John 8:34-44; John 8:51-59; Acts 7:1-7; Romans 4; James 2:16-26; Acts 3:20-26; 2 Corinthians 11:17-22; Galatians 3:16; Galatians 3:24-29; Hebrews 2:11-18

John 8:34-44

34 Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, every one who commits sin is a slave to sin.

35 The slave does not continue in the house for ever; the son continues for ever.

36 So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

37 I know that you are descendants of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me, because my word finds no place in you.

38 I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father."

39 They answered him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do what Abraham did,

40 but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth which I heard from God; this is not what Abraham did.

41 You do what your father did." They said to him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God."

42 Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I proceeded and came forth from God; I came not of my own accord, but he sent me.

43 Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word.

44 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

John 8:51-59

51 Truly, truly, I say to you, if any one keeps my word, he will never see death."

52 The Jews said to him, "Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died, as did the prophets; and you say, 'If any one keeps my word, he will never taste death.'

53 Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you claim to be?"

54 Jesus answered, "If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing; it is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say that he is your God.

55 But you have not known him; I know him. If I said, I do not know him, I should be a liar like you; but I do know him and I keep his word.

56 Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was to see my day; he saw it and was glad."

57 The Jews then said to him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?"

58 Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am."

59 So they took up stones to throw at him; but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple.

Acts 7:1-7

1 And the high priest said, "Is this so?"

2 And Stephen said: "Brethren and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopota'mia, before he lived in Haran,

3 and said to him, 'Depart from your land and from your kindred and go into the land which I will show you.'

4 Then he departed from the land of the Chalde'ans, and lived in Haran. And after his father died, God removed him from there into this land in which you are now living;

5 yet he gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot's length, but promised to give it to him in possession and to his posterity after him, though he had no child.

6 And God spoke to this effect, that his posterity would be aliens in a land belonging to others, who would enslave them and ill-treat them four hundred years.

7 'But I will judge the nation which they serve,' said God, 'and after that they shall come out and worship me in this place.'

Romans 4

1 What then shall we say about Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh?

2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.

3 For what does the scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness."

4 Now to one who works, his wages are not reckoned as a gift but as his due.

5 And to one who does not work but trusts him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness.

6 So also David pronounces a blessing upon the man to whom God reckons righteousness apart from works:

7 "Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered;

8 blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not reckon his sin."

9 Is this blessing pronounced only upon the circumcised, or also upon the uncircumcised? We say that faith was reckoned to Abraham as righteousness.

10 How then was it reckoned to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised.

11 He received circumcision as a sign or seal of the righteousness which he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised and who thus have righteousness reckoned to them,

12 and likewise the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised but also follow the example of the faith which our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.

13 The promise to Abraham and his descendants, that they should inherit the world, did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith.

14 If it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void.

15 For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression.

16 That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants--not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham, for he is the father of us all,

17 as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations" --in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.

18 In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations; as he had been told, "So shall your descendants be."

19 He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead because he was about a hundred years old, or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb.

20 No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God,

21 fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.

22 That is why his faith was "reckoned to him as righteousness."

23 But the words, "it was reckoned to him," were written not for his sake alone,

24 but for ours also. It will be reckoned to us who believe in him that raised from the dead Jesus our Lord,

25 who was put to death for our trespasses and raised for our justification.

James 2:16-26

16 and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what does it profit?

17 So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.

18 But some one will say, "You have faith and I have works." Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith.

19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe--and shudder.

20 Do you want to be shown, you shallow man, that faith apart from works is barren?

21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar?

22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by works,

23 and the scripture was fulfilled which says, "Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness"; and he was called the friend of God.

24 You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.

25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the harlot justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?

26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so faith apart from works is dead.

Acts 3:20-26

20 and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus,

21 whom heaven must receive until the time for establishing all that God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old.

22 Moses said, 'The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet from your brethren as he raised me up. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you.

23 And it shall be that every soul that does not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed from the people.'

24 And all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those who came afterwards, also proclaimed these days.

25 You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God gave to your fathers, saying to Abraham, 'And in your posterity shall all the families of the earth be blessed.'

26 God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you in turning every one of you from your wickedness."

2 Corinthians 11:17-22

17 (What I am saying I say not with the Lord's authority but as a fool, in this boastful confidence;

18 since many boast of worldly things, I too will boast.)

19 For you gladly bear with fools, being wise yourselves!

20 For you bear it if a man makes slaves of you, or preys upon you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in the face.

21 To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that! But whatever any one dares to boast of--I am speaking as a fool--I also dare to boast of that.

22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I.

Galatians 3:16

16 Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, "And to offsprings," referring to many; but, referring to one, "And to your offspring," which is Christ.

Galatians 3:24-29

24 So that the law was our custodian until Christ came, that we might be justified by faith.

25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a custodian;

26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.

27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.

Hebrews 2:11-18

11 For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified have all one origin. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brethren,

12 saying, "I will proclaim thy name to my brethren, in the midst of the congregation I will praise thee."

13 And again, "I will put my trust in him." And again, "Here am I, and the children God has given me."

14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same nature, that through death he might destroy him who has the power of death, that is, the devil,

15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong bondage.

16 For surely it is not with angels that he is concerned but with the descendants of Abraham.

17 Therefore he had to be made like his brethren in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make expiation for the sins of the people.

18 For because he himself has suffered and been tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.