Hi, friends. I am Annie F. Downs. Let's read the Gospels. The Gospels are the first four books of the New Testament in the Bible, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

These are the stories of Jesus Christ's life on earth, the friendships, the parables, the sacrifices, the meals, the miracles.

Each month we read all four books. So go ahead and subscribe today. Join us as we read the Gospels together.

You know what we say around here a lot. You don't have to be in the Gospels every day.

But every day you are in the Gospels will change you. So I'm really glad you're here.

Here's how it works. I'll read three chapters to you today. You can listen or read along in your own Bible.

And then I'll write. And that's it. So today is June 17th, day 17 of this month. And I'll be reading John chapters five through seven.

And this month I'm reading from the NRSV.

John five. After this, there was a festival of the Jews. And Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

Now in Jerusalem by the sheepgate, there is a pool called in Hebrew, Bethzotha, which has five portacos.

In these lay many invalids blind, lame, and paralyzed. One man was there who had been ill for 38 years.

When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been there a long time, he said to him,

do you want to be made well? The sick man answered him, sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up.

And while I'm making my way, someone else steps down ahead of me.

Jesus said to him, stand up, take your mat and walk. At once the man was made well and he took up his mat and began to walk.

Now that day was a Sabbath. So the Jews said to the man who had been cured, it is a Sabbath.

It is not lawful for you to carry your mat. But he answered them, the man who made me well said to me, take up your mat and walk.

They asked him, who is the man who said do you take it up and walk?

Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was for Jesus had disappeared in the crowd that was there.

Later Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, see, you have been made well. Do not send anymore so that nothing worse happens to you.

The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.

Therefore the Jews started persecuting Jesus because he was doing such things on the Sabbath.

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