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.

And if you're enjoying reading the Gospels with us, rate and review the show. Share it with your friends on social media.

Today's stories are a great day to invite people in to read along with us. And your invitation on social media or on text or an email or over a conversation really helps us spread the word to new friends about hearing the Gospels.

And remember, you don't have to be in the Gospels every day to be changed, but every day you're in the Gospels will change you.

So I'm glad you're here with us today. Here's how this works. Each month we normally read three chapters a day to get through all four books in 30 days.

But this month we're reading the Gospels chronologically from the new international version or the NIV.

So we'll be reading the stories in the order they took place mixing together from all four books most days.

I'll share the references with you here at the beginning, but you can also find them in the show notes as well or in the Gospels guidebook or the reading plan for September.

Those are both at any fdowns.com slash Gospels.

You can listen now or read along in your own Bible and then I'll pray and that is it.

So today is September 13th and I'll be reading Mark 7, 1 through 23, Matthew 15, 1 through 20, Mark 7, 24 to 30, Matthew 15, 21 to 28, Mark 7, 31 to 37,

Matthew 15, 29 to 31, Mark 8, 1 through 10, Matthew 15, 32 through 39, Matthew 16, 1 through 4,

Mark 8, 11 through 21, and Matthew 16, 5 through 12 in the NIV.

Jesus teaches about inner purity from Mark.

The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus and saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that were defiled that is unwashed.

The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing holding to the tradition of the elders.

When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash and they observe many other traditions such as the washing of cups, pictures and kettles.

So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, why don't your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with defiled hands?

He replied, Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites as it is written.

These people honor me with their lips but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain. Their teachings are merely human rules.

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