Bible verses about "recognition" | AUV

¹ “Be careful that you do not do your good deeds in front of people for the purpose of being seen by them, for [if you do] you will not have a reward from your Father in heaven. ² “Therefore, when you give money to help poor people, do not blow a trumpet in front of you [i.e., to call attention to it] as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and streets. They do this in order to win praise from people. It is true when I say to you, they have [already] received their reward. ³ But when you give money to help poor people, do not allow your left hand to know what your right hand is doing [i.e., do it inconspicuously] ⁴ so that your giving to poor people may be done secretly. Then your Father, who sees what is done secretly, will pay you back. ⁵ “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners [i.e., in prominent view of everyone] in order to be seen [and praised] by people. ⁶ But when you pray, go to a private place and after closing the door, pray to your Father who is in a secret place, and [since] He sees in secret places, He will reward you. ⁷ And when you pray, do not use worthless repetitions like the [unconverted] Gentiles, for they think their lengthy, repetitious wording [in prayer] is more likely to be heard [by God]. ⁸ So, do not be like them, for your Father [already] knows what things you need, [even] before you ask Him. ⁹ Therefore, you should pray this way: ‘Our Father in heaven, may your name be highly honored. ¹⁰ May your kingdom come [to earth]; may your will be done on earth just as it is [already being done] in heaven. ¹¹ Give us our [needed] food for the day. ¹² And forgive us of the wrongs we have done to others, since we have also forgiven the wrongs done to us. ¹³ And do not allow us to fall under temptation, but deliver us from [being harmed by] the evil one.’ ¹⁴ For if you forgive the wrongs people have done [to you], your heavenly Father will also forgive the wrongs you have done [to Him]. ¹⁵ But if you do not forgive the wrongs people have done [to you], neither will your Father forgive the wrongs you have done [to Him]. ¹⁶ “In addition, when you fast [i.e., go without food and/or drink for religious reasons], do not be like the hypocrites with long faces, for they go around with gloomy expressions on their faces in order to advertise that they are fasting. It is true when I say to you, these people have [already] received their reward. ¹⁷ But when you fast, groom your hair and wash your face ¹⁸ so that people will not see that you are fasting, but [only] your Father who is in secret [will know about it]. For, [since] He sees [what is done] in secret, He will repay you. ¹⁹ “Do not store your valuables [here] on earth, where moths can eat them and where rust can corrode them, and where burglars can break in and steal [them]. ²⁰ But [rather] store up your valuables in heaven [i.e., by investing your life in spiritual things], where neither moths can eat nor rust corrode, nor burglars break in and steal, ²¹ for wherever [you store] your valuables, that is where your heart [i.e., your real concern] will be also. ²² Your eye is [like] a lamp to your body [i.e., your life]. If your eye sees things correctly, [then] your whole body [i.e., your entire life] will be illuminated [i.e., be directed into proper conduct]. ²³ But if your eye sees things wrongly, [then] your whole body [i.e., your entire life] will be full of darkness [i.e., will not be lived properly]. If therefore, the light you have is [really] darkness [i.e., if you are not seeing life properly], that darkness will be very great [i.e., you cannot possibly live properly]. ²⁴ No person can serve two masters, for he will either hate the one and love the other, or else he will cling to the one and look down on the other. You cannot serve God and material things [at the same time]. ²⁵ “So I tell you, do not worry about [the material things of] your life, [such as] what you will eat or what you will drink, or about what you will wear on your body. There are more important things in life than food, and more important things about your body than the clothing you wear. ²⁶ Look at the birds in the sky; they do not plant seeds or harvest [a crop] or store [things] in barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them [adequately]. Are you not a lot more valuable than they are? ²⁷ And which one of you can worry yourself into living a single day longer? ²⁸ And why are you worrying about clothing? Consider how [wild] lilies grow in a field; they do not work or weave, ²⁹ yet I tell you that even Solomon, clothed in his very finest royal robes, was never dressed [as luxuriously] as one of these flowers. ³⁰ So, if God so [beautifully] dresses the grass in a field, which is [green] today, and [then] tomorrow [dries up and] is thrown in the oven [i.e., as fuel], will He not do even more in providing your clothing, you people with such little faith? ³¹ Therefore, do not worry by asking, ‘What are we going to eat?’ or ‘What are we going to drink?’ or ‘What are we going to wear?’ ³² For these are the things that the [unconverted] Gentiles keep trying to get. But your heavenly Father [already] knows you need these things. ³³ So, you should put the kingdom of God and what He says is right first [in your lives], then all these things [i.e., food, drink and clothing] will be provided for you. ³⁴ Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will have enough to be worried about in itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

³¹ “But when the Son of man comes [back] in [all] His splendor, accompanied by all the angels, then He will sit on His throne of splendor. ³² And people from all the nations will be assembled in front of Him and He will separate them from one another, like a shepherd separating his sheep from the goats. ³³ He will place the sheep at His right side, but the goats at His left. ³⁴ Then the King will say to those at His right side, ‘You who are blessed by my Father, come and receive the kingdom which has been prepared for you since the creation of the world, ³⁵ for [when] I was hungry, you fed me; [when] I was thirsty, you gave me [something] to drink; [when] I came [to you as] a stranger, you gave me a place to stay; ³⁶ when I was without adequate clothing, you gave me something to wear; [when] I was sick, you came to visit me; [when] I was in prison, you came to see me.’ ³⁷ Then those who had done what was right [i.e., the ones at His right side] replied, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you? Or thirsty, and give you [something] to drink? ³⁸ And when [did you come as] a stranger, and we gave you a place to stay? Or [when were you] without adequate clothing, and we gave you something to wear? ³⁹ And when did we see you sick or in prison and come to visit you?’ ⁴⁰ And the King will answer them and say, ‘Truly I tell you, since you did all this for one of my least [significant] brothers, you did it for me.’ ⁴¹ Then He [i.e., the King] will say to those at His left side, ‘Go away from me, you who are cursed [by God], into the never ending fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels. ⁴² For [when] I was hungry, you did not feed me; [when] I was thirsty, you did not give me anything to drink; ⁴³ [when] I came [to you as] a stranger, you did not give me a place to stay; [when I] did not have adequate clothing, you did not give me anything to wear; when I was sick, or in prison, you did not visit me.’ ⁴⁴ They will reply, ‘Lord, when did we [ever] see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or inadequately dressed, or sick, or in prison, and not provide for your needs?’ ⁴⁵ Then the Lord will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, since you did not do it for one of these least [significant brothers of mine], you did not do it for me.’ ⁴⁶ And these [i.e., the ones at His left side] will go away to never ending punishment, but those who did what was right will go to never ending life.”

¹ So, I urge you, brothers, because God is so merciful [to us], to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, [fully] dedicated and very pleasing to God. For this is a reasonable [or spiritual] way for you to worship [or serve] Him.

¹⁷ Every good thing that is given and every perfect gift [received] is from above, coming down from the Father of [heavenly] lights, with whom there can be no change or shifting shadow [i.e., God always remains the same].

²¹ His master replied, ‘Well done, you are a good and trustworthy servant. You have been trustworthy over a [relatively] few things, so I will place you over many things. Come and share in your master’s joy.’

¹ The Word [already] existed in the beginning [of time]. [Note: This is a reference to the preexistence of Jesus. See verse 14]. And the Word was with God and the Word was [what] God [was]. ² This Word existed with God from the beginning [of time]. ³ Everything came into being through this Word, and apart from Him not a single thing came into being. ⁴ Life existed in Him; and that Life [was what] enlightened mankind [spiritually]. ⁵ And [His] light continued to shine, [even] in the darkness [of the world], and that darkness did not overcome Him [or, did not fully understand Him]. ⁶ There was a man sent from God whose name was John [the Immerser]. ⁷ He came to be a witness, so that he might testify concerning that Light, so that all people would believe [in Jesus] through him [i.e., through his testimony. See Acts 19:4]. ⁸ He himself was not that Light, but came [only] to testify concerning that Light. ⁹ [Now] the true Light, who enlightens all mankind, was [indeed] coming into the world [i.e., to earth]. ¹⁰ [Actually] He was in the world [already], for the world came into being through Him, but the world did not acknowledge Him. ¹¹ [Then] He came to His own [world, while on earth], but His own [people, the Israelites] did not welcome Him. ¹² But He gave all those who did welcome Him the opportunity of becoming children of God by believing in His name [i.e., as the Messiah]. ¹³ [Such people] were born of God, not of blood ties [i.e., from physical descendants], nor of the will of the flesh [i.e., merely from a sexual desire], nor of the will of man [i.e., from a husband’s desire for offspring]. ¹⁴ [Eventually] this Word became a human being and lived among us [Note: The word “lived” here refers to pitching a temporary tent]. (And we saw His splendor; such splendor as belongs to the Father’s only Son), full of God’s favor and truth. ¹⁵ John gave testimony about Jesus, shouting out, “This person is the one about whom I said, ‘He who will come after me ranks above me because He existed before me.’” ¹⁶ For we have all received from His full richness one favor after another. ¹⁷ For the law was given through Moses; [but] God’s favor and truth came through Jesus Christ. ¹⁸ No one has ever seen God [i.e., His full splendor], but God, the only conceived [and eventually born Son], who is at the Father’s side, has shown us who He is. ¹⁹ And this is the testimony John [the Immerser] gave when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” [Note: Levites were men who assisted the priests in the Temple service]. ²⁰ Then he declared openly, without denying it, “I am not the Christ [i.e., God’s specially chosen one].” ²¹ So, they asked him, “Who then [are you]? Are you Elijah [i.e., returned from the dead]?” But he answered, “[No], I am not.” “[Then], are you the prophet [i.e., Moses. See Deut. 18:15-19]?” they asked. And he answered, “No.” ²² So, they asked him [again], “[Then], who are you? We need to take back an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” ²³ He replied, “I am the voice of a man who is calling out in the desert, [urging people to] ‘Make the road for the Lord straight,’ as Isaiah the prophet said, [Isa. 40:3].” ²⁴ Now those who were sent [i.e., to question John] were Pharisees [i.e., a strict sect of the Jewish religion]. ²⁵ They asked him, “Why do you immerse people then, if you are not the Christ, or Elijah, or the prophet [Moses]?” ²⁶ So, John answered them, saying, “I am immersing people in water, but there is Someone among you whom you do not recognize. ²⁷ He is the One who will follow my ministry; [and] I do not deserve to untie his sandal lace.” ²⁸ These things happened in Bethany on the east side of the Jordan River where John was immersing people. [Note: This was a different Bethany from the one just outside of Jerusalem]. ²⁹ On the next day John [the Immerser] saw Jesus approaching him and said, “Look, [there is] the Lamb of God; He [will] take away the sin of the people of the world. ³⁰ He is the One about whom I said, ‘A man will come after me who ranks above me, for He existed before me.’ ³¹ And I would not have recognized Him, but I came immersing people in water so that He would become known to the Israelites.” ³² So, John gave his testimony, saying, “I have seen the Holy Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and it remained on Him. ³³ And I did not recognize Him, but He [i.e., God], who sent me to immerse in water, said to me, ‘The one on whom you see the Holy Spirit descending and remaining is the same One who [will] immerse people in the Holy Spirit.’ ³⁴ And I have seen and given testimony that this person is the Son of God.” ³⁵ Then on the following day John was standing [there] again with two of his disciples. ³⁶ And when he saw Jesus walking by, he said, “Look, [there is] the Lamb of God!” ³⁷ [When] the two disciples heard him say that, they began following Jesus. ³⁸ Then Jesus turned and saw them following [Him] and said to them, “What are you looking for?” And they answered Him, “Rabbi (which means Teacher), where are you staying?” ³⁹ Then He said to them, “Come, and you will see.” So, they went and saw where He was staying and they stayed with Him that day. It was about ten o’clock in the morning. [Note: Hour designations in this book are being calculated by Roman time, but this would have been 4 PM if Jewish time were meant]. ⁴⁰ One of the two men who had listened to John and had become a follower of Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. ⁴¹ The first thing Andrew did was to find his own brother Simon and say to him, “We have found the Messiah (which means Christ [i.e., God’s specially chosen one]).” ⁴² So, Andrew brought Simon Peter to Jesus. [And when] Jesus saw him, He said [to him], “You are Simon, the son of John [Note: Peter’s father is called Jonah in Matt. 16:17]; you will be called Cephas (which means Peter [i.e., “a stone.” See Matt. 16:18]).” ⁴³ [Then] on the next day He [i.e., Jesus, but some think it refers to Peter or Andrew] decided to travel into Galilee, [and there] He found Philip. Jesus said to Philip, “Become my follower.” ⁴⁴ Now Philip was from Bethsaida, Andrew’s and Peter’s home town. [Note: This town was on the northwest shore of Lake Galilee, a few miles from Capernaum]. ⁴⁵ [Then] Philip found Nathaniel [i.e., the same as Bartholomew. See Matt. 10:3] and said to him, “We have found Him, the one Moses wrote about in the law; and the prophets [also wrote about Him]. [He is] Jesus from Nazareth, the [step-] son of Joseph.” ⁴⁶ Nathaniel replied to him, “Can anything worthwhile come from Nazareth?” [Note: Nazareth had a bad reputation and Jewish writings made no prediction of a prophet coming from that area. See John 7:52]. Philip answered him, “Come and see.” ⁴⁷ [As] Jesus saw Nathaniel coming toward Him, He said [this] about him, “Look, [there is] a true Israelite, a completely honest man!” ⁴⁸ Nathaniel asked Jesus, “How did you know me?” Jesus answered him, “I saw you when you were under that fig tree, [even] before Philip called you.” ⁴⁹ Nathaniel replied to Him, “Rabbi [i.e., Teacher], you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” ⁵⁰ Jesus said to him, “Do you believe [in me just] because I told you, ‘I saw you under that fig tree’? You will see [even] greater things than these [happen].” ⁵¹ Then Jesus said to him, “Truly, truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened up and the angels of God going up [from] and coming down on the Son of man” [i.e., probably a reference to angels ministering to Jesus’ needs. See Matt. 4:6, 11; Luke 22:43].

³⁵ I have demonstrated before you a [good] example in all [these] things, so that you [too] will work hard to help those who are [physically] weak. [Also] remember the words of the Lord Jesus who Himself said, 'It is a greater blessing [for you] to give [to people's needs] than to receive [help yourselves].' "

¹² Be joyful as you hope [i.e., for future blessings]. Persevere in spite of the troubles you experience. Continue steadfastly in prayer.

²³ In whatever you do, work wholeheartedly, as though it were for the Lord and not [just] for people,