Thematic Bible
Thematic Bible
Christian ministers » Success attending » Paul
The signs that indicate a genuine apostle were performed among you fully and most patiently—signs and wonders and miracles.
for our good news [regarding salvation] came to you not only in word, but also in [its inherent] power and in the Holy Spirit and with great conviction [on our part]. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your benefit.
holding out and offering to everyone the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to rejoice greatly because I did not run [my race] in vain nor labor without result.
So Paul arose, and motioning with his hand said, Men of Israel and you who reverence and fear God, listen! The God of this people Israel selected our forefathers and made this people great and important during their stay in the land of Egypt, and then with an uplifted arm He led them out from there. And for about forty years like a fatherly nurse He cared for them in the wilderness and endured their behavior. read more.
When He had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, He gave them [the Hebrews] their land as an inheritance [distributing it to them by lot; all of which took] about 450 years. After that, He gave them judges until the prophet Samuel. Then they asked for a king; and God gave them Saul son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. And when He had deposed him, He raised up David to be their king; of him He bore witness and said, I have found David son of Jesse a man after My own heart, who will do all My will and carry out My program fully. Of this man's descendants God has brought to Israel a Savior [in the person of Jesus], according to His promise. Before His coming John had [already] preached baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John was ending his course, he asked, What or who do you secretly think that I am? I am not He [the Christ. No], but note that after me One is coming, the sandals of Whose feet I am not worthy to untie! Brethren, sons of the family of Abraham, and all those others among you who reverence and fear God, to us has been sent the message of this salvation [the salvation obtained through Jesus Christ]. For those who dwell in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not know or recognize Him or understand the utterances of the prophets which are read every Sabbath, have actually fulfilled these very predictions by condemning and sentencing [Him]. And although they could find no cause deserving death with which to charge Him, yet they asked Pilate to have Him executed and put out of the way. And when they had finished and fulfilled everything that was written about Him, they took Him down from the tree and laid Him in a tomb. But God raised Him from the dead. And for many days He appeared to those who came up with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem, and they are His witnesses to the people. So now we are bringing you the good news (Gospel) that what God promised to our forefathers, This He has completely fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus, as it is written in the second psalm, You are My Son; today I have begotten You [ caused You to arise, to be born; formally shown You to be the Messiah by the resurrection]. And as to His having raised Him from among the dead, now no more to return to [undergo] putrefaction and dissolution [of the grave], He spoke in this way, I will fulfill and give to you the holy and sure mercy and blessings [that were promised and assured] to David. For this reason He says also in another psalm, You will not allow Your Holy One to see corruption [to undergo putrefaction and dissolution of the grave]. For David, after he had served God's will and purpose and counsel in his own generation, fell asleep [ in death] and was buried among his forefathers, and he did see corruption and undergo putrefaction and dissolution [of the grave]. But He Whom God raised up [to life] saw no corruption [did not experience putrefaction and dissolution of the grave]. So let it be clearly known and understood by you, brethren, that through this Man forgiveness and removal of sins is now proclaimed to you; And that through Him everyone who believes [who acknowledges Jesus as his Savior and devotes himself to Him] is absolved (cleared and freed) from every charge from which he could not be justified and freed by the Law of Moses and given right standing with God. Take care, therefore, lest there come upon you what is spoken in the prophets: Look, you scoffers and scorners, and marvel and perish and vanish away; for I am doing a deed in your days, a deed which you will never have confidence in or believe, [even] if someone [ clearly describing it in detail] declares it to you. As they [Paul and Barnabas] went out [of the synagogue], the people earnestly begged that these things might be told to them [further] the next Sabbath. And when the congregation of the synagogue dispersed, many of the Jews and the devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked to them and urged them to continue [to trust themselves to and to stand fast] in the grace (the unmerited favor and blessing) of God.
When He had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, He gave them [the Hebrews] their land as an inheritance [distributing it to them by lot; all of which took] about 450 years. After that, He gave them judges until the prophet Samuel. Then they asked for a king; and God gave them Saul son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. And when He had deposed him, He raised up David to be their king; of him He bore witness and said, I have found David son of Jesse a man after My own heart, who will do all My will and carry out My program fully. Of this man's descendants God has brought to Israel a Savior [in the person of Jesus], according to His promise. Before His coming John had [already] preached baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John was ending his course, he asked, What or who do you secretly think that I am? I am not He [the Christ. No], but note that after me One is coming, the sandals of Whose feet I am not worthy to untie! Brethren, sons of the family of Abraham, and all those others among you who reverence and fear God, to us has been sent the message of this salvation [the salvation obtained through Jesus Christ]. For those who dwell in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not know or recognize Him or understand the utterances of the prophets which are read every Sabbath, have actually fulfilled these very predictions by condemning and sentencing [Him]. And although they could find no cause deserving death with which to charge Him, yet they asked Pilate to have Him executed and put out of the way. And when they had finished and fulfilled everything that was written about Him, they took Him down from the tree and laid Him in a tomb. But God raised Him from the dead. And for many days He appeared to those who came up with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem, and they are His witnesses to the people. So now we are bringing you the good news (Gospel) that what God promised to our forefathers, This He has completely fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus, as it is written in the second psalm, You are My Son; today I have begotten You [ caused You to arise, to be born; formally shown You to be the Messiah by the resurrection]. And as to His having raised Him from among the dead, now no more to return to [undergo] putrefaction and dissolution [of the grave], He spoke in this way, I will fulfill and give to you the holy and sure mercy and blessings [that were promised and assured] to David. For this reason He says also in another psalm, You will not allow Your Holy One to see corruption [to undergo putrefaction and dissolution of the grave]. For David, after he had served God's will and purpose and counsel in his own generation, fell asleep [ in death] and was buried among his forefathers, and he did see corruption and undergo putrefaction and dissolution [of the grave]. But He Whom God raised up [to life] saw no corruption [did not experience putrefaction and dissolution of the grave]. So let it be clearly known and understood by you, brethren, that through this Man forgiveness and removal of sins is now proclaimed to you; And that through Him everyone who believes [who acknowledges Jesus as his Savior and devotes himself to Him] is absolved (cleared and freed) from every charge from which he could not be justified and freed by the Law of Moses and given right standing with God. Take care, therefore, lest there come upon you what is spoken in the prophets: Look, you scoffers and scorners, and marvel and perish and vanish away; for I am doing a deed in your days, a deed which you will never have confidence in or believe, [even] if someone [ clearly describing it in detail] declares it to you. As they [Paul and Barnabas] went out [of the synagogue], the people earnestly begged that these things might be told to them [further] the next Sabbath. And when the congregation of the synagogue dispersed, many of the Jews and the devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked to them and urged them to continue [to trust themselves to and to stand fast] in the grace (the unmerited favor and blessing) of God.
For even if you were to have ten thousand teachers [to guide you] in Christ, yet you would not have many fathers [who led you to Christ and assumed responsibility for you], for I became your father in Christ Jesus through the good news [of salvation].
If I am not [considered] an apostle to others, at least I am one to you; for you are the seal and the certificate and the living evidence of my apostleship in the Lord [confirming and authenticating it].
So whether it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed and trusted in and relied on with confidence.
[No] you yourselves are our letter of recommendation (our credentials), written in your hearts, to be known (perceived, recognized) and read by everybody. You show and make obvious that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, not written with ink but with [the] Spirit of [the] living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.
For even though He was crucified in weakness [yielding Himself], yet He lives [resurrected] by the power of God [His Father]. For we too are weak in Him [as He was humanly weak], yet we are alive and well [in fellowship] with Him because of the power of God directed toward you.
Paul » Called to be an apostle
Paul, called as an apostle (special messenger, personally chosen representative) of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes,
Paul, an apostle (not commissioned and sent from men nor through the agency of man, but through Jesus Christ—the Messiah—and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead),
But when He, Who had chosen and set me apart [even] before I was born and had called me by His grace (His undeserved favor and blessing), saw fit and was pleased To reveal (unveil, disclose) His Son within me so that I might proclaim Him among the Gentiles (the non-Jewish world) as the glad tidings (Gospel), immediately I did not confer with flesh and blood [did not consult or counsel with any frail human being or communicate with anyone].
Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle (special messenger, personally chosen representative), set apart for [preaching] the gospel of God [the good news of salvation],
Paul, an apostle (special messenger, personally chosen representative) of Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed), by the will of God [that is, by His purpose and choice],
To thesaints (God’s people) who are at Ephesus and are faithful and loyal and steadfast in Christ Jesus:
To the
Paul, an apostle (special messenger, personally chosen representative) of Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed) by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
Paul, an apostle (special messenger, personally chosen representative) of Christ Jesus by the commandment of God our Savior, and of Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed) our Hope [the fulfillment of our salvation],
Paul, an apostle (special messenger, personally chosen representative) of Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed) by the will of God, according to the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus,
And for this matter I was appointed a preacher and an apostle—I am telling the truth, I am not lying [when I say this]—a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
Paul, a bond-servant of God and an apostle (special messenger, personally chosen representative) of Jesus Christ, for the faith of God’s chosen ones and [to lead and encourage them to recognize and pursue] the knowledge of the truth which leads to godliness,
For I am the least [worthy] of the apostles, and not fit to be called an apostle, because I [at one time] fiercely oppressed and violently persecuted the church of God.
and at the appointed time has made known His word and revealed it as His message, through preaching, which was entrusted to me according to the command of God our Savior—
for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle and a teacher [of this good news regarding salvation].
And he said, The God of our forefathers has destined and appointed you to come progressively to know His will [to perceive, to recognize more strongly and clearly, and to become better and more intimately acquainted with His will], and to see the Righteous One (Jesus Christ, the Messiah), and to hear a voice from His [own] mouth and a message from His [own] lips; For you will be His witness unto all men of everything that you have seen and heard. And now, why do you delay? Rise and be baptized, and by calling upon His name, wash away your sins. read more.
Then when I had come back to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple [ enclosure], I fell into a trance (an ecstasy); And I saw Him as He said to me, Hurry, get quickly out of Jerusalem, because they will not receive your testimony about Me. And I said, Lord, they themselves well know that throughout all the synagogues I cast into prison and flogged those who believed on (adhered to and trusted in and relied on) You. And when the blood of Your witness (martyr) Stephen was shed, I also was personally standing by and consenting and approving and guarding the garments of those who slew him. And the Lord said to me, Go, for I will send you far away unto the Gentiles (nations).
Then when I had come back to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple [ enclosure], I fell into a trance (an ecstasy); And I saw Him as He said to me, Hurry, get quickly out of Jerusalem, because they will not receive your testimony about Me. And I said, Lord, they themselves well know that throughout all the synagogues I cast into prison and flogged those who believed on (adhered to and trusted in and relied on) You. And when the blood of Your witness (martyr) Stephen was shed, I also was personally standing by and consenting and approving and guarding the garments of those who slew him. And the Lord said to me, Go, for I will send you far away unto the Gentiles (nations).
But arise and stand upon your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, that I might appoint you to serve as [My] minister and to bear witness both to what you have seen of Me and to that in which I will appear to you, Choosing you out [selecting you for Myself] and delivering you from among this [Jewish] people and the Gentiles to whom I am sending you -- " To open their eyes that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may thus receive forgiveness and release from their sins and a place and portion among those who are consecrated and purified by faith in Me.
Am I not an apostle (a special messenger)? Am I not free (unrestrained and exempt from any obligation)? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you [yourselves] not [the product and proof of] my workmanship in the Lord? Even if I am not considered an apostle (a special messenger) by others, at least I am one to you; for you are the seal (the certificate, the living evidence) of my apostleship in the Lord [confirming and authenticating it].
Seals » Illustrative of » Converts
If I am not [considered] an apostle to others, at least I am one to you; for you are the seal and the certificate and the living evidence of my apostleship in the Lord [confirming and authenticating it].