Christmas Plan

¹⁶For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on a Sabbath.

¹⁷But He answered them, “My Fatheris working until now, and I Myself am working.”

¹⁸For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

¹⁹Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whateverthe Father does, these things the Son also does in the same way.

²⁰For the Father loves the Son and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will be amazed.

²¹For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes.

²²For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son,

²³so that all will honor the Son just as they honor the Father. The one who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.

²⁴“Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.

²⁵Truly, truly, I say to you, a time is coming and even now has arrived, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.

²⁶For just as the Father has life in Himself, so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself;

²⁷and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He isthe Son of Man.

²⁸Do not be amazed at this; fora time is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear His voice,

²⁹and will come out: those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the bad deeds to a resurrection of judgment.

³⁰“I can do nothing on My own. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of Him who sent Me.

⁴⁸The Jews answered and said to Him, “Do we not rightly say that You are a Samaritan, and You have a demon?”

⁴⁹Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon; on the contrary, I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.

⁵⁰But I am not seeking My glory; there is One who seeks it, and judges.

⁵¹Truly, truly I say to you, if anyone follows My word, he will never see death.”

⁵²The Jews said to Him, “Now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets as well; and yet You say, ‘If anyone follows My word, he will never taste of death.’

⁵³You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died, are You? The prophets died too. Whom do You make Yourself out to be?”

⁵⁴Jesus answered, “If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God’;

⁵⁵and you have not come to know Him, but I know Him. And if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you; but I do know Him, and I follow His word.

⁵⁶Your father Abraham was overjoyed that he would see My day, and he saw it and rejoiced.”

⁵⁷So the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and You have seen Abraham?”

⁵⁸Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly I say to you, before Abrahamwas born,I am.”

⁵⁹Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and left the temple grounds.

¹⁷Now it happened after these things that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became sick; and his condition became very grave, until at the end he was no longer breathing.

¹⁸So she said to Elijah, “Why is my business any of yours, you man of God? Yet you have come to me to bring my wrongdoing to remembrance, and to put my son to death!”

¹⁹But he said to her, “Give me your son.” Then he took him from her arms and carried him up to the upstairs room where he was living, and laid him on his own bed.

²⁰And he called to the LORD and said, “LORD, my God, have You also brought catastrophe upon the widow with whom I am staying, by causing her son to die?”

²¹Then he stretched himself out over the boy three times, and called to the LORD and said, “LORD, my God, please, let this boy’s life return to him.”

²²And the LORD listened to the voice of Elijah, and the life of the boy returned to him and he revived.

²³Elijah then took the boy and brought him down from the upstairs room into the house and gave him to his mother; and Elijah said, “See, your son is alive.”

²⁴Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in your mouth is truth.”