4^th Sunday of Easter readings

Acts 8:14-25

14 Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent them Peter and John,

15 who went down and prayed for them, that they might receive the holy Spirit,

16 for it had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

17 Then they laid hands on them and they received the holy Spirit.

18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was conferred by the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money

19 and said, "Give me this power too, so that anyone upon whom I lay my hands may receive the holy Spirit."

20 But Peter said to him, "May your money perish with you, because you thought that you could buy the gift of God with money.

21 You have no share or lot in this matter, for your heart is not upright before God.

22 Repent of this wickedness of yours and pray to the Lord that, if possible, your intention may be forgiven.

23 For I see that you are filled with bitter gall and are in the bonds of iniquity."

24 Simon said in reply, "Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may come upon me."

Ephesians 1:15-2:7

15 Therefore, I, too, hearing of your faith in the Lord Jesus and of your love for all the holy ones,

16 do not cease giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers,

17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation resulting in knowledge of him.

18 May the eyes of (your) hearts be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call, what are the riches of glory in his inheritance among the holy ones,

19 and what is the surpassing greatness of his power for us who believe, in accord with the exercise of his great might,

20 which he worked in Christ, raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavens,

21 far above every principality, authority, power, and dominion, and every name that is named not only in this age but also in the one to come.

22 And he put all things beneath his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church,

23 which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.

1 You were dead in your transgressions and sins

2 in which you once lived following the age of this world, following the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the disobedient.

3 All of us once lived among them in the desires of our flesh, following the wishes of the flesh and the impulses, and we were by nature children of wrath, like the rest.

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love he had for us,

5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, brought us to life with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

6 raised us up with him, and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus,

John 16:16-33

16 "A little while and you will no longer see me, and again a little while later and you will see me."

17 So some of his disciples said to one another, "What does this mean that he is saying to us, 'A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me,' and 'Because I am going to the Father'?"

18 So they said, "What is this 'little while' (of which he speaks)? We do not know what he means."

19 Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, "Are you discussing with one another what I said, 'A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me'?

20 Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.

21 When a woman is in labor, she is in anguish because her hour has arrived; but when she has given birth to a child, she no longer remembers the pain because of her joy that a child has been born into the world.

22 So you also are now in anguish. But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.

23 On that day you will not question me about anything. Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.

24 Until now you have not asked anything in my name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.

25 "I have told you this in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures but I will tell you clearly about the Father.

26 On that day you will ask in my name, and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you.

27 For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have come to believe that I came from God.

28 I came from the Father and have come into the world. Now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father."

29 His disciples said, "Now you are talking plainly, and not in any figure of speech.

30 Now we realize that you know everything and that you do not need to have anyone question you. Because of this we believe that you came from God."

31 Jesus answered them, "Do you believe now?

32 Behold, the hour is coming and has arrived when each of you will be scattered to his own home and you will leave me alone. But I am not alone, because the Father is with me.