Stop Sinning but Keep Forgiving
1Jesus told his disciples, “It’s inevitable. There are going to be obstacles out there that could trip you up. But I’ve got bad news for the people sticking their feet out and doing the tripping. Their time is coming. 2For those people who cause these little ones to stumble, it would be better for them if someone tied a rock around their neck and pitched them in the sea.3“Stay alert. If your brother commits a sin, tell him about it. And if he says he’s sorry, forgive him. 4If he commits a sin that hurts you, and he does it seven times a day, and seven times he tells you he’s sorry, go ahead and forgive him.”
5The apostles told Jesus, “Give us more faith.”
6The Lord said, “If you had the faith of a tiny mustard seed, [1] you could tell that sycamore tree [2] over there, ‘Pull up roots. Now go plant yourself in the sea.’ And it would do it.
Don’t Get a Big Head
7“If you have a slave who comes in from plowing the field or watching the sheep, are you going to tell him, ‘Come on over here and relax now. Let’s have dinner together’? 8Aren’t you more likely to say, ‘Okay, I’m hungry. Fix me something to eat. After that, go change your dirty clothes and serve me my food. When I’m done, you can eat’?9“Does the master thank the slave for doing the work the slave is supposed to do? 10Think of yourself as the slave. When you have done the work you are supposed to do, don’t get a big head about it. Say, ‘We’re just doing our job.’”
Jesus Heals 10 Lepers
11As Jesus continued his trip toward Jerusalem, he came to the southern border of Galilee, beside the region of Samaria. 12He walked into one of the villages along the border.Ten men with leprosy [3] came to meet him. Normally, lepers kept their distance from healthy people. 13They cried out, “Jesus, Teacher, please help us!”
14He saw them and he simply said, “Go, let the priests take a good look at you.” [4] As they started walking away, they saw that their skin diseases had been healed. 15One of the men turned around and went back to Jesus, screaming his thanks to God. 16When the man reached Jesus, he fell flat on his face at Jesus’s feet and started thanking him. The man was a Samaritan. [5]
17Jesus said, “Weren’t there 10 of you I healed? Where did the other nine go? 18The only one who bothered to come back and express his gratitude to God is this foreigner who’s not a Jew?”
19Jesus told the man, “You can get up and go on your way now. You have faith, and it has saved [6] you.”
When the Kingdom Comes
20A group of Pharisees asked Jesus when the kingdom of God was going to get here. Jesus told them, “You won’t see the kingdom of God coming. 21No one is going to say, ‘Hey, everybody, here it is!’ or ‘Oh my goodness, it’s over there!’ Look, I’ll tell you why. The kingdom of God is already here among you.”22Jesus told the disciples, “The time is coming when you’d love to have one of these days [7] back—one of these days with the Son of Humans. [8] But that’ll be impossible. 23People will say to you, ‘Look, there he is!’ Or they’ll say, ‘Look, you’ll find him at this location.’ Don’t believe it. Don’t try to chase down those leads. 24When the Son of Humans comes back, you’ll know it. It’ll be as obvious as a lightning flash that fills the sky, booming from one end to the other. 25But before that happens, he’s going to have to suffer. A lot. He’ll be rejected by this generation of human beings.
26“When the Son of Humans comes back, the world will be much like it was in the days of Noah. 27Everything seemed normal until the flood came. The people were going about their everyday lives: eating, drinking, and getting married. Then Noah got into the boat, the flood came, and everyone outside died.
28“The world will also be very much like it was in the days of Lot. The people ate, drank, bought and sold, planted, and built. 29When Lot left the city of Sodom, a firestorm of burning sulfur rained down from the sky and killed everyone there. 30That’s the kind of shocking interruption people can expect when the Son of Humans appears. 31When that day comes, a person on their deck or patio won’t have time to go into the house and pack their clothes for a trip. The person working out in the field won’t have time to go back to the house. 32Remember what happened to Lot’s wife. [9]
33“People who try to save themselves will die trying. It’s the people who lose their lives who will be saved. 34I’m telling you this and you’d better believe it, that day two people will be sleeping together in bed, but one will be taken and the other left.
35“Two women will be grinding grain into flour. One will be taken and the other left. 36Two men will be working in the field together. One will be taken, the other left.” [10]
37The disciples asked Jesus, “Where is this going to happen, sir?”
Jesus said, “When you want to find a dead body, look for the vultures.”
