, I see a heart that treasures God above all others, that treasures God’s word above all words, and that treasures living by God’s words above any thoughts or opinions of men, me included! 

   When I come to a Scripture like this one in Luke, every phrase speaks comfort into my heart because it gives God’s view of real-life heartaches. To let those words dwell in me richly involves attaching to how personal God is with me. He sets a stage so familiar to my own. He reveals the hearts of people so I can see them in his own words. He presents them as they really are and answers them as he really is. It’s all so plain and clear that it comforts me as much as I will let it dwell in me richly.

   I hope that my sharing of this helps to do the “teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom” part. 

   I can’t think of any songs that capture this particular passage about Jesus rebuking the Pharisees that would fit “singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God”, but I know we have songs that glorify God for his justice, mercy, and faithfulness in handling everything according to his sovereign goodness and working all things in our lives together for good. 

   Today, I already feel the richness of God’s comfort in telling me both sides of the story. Hypocritical narcissists are nothing new. They often look like they are winning, just as the Pharisees appeared to be victorious when they succeeded at putting Jesus to death. 

   But those who love God instead of money are the ones who live as “more than conquerors through him who loved us,” knowing that nothing “will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:37-39). 

   And so, we set our hearts on God as our supreme treasure, we set out into the day to use our money, our time, our spiritual gifts, to serve others in love, and we do so in the hope that someone out there will be encouraged to love God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength, to love their neighbor as themselves, including using our money for God’s glory and their good.

© 2025 Monte Vigh ~ Box 517, Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8

Email: in2freedom@gmail.com 

Unless otherwise noted, Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.)

On This Day: When Friends and Enemies Praise Jesus

   “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’” (Luke 13:34-35)

   Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem has been a long-standing grief for me. It is a thread of heartache woven into the tapestry of God’s work of redemption. It pictures the wonder of God’s longing for his people, and the tragedy of his people’s preference for the world, the flesh, and the devil.

   One of the most beautiful invitations of God to his people is this from Isaiah 30:15, “For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, ‘In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.’”

   When Jesus made his lament over Jerusalem, he associated himself with what God had already communicated about his desire for his people to return to him. If they would return and rest in him, he could save them. If they would quiet their lustful idolatrous hearts and trust in him, he would be their strength.

   However, the sad conclusion back then was a prelude to what the Messiah would face when he came, “But you were unwilling”. And the fact that God would put his heart on such glorious display and the people would be unwilling to attach to him breaks my heart. 

  Which brings us to Jesus’ return. There is coming a time when everyone will declare “‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’” The prophets said this would happen; Jesus amened that this would happen; Luke recorded Jesus’ words that this would happen, and Paul explains it even further: 

   Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11)

   This is what Jesus meant. At his return, EVERY knee will bow before him in acknowledgement that he is “King of kings and Lord of lords”. No one will stand in pride against him any longer. All will bow in submission.

   At the same time, EVERY tongue will “confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.” No more Youtubers declaring their arrogant atheism, no more science deceivers promoting the evolutionary religion, no more comedians mocking Jesus and his redemptive work. EVERY tongue will confess out loud that there is absolutely no doubt that Jesus Christ is Lord after all. 

   But just as Jesus warned Israel about the judgment coming on Jerusalem, God warns us in his word of what it will be like when Jesus returns to finalize his judgment on the world:

   Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” (Revelation 6:15-17)

   Jesus is “patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance” (II Peter 3:9). However, everyone in this lifetime shows their willingness or unwillingness to receive him. Those who refuse him will receive God’s justice against their sin. It is coming as surely as Jerusalem was destroyed in 70AD. 

   As to those who receive Jesus during this lifetime, here is how they will feel when Jesus returns and takes us home:

   After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” (Revelation 7:9-12)

   We will all praise and glorify Jesus Christ as Lord when he returns. Some will be his enemies who denied and dishonored him their whole lives. Others will be his friends who called on his name and received his gift of eternal life. 

   And God’s gift is in his word that calls us all to know and love Jesus Christ now so we can live with him in love forever. 

© 2025 Monte Vigh ~ Box 517, Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8

Email: in2freedom@gmail.com 

Unless otherwise noted, Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.)

On This Day: Answers Bigger Than Our Questions

   Peter said, “Lord, are you telling this parable for us or for all?” And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and get drunk, the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and put him with the unfaithful. And that servant who knew his master's will but did not get ready or act according to his will, will receive a severe beating. But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more. (Luke 12:41-48)

   Jesus was a Master at asking and answering questions. And, if we want to be like him in this, we best be ready to get in as much trouble as he did!

   Today, my attention was drawn to the parable Jesus told in response to Peter’s question about the previous parable. While it may look like Jesus wasn’t answering Peter, the fact was that he was giving an answer that would expose hearts (in a right brain way) instead of merely settle minds (in a left brain way). 

   One of the things involved in this is what Jesus already said about his parables. He explained to his disciples that he spoke in parables to differentiate between those who were in his kingdom and those who were not. To the disciples, “it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given” (Matthew 13:11). 

   What I realized not long ago was that Jesus would not give the secrets of his kingdom to those outside the kingdom because “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” (I Corinthians 2:14). 

   However, Paul clarified about believers, 

“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. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual” (I Corinthians 2:12-13).

   As we read the way Jesus asked questions, it was always to expose which hearts were hearing him and which were not. When he answered questions, it was always the right answer, even if it did not directly address the specifics of the questioner. 

   Today, this all became clear as I realized that by the time we finish meditating on Jesus’ answer to Peter, we will know if what he is teaching is for us or not. The way we will know is whether his words move us into the “obedience of faith” or leave us clueless and disinterested. 

    And one of the best encouragements when we feel like we aren’t sure we “get it” is that we find ourselves asking God more questions because we must know what Jesus means by the “secrets” of his kingdom. And as long as we keep asking, seeking, and knocking, we will keep receiving, finding, and opening doors. 

© 2025 Monte Vigh ~ Box 517, Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8

Email: in2freedom@gmail.com 

Unless otherwise noted, Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.)

On This Day: To Fear the One Who Calms Our Fears

   “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him! Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows. (Luke 12:4-7)

   I can still recall the before-and-after of John Newton’s words,

“'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace, my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.”

In my early years, this didn’t make sense. How could God’s “Amazing Grace” teach me to fear and relieve my fears at the same time?

   At some point, I came to understand the difference. God’s grace taught me to fear God in the reverent-love kind of way, while that same grace calmed my fears about being too unlovable for him to bother with me. 

   I do wonder if today’s text was in Newton’s mind as he wrote that stanza of his song. At the very least, what Jesus said in this passage is what John Newton was trying to express. And it is something that we must learn for ourselves to have a genuine sense of peace with God.

   If we replay the scenes of Scripture where people are told some expression of “Fear not!” or “Do not be afraid!”, we will find that these expressions often followed someone feeling afraid of God or his messengers. 

   One of the most familiar is when an angel appeared to some shepherds to announce the Savior’s birth. When “an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them… they were filled with great fear.” 

   However, “the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord’” (Luke 2:9-11). 

   This shows how one angel from the presence of God first brought the men to a state of fear of such awesome glory, but because of that same glory the angel could urge the men to “fear not” because the Almighty God of eternity was now sending his Son into the world as our Savior from sin. 

   After Jesus had secured our salvation through his death on the cross, we see another scene where a fear-reaction for some is a fear-calming encounter for others. Matthew writes that “an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men.” The angel’s sudden appearance was terrifying to the guards who had never trusted in Jesus as the Savior.

   However, “the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you’” (Matthew 28:2-7).

   Again, the same angel that caused such a debilitating fear because of his expression of God’s glory was the source of a fear-calming announcement of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, the most joyful thing those grief-stricken women could ever have heard.

   Today, I realized this is another one of those “replacement policy” scenarios with God. He tells us to “not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). We don’t stop thinking of the scenarios that are freaking us out, but we bring those very concerns to God in prayer so that we feel his peace instead of our turmoil.

   In the same way, we don’t focus on the negative of trying to not be afraid of scary people. Instead, we focus on fearing God for real so that all our other fears are put to rest. It may be another one of those “simple but not easy” facets of “the obedience of faith”, but it is the will of God for us to relate to him like that.

   Today, “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). And that includes seeking to know the grace that calms our fears in the fear and reverence of our loving heavenly Father. 

© 2025 Monte Vigh ~ Box 517, Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8

Email: in2freedom@gmail.com 

Unless otherwise noted, Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.)

On This Day: Repentance is the Greatest Kindness

   When the crowds were increasing, he began to say, “This generation is an evil generation. It seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah. For as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. (Luke 11:29-32)

   I sometimes marvel at how different Jesus was from our North American church culture. If we hear that “crowds were increasing” to hear about Jesus, we lean to making sure we don’t offend anyone and ruin the moment. Jesus used the opportunity to shoot an arrow at the bull’s eye and see who noticed.

   I think I understood from a young age that repentance had to do with sin. It had something to do with admitting we were sinners. But it wasn’t the same as making an apology, or saying, “I’m sorry” and then promising to never do it again. 

   At some point, I understood that repentance is focused on a change of mind, not merely a change of behavior. In other words, while someone can change their behavior to try pleasing someone, or to avoid getting in trouble, it doesn’t mean they have changed their mind about what they believe is most satisfying in life. 

   Repentance, on the other hand, begins with a change of mind that then changes our behavior based on new beliefs and values. It is consistent with everything God does that aims at giving us new hearts so we can live in “the newness of life”. 

   In repentance, someone changes their mind about loving sin and hating God to loving God and hating sin. This change of mindstate obviously changes how we live since the things we love have reversed. When we did things out of love of sin, it certainly looked different than when we now do things out of love of God. 

   We can see the goodness of God in this as Jesus told the Jewish people that they were an evil generation. It would not be loving of Jesus to leave them perishing in their sins just because they thought they were okay because Abraham was their father. They had to understand that no earthly heritage can make up for our sin. Only being born again through an experience of repentance and faith can make us right with God. 

   When we hear Jesus call a growing crowd an evil generation, we must first deal with whatever is wrong with us in our evil world. But when we get right with God in repentance and faith, we must accept that it is a great kindness when we seek to show people “the whole counsel of God” in relation to both sin and salvation because “there is salvation in no one else (speaking of Jesus), for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

   It is still very much on my heart and mind that we must “Humble ourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt us, casting all our anxieties on him, because he cares for us” (I Peter 5:6-7, tense adjusted to fit the grammar). Repentance is a gift-word to describe how we humble ourselves concerning our sin, and faith is a gift-word to describe how we humble ourselves concerning our Savior.

   There is a plumbline reality called “speaking the truth in love” that causes us “to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ” (Ephesians 4:15). Jesus spoke the truth in love to a crowd that had no clue how sinful they were, and how much judgment was against them. In his kindness, he was seeking to bring them to repentance for the forgiveness of their sins and the gift of eternal life. 

   There is clearly something in there we need for ourselves, and something we need to imitate in loving others as Jesus has loved us. 

© 2025 Monte Vigh ~ Box 517, Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8

Email: in2freedom@gmail.com 

Unless otherwise noted, Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.)