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As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.
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Jesus Is Tested in the Wilderness
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
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The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
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Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
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Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple.
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“If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”
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“All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”
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Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.
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Jesus Begins to Preach
When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee.
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Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali—
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“Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
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From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
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Jesus Calls His First Disciples
As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.
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“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”
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Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them,
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and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
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Jesus Heals the Sick
Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.
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News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them.
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Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him.
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Introduction to the Sermon on the Mount
Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him,
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and he began to teach them.
The Beatitudes
He said:
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“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
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Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
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Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
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Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
