Bible verses about "stagnation" | Twentieth_Century

² like newly born infants, crave pure spiritual milk, so that you may be enabled by it to grow till you attain Salvation--

¹ To the Angel of the Church in Ephesus write:-- "These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, and walks among the seven golden lamps:-- ² I know your life, your toil and endurance, and I know that you cannot tolerate evil-doers. I know, too, how you tested those who declare that they are Apostles, though they are not, and how you proved them false. ³ You possess endurance, and have borne much for my Name, and have never grown weary. ⁴ But this I have against you--You have abandoned your first love. ⁵ Therefore remember from what you have fallen, and repent, and live the life that you lived before; or else, I will come and remove your Lamp from its place, unless you repent. ⁶ But this is in your favor--You hate the life lived by the Nikolaitans, and I also hate it. ⁷ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches. To him who conquers-- to him I will give the right 'to eat the fruit of the Tree of life, which stands in the Paradise of God.' " ⁸ To the Angel of the Church in Smyrna write:-- "These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died, but is restored to life:-- ⁹ I know your persecution and your poverty--yet you are rich! I know, too, the slander that come from those who declare that they are Jews, though they are not, but are a Congregation of Satan. ¹⁰ Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. The Devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tempted, and may undergo persecution for ten days. Be faithful even to death, and I will give you the Crown of Life. ¹¹ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches. He who conquers shall suffer no hurt from the Second Death." ¹² To the Angel of the Church in Pergamus write:-- "These are the words of him who holds the sharp two-edged sword:-- ¹³ I know where you dwell, where the Throne of Satan stands. And yet you hold to my Name, and you did not disown my Faith even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death among you where Satan dwells. ¹⁴ Yet I have a few things against you--You have among you those who hold to the Teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put temptations in the way of the Israelites, so that they should eat idol-offerings and commit licentious acts. ¹⁵ Again you have among you those who hold in the same way to the Teaching of the Nikolaitans. ¹⁶ Therefore repent, or else, I will come quickly and contend with such men with words that will cut like a sword. ¹⁷ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches. To him who conquers-- to him I will give a share of the mystic manna, and I will give him a white stone; and on the stone shall be inscribed a new name, which no one knows except him who receives it." ¹⁸ To the Angel of the Church in Thyatira write:-- "These are the words of the Son of God, 'whose eyes are like flaming fire, and whose feet are like brass':-- ¹⁹ I know your life, your love, faith, service, and endurance; and I know that your life of late has been better than it was at first. ²⁰ Yet I have this against you--You tolerate the woman Jezebel, who declares that she is a Prophetess, and misleads my servants by her teaching, till they commit licentious acts and eat idol-offerings. ²¹ I gave her time to repent, but she is determined not to turn from her licentiousness. ²² Therefore I am laying her upon a bed of sickness, and bringing great suffering upon those who are unfaithful with her, unless they repent and turn from a life like hers. ²³ I will also put her children to death; and all the Churches shall learn that I am he who 'looks into the hearts and souls of men'; and I will give to each one of you what his life deserves. ²⁴ But I say to the rest of you at Thyatira--all who do not accept such teaching, whose who did not learn 'the secrets of Satan,' as men call them--I am not laying on you any further burden; ²⁵ only hold fast to what you have received, until I come. ²⁶ To him who conquers and is careful to live my life to the end--to him I will give authority over the nations, ²⁷ and 'he shall rule them with an iron rod, as when earthen vessels are broken in pieces' (as I myself have received from my Father) ²⁸ and I will give him the Morning Star. ²⁹ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches."

¹ To the Angel of the Church in Sardis write:-- "These are the words of him who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars;--I know your life, and that men say of you that you are living, though you are dead. ² Be on the watch, and strengthen what still survives, though once it was all but dead; for I have not found your life perfect in the eyes of my God. ³ Therefore remember what you have received and heard, and lay it to heart and repent. Unless you are on the watch, I shall come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I am coming to you. ⁴ Yet there are some few among you at Sardis who did not soil their robes; they shall walk with me, robed in white, for they are worthy. ⁵ He who conquers shall be clothed in these white robes, and I will not 'strike his name out of the Book of Life'; but I will own him before my Father, and before his angels. ⁶ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches." ⁷ To the Angel of the Church in Philadelphia write:-- "These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds 'the Key of David, who opens and no one shall shut, and shuts and no one opens':-- ⁸ I know your life (see, I have set a door open before you which no one is able to shut), I know that, though you have but little strength, you kept my teaching in mind, and did not disown my Name. ⁹ Listen, I give some of the Congregation of Satan, the men who declare that they are Jews, though they are not, but are lying----I will make them 'come and bow down at your feet,' and they shall learn that I loved you. ¹⁰ Because you kept in mind the story of my endurance, I will keep you in the hour of trial that is about to come upon the whole world, the hour that will test all who are living upon earth. ¹¹ I will come quickly. Hold to what you have received, that no one may take your crown. ¹² He who conquers--I will make him a pillar in the Temple of my God; and never more shall he leave it; and I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the City of my God, the New Jerusalem, which is coming down out of Heaven from my God, and I will write on him my new name. ¹³ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches." ¹⁴ To the Angel of the Church in Laodicaea write:-- "These are the words of the Unchanging One, 'the Witness faithful and true, the Beginning of the Creation of God':-- ¹⁵ I know your life; I know that you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! ¹⁶ But now, because you are lukewarm, neither hot not cold, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ¹⁷ You say 'I am rich and have grown rich, and I want for nothing,' and you do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, naked! ¹⁸ Therefore I counsel you to buy from me gold which has been refined by fire, that you may grow rich; and white robes, that you may be clothed and your shameful nakedness be hidden; and ointment to anoint your eyes, that you may see. ¹⁹ 'All whom I love I rebuke and discipline.' Therefore be in earnest and repent. ²⁰ I am standing at the door and knocking! If any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will go in, and will feast with him, and he shall feast with me. ²¹ To him who conquers--to him I will give the right to sit beside me on my throne, as I, when I conquered, took my seat beside my Father on his throne. ²² Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches."

¹ That same day, when Jesus had left the house and was sitting by the Sea, ² such great crowds gathered round him, that he got into a boat, and sat in it, while all the people stood upon the beach. ³ Then he told them many truths in parables. "The sower," he began, "went out to sow; and, ⁴ As he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. ⁵ Some fell on rocky places, where it had not much soil, and, having no depth of soil, sprang up at once. ⁶ As soon as the sun had risen, it was scorched, and, having no root, withered away. ⁷ Some, again, fell into the brambles; but the brambles shot up and choked it. ⁸ Some, however, fell on good soil, and yielded a return, sometimes one hundred, sometimes sixty, sometimes thirty fold. ⁹ Let him who has ears hear." ¹⁰ Afterwards his disciples came to him, and said: "Why do you speak to them in parables?" ¹¹ "To you," answered Jesus, "the knowledge of the hidden truths of the Kingdom of Heaven has been imparted, but not to those. ¹² For, to all who have, more will be given, and they shall have abundance; but, from all who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. ¹³ That is why I speak to them in parables, because, though they have eyes, they do not see, and though they have ears, they do not hear or understand. ¹⁴ And in them is being fulfilled that prophecy of Isaiah which says--'You will hear with your ears without ever understanding, And, though you have eyes, you will see without ever perceiving, ¹⁵ For the mind of this nation has grown dense, And their ears are dull of hearing, Their eyes also have they closed; Lest some day they should perceive with their eyes, And with their ears they should hear, And in their mind they should understand, and should turn--And I should heal them.' ¹⁶ But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear; ¹⁷ For I tell you that many Prophets and good men have longed for the sight of the things which you are seeing, yet never saw them, and to hear the things which you are hearing, yet never heard them. ¹⁸ Listen, then, yourselves to the parable of the Sower. ¹⁹ When any one hears the Message of the Kingdom without understanding it, the Evil One comes and snatches away what has been sown in his mind. This is the man meant by the seed which was sown along the path. ²⁰ By the seed which was sown on rocky places is meant the man who hears the Message, and at once accepts it joyfully; ²¹ But, as he has no root, he stands for only a short time; and, when trouble or persecution arises on account of the Message, he falls away at once. ²² By the seed which was sown among the brambles is meant the man who hears the Message, but the cares of life and the glamour of wealth completely choke the Message, so that it gives no return. ²³ But by the seed which was sown on the good ground is meant the man who hears the Message and understands it, and really yields a return, sometimes one hundred, sometimes sixty, sometimes thirty fold." ²⁴ Another parable which Jesus told them was this-- "The Kingdom of Heaven is compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. ²⁵ But, while every one was asleep, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and then went away. ²⁶ So, when the blades of corn shot up, and came into ear, the tares made their appearance also. ²⁷ On this the owner's servants came to him, and said 'Was not it good seed that you sowed in your field? Where, then, do the tares in it come from?' ²⁸ 'An enemy has done this,' was his answer. 'Do you wish us, then,' they asked,' to go and gather them together?' ²⁹ 'No,' said he, 'for fear that, while you are gathering the tares, you should root up the wheat as well. ³⁰ Let both grow side by side till harvest; and then I shall say to the reapers, Gather the tares together first, and tie them in bundles for burning; but bring all the wheat into my barn.'" ³¹ Another parable which he told them was this-- "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard-seed, which a man took and sowed in his field. ³² This seed is smaller than all other seeds, but, when it has grown up, it is larger than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that 'the wild birds come and roost in its branches.'" ³³ This was another parable which Jesus related-- "The Kingdom of Heaven is like some yeast which a woman took and covered up in three pecks of flour, until the whole had risen." ³⁴ Of all this Jesus spoke to the crowd in parables; indeed to them he used never to speak at all except in parables, ³⁵ in fulfillment of these words in the Prophet--'I will speak to them in parables; I will utter things kept secret since the foundation of the world.' ³⁶ Then Jesus left the crowd, and went into the house. Presently his disciples came to him, and said: "Explain to us the parable of the tares in the field." ³⁷ And he answered: "The sower of the good seed is the Son of Man. ³⁸ The field is the world. By the good seed is meant the People of the Kingdom. The tares are the wicked, ³⁹ And the enemy who sowed them is the Devil. The harvest-time is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels. ⁴⁰ And, just as the tares are gathered and burnt, so it will be at the close of the age. ⁴¹ The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather from his kingdom all that hinders and those who live in sin, ⁴² And 'will throw them into the fiery furnace,' where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. ⁴³ Then shall the righteous shine, like the sun, in the Kingdom of their Father. Let him who has ears hear. ⁴⁴ The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid again, and then, in his delight, went and sold everything that he had, and bought that field. ⁴⁵ Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant in search of choice pearls. ⁴⁶ Finding one of great value, he went and sold everything that he had, and bought it. ⁴⁷ Or again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a net which was cast into the sea, and caught fish of all kinds. ⁴⁸ When it was full, they hauled it up on the beach, and sat down and sorted the good fish into baskets, but threw the worthless ones away. ⁴⁹ So will it be at the close of the age. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous, ⁵⁰ And 'will throw them into the fiery furnace,' where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. ⁵¹ Have you understood all this?" Jesus asked. "Yes," they answered. ⁵² Then he added: "So every Teacher of the Law, who has received instruction about the Kingdom of Heaven, is like a householder who produces from his stores things both new and old." ⁵³ When Jesus had finished these parables, he withdrew from that place. ⁵⁴ Going to his own part of the country, he taught the people in their Synagogue in such a manner that they were deeply impressed. "Where did he get this wisdom?" they said, "and the miracles? ⁵⁵ Is not he the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary, and his brothers James, and Joseph, and Simon, and Judas? ⁵⁶ And his sisters, too--are not they all living among us? Where, then did he get all this?" ⁵⁷ These things proved a hindrance to their believing in him; whereupon Jesus said: "A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country and in his own house." ⁵⁸ And he did not work many miracles there, because of their want of faith.

⁶ And that is my reason for reminding you to stir into flame that gift of God, which is yours through your ordination at my hands.

²⁵ And let us not, as some do, cease to meet together; but, on the contrary, let us encourage one another, and all the more, now that you see the Day drawing near.

⁴ And let endurance do its work perfectly, so that you may be altogether perfect, and in no respect deficient.

¹ Be sure of this, that in the last days difficult times will come. ² Men will be selfish, mercenary, boastful, haughty, and blasphemous; disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, impure, ³ incapable of affection, merciless, slanderous, wanting in self-control, brutal, careless of the right, ⁴ treacherous, reckless, and puffed up with pride; they will love pleasure more than they love God; ⁵ and while they retain the outward form of religion, they will not allow it to influence them. Turn your back on such men as these. ⁶ For among them are to be found those who creep into homes and captivate weak women--women who, loaded with sins, and slaves to all kinds of passions, ⁷ are always learning, and yet never able to attain to a real knowledge of the Truth. ⁸ Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so do these people, in their turn, oppose the Truth. Their minds are corrupted, and, as regards the Faith, they are utterly worthless. ⁹ They will not, however, make further progress; for their wicked folly will be plain to every one, just as that of Jannes and Jambres was. ¹⁰ But you, Timothy, were a close observer of my teaching, my conduct, my purposes, my faith, my forbearance, my love, and my patient endurance, ¹¹ as well as of my persecutions, and of the sufferings which I met with at Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra. You know what persecutions I underwent; and yet the Lord brought me safe out of all! ¹² Yes, and all who aim at living a religious life in union with Christ Jesus will have to suffer persecution; ¹³ but wicked people and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving others and deceived themselves. ¹⁴ You, however, must stand by what you learnt and accepted as true. You know who they were from whom you learnt it; ¹⁵ and that, from your childhood, you have known the Sacred Writings, which can give you the wisdom that, through belief in Christ Jesus, leads to Salvation. ¹⁶ Everything that is written under divine inspiration is helpful for teaching, for refuting error, for giving guidance, and for training others in righteousness; ¹⁷ so that the Servant of God may be perfect himself, and perfectly equipped for every good action.