Thematic Bible
Thematic Bible
Abraham » Faith of
Then what are we to say about our ancestor Abraham? For if he was made upright by what he did, it is something to be proud of. But not to be proud of before God, for what does the Scripture say? "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness." read more.
Now paying a workman is not considered a favor, but an obligation, but a man who has no work to offer, but has faith in him who can make the ungodly upright, has his faith credited to him as uprightness. So David himself says of the happiness of those to whom God credits uprightness without any reference to their actions, "Happy are they whose violations of the Law have been forgiven, whose sins are covered up! Happy is the man whose sin the Lord will take no account of!" Does this happiness apply to those who are circumcised, or to those who are uncircumcised as well? What we say is, Abraham's faith was credited to him as uprightness. In what circumstances? Was it after he was circumcised or before? Not after he was circumcised, but before; and he was afterward given the mark of circumcision as the stamp of God's acknowledgment of the uprightness based on faith that was his before he was circumcised, so that he should be the forefather of all who, without being circumcised, have faith and so are credited with uprightness, and the forefather of those circumcised persons who not only share his circumcision but follow our forefather Abraham's example in the faith he had before he was circumcised. For the promise made to Abraham and his descendants that the world should belong to him did not come to him or his descendants through the Law, but through the uprightness that resulted from his faith. For if it is the adherents of the Law who are to possess it, faith is nullified and the promise amounts to nothing! For the Law only brings down God's wrath; where there is no law, there is no violation of it. That is why it all turns upon faith; it is to make it a matter of God's favor, so that the promise may hold good for all Abraham's descendants, not only those who are adherents of the Law, but also those who share the faith of Abraham. For he is the father of all of us; as the Scripture says, "I have made you the father of many nations." The promise is guaranteed in the very sight of God in whom he had faith, who can bring the dead to life and call into being what does not exist. Abraham, hoping against hope, had faith, and so became the father of many nations, in fulfilment of the Scripture, "So countless shall your descendants be." His faith did not weaken, although he realized that his own body was worn out, for he was about a hundred years old, and that Sarah was past bearing children. He did not incredulously question God's promise, but his faith gave him power and he praised God in the full assurance that God was able to do what he had promised. That was why it was credited to him as uprightness.
Now paying a workman is not considered a favor, but an obligation, but a man who has no work to offer, but has faith in him who can make the ungodly upright, has his faith credited to him as uprightness. So David himself says of the happiness of those to whom God credits uprightness without any reference to their actions, "Happy are they whose violations of the Law have been forgiven, whose sins are covered up! Happy is the man whose sin the Lord will take no account of!" Does this happiness apply to those who are circumcised, or to those who are uncircumcised as well? What we say is, Abraham's faith was credited to him as uprightness. In what circumstances? Was it after he was circumcised or before? Not after he was circumcised, but before; and he was afterward given the mark of circumcision as the stamp of God's acknowledgment of the uprightness based on faith that was his before he was circumcised, so that he should be the forefather of all who, without being circumcised, have faith and so are credited with uprightness, and the forefather of those circumcised persons who not only share his circumcision but follow our forefather Abraham's example in the faith he had before he was circumcised. For the promise made to Abraham and his descendants that the world should belong to him did not come to him or his descendants through the Law, but through the uprightness that resulted from his faith. For if it is the adherents of the Law who are to possess it, faith is nullified and the promise amounts to nothing! For the Law only brings down God's wrath; where there is no law, there is no violation of it. That is why it all turns upon faith; it is to make it a matter of God's favor, so that the promise may hold good for all Abraham's descendants, not only those who are adherents of the Law, but also those who share the faith of Abraham. For he is the father of all of us; as the Scripture says, "I have made you the father of many nations." The promise is guaranteed in the very sight of God in whom he had faith, who can bring the dead to life and call into being what does not exist. Abraham, hoping against hope, had faith, and so became the father of many nations, in fulfilment of the Scripture, "So countless shall your descendants be." His faith did not weaken, although he realized that his own body was worn out, for he was about a hundred years old, and that Sarah was past bearing children. He did not incredulously question God's promise, but his faith gave him power and he praised God in the full assurance that God was able to do what he had promised. That was why it was credited to him as uprightness.
Just as Abraham had faith in God and it was credited to him as uprightness. So you see, the real descendants of Abraham are the men of faith. The Scripture foresaw that God would accept the heathen as upright in consequence of their faith, and preached the good news in advance to Abraham in the words, "All the heathen will be blessed through you." read more.
So the men of faith share the blessing of Abraham and his faith.
So the men of faith share the blessing of Abraham and his faith.
Faith enabled Abraham to obey when God summoned him to leave his home for a region which he was to have for his own, and to leave home without knowing where he was going. Faith led him to make a temporary home as a stranger in the land he had been promised, and to live there in his tents, with Isaac and Jacob, who shared the promise with him. For he was looking forward to that city with the sure foundations, designed and built by God.
Faith enabled Abraham, when he was put to the test, to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had accepted God's promises was ready to sacrifice his only son, of whom he had been told, "Your posterity is to arise through Isaac!" For he believed that God was able to raise men even from the dead, and from the dead he did indeed, to speak figuratively, receive him back.
Was not our forefather Abraham made upright for his good deeds, for offering his son Isaac on the altar? You see that in his case faith and good deeds worked together; faith found its highest expression in good deeds, and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend." read more.
You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith.
You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith.
Faith » True, evidenced by its fruits
Was not our forefather Abraham made upright for his good deeds, for offering his son Isaac on the altar? You see that in his case faith and good deeds worked together; faith found its highest expression in good deeds, and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend." read more.
You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith. Was not even Rahab the prostitute made upright for her good deeds, in entertaining the scouts and sending them off by a different road?
You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith. Was not even Rahab the prostitute made upright for her good deeds, in entertaining the scouts and sending them off by a different road?
Faith/faithfulness » Faith without works
So faith by itself, if it has no good deeds to show, is dead. But someone may say, "You have faith, and I good deeds." Show me your faith without any good deeds, and I will show you my faith by my good deeds. Do you believe in one God? Very well! So do the demons, and they shudder. read more.
But do you want proof, my senseless friend, that faith without good deeds amounts to nothing? Was not our forefather Abraham made upright for his good deeds, for offering his son Isaac on the altar? You see that in his case faith and good deeds worked together; faith found its highest expression in good deeds, and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend." You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith. Was not even Rahab the prostitute made upright for her good deeds, in entertaining the scouts and sending them off by a different road? Just as the body without the spirit is dead, faith is dead without good deeds.
But do you want proof, my senseless friend, that faith without good deeds amounts to nothing? Was not our forefather Abraham made upright for his good deeds, for offering his son Isaac on the altar? You see that in his case faith and good deeds worked together; faith found its highest expression in good deeds, and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend." You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith. Was not even Rahab the prostitute made upright for her good deeds, in entertaining the scouts and sending them off by a different road? Just as the body without the spirit is dead, faith is dead without good deeds.
Justification » What you are not justified by
but who know that a man is not made upright by doing what the Law commands, but by faith in Christ Jesus??ven we believed in Christ Jesus, so as to be made upright by faith in Christ and not by doing what the Law commands??or by doing what the Law commands no one can be made upright.
Verse Concepts
For no human being can be made upright in the sight of God by observing the Law. All that the Law can do is to make man conscious of sin.
Verse Concepts
that God has fulfilled to us, their children, the promise that he made to our forefathers, by raising Jesus to life, just as the Scripture says in the second psalm, You are my Son! Today I have become your Father!' Now as evidence that he has raised him from the dead, never again to return to decay, he said this: 'I will fulfil to you my sacred promises to David.' For in another psalm he says, 'You will not let your Holy One undergo decay.' read more.
Now David, after serving God's purposes in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid among his forefathers and did undergo decay, but he whom God raised to life did not undergo it. You must understand therefore, my brothers, that through him the forgiveness of your sins is announced to you, and that through union with him everyone who believes is cleared of every charge of which the Law of Moses could not clear you.
Now David, after serving God's purposes in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid among his forefathers and did undergo decay, but he whom God raised to life did not undergo it. You must understand therefore, my brothers, that through him the forgiveness of your sins is announced to you, and that through union with him everyone who believes is cleared of every charge of which the Law of Moses could not clear you.
For there is a curse upon all who rely on obedience to the Law, for the Scripture says, "Cursed be anyone who does not stand by everything that is written in the Book of the Law and obey it." That no one is accepted as upright by God for obeying the Law is evident because the upright will have life because of his faith,
But do you want proof, my senseless friend, that faith without good deeds amounts to nothing? Was not our forefather Abraham made upright for his good deeds, for offering his son Isaac on the altar? You see that in his case faith and good deeds worked together; faith found its highest expression in good deeds, read more.
and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend." You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith.
and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend." You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith.
Justification » What you are justified by
But I tell you, for every careless word that men utter they will have to answer on the Day of Judgment. For it is by your words that you will be acquitted, or by your words that you will be condemned."
Just as Abraham had faith in God and it was credited to him as uprightness. So you see, the real descendants of Abraham are the men of faith. The Scripture foresaw that God would accept the heathen as upright in consequence of their faith, and preached the good news in advance to Abraham in the words, "All the heathen will be blessed through you." read more.
So the men of faith share the blessing of Abraham and his faith. For there is a curse upon all who rely on obedience to the Law, for the Scripture says, "Cursed be anyone who does not stand by everything that is written in the Book of the Law and obey it." That no one is accepted as upright by God for obeying the Law is evident because the upright will have life because of his faith, and the Law has nothing to do with faith; it teaches that it is the man who does these things that will find life by doing them. Christ ransomed us from the Law's curse by taking our curse upon himself (for the Scripture says, "Cursed be anyone who is hung on a tree") in order that the blessing given to Abraham might through Jesus Christ reach the heathen, so that through faith we might receive the promised Spirit.
So the men of faith share the blessing of Abraham and his faith. For there is a curse upon all who rely on obedience to the Law, for the Scripture says, "Cursed be anyone who does not stand by everything that is written in the Book of the Law and obey it." That no one is accepted as upright by God for obeying the Law is evident because the upright will have life because of his faith, and the Law has nothing to do with faith; it teaches that it is the man who does these things that will find life by doing them. Christ ransomed us from the Law's curse by taking our curse upon himself (for the Scripture says, "Cursed be anyone who is hung on a tree") in order that the blessing given to Abraham might through Jesus Christ reach the heathen, so that through faith we might receive the promised Spirit.
For we hold that a man is made upright by faith; the observance of the Law has nothing to do with it. Does God belong to the Jews alone? Does he not belong to the heathen too? Of course he belongs to the heathen too; there is but one God, and he will make the circumcised upright on the ground of their faith and the uncircumcised upright because of theirs."
But do you want proof, my senseless friend, that faith without good deeds amounts to nothing? Was not our forefather Abraham made upright for his good deeds, for offering his son Isaac on the altar? You see that in his case faith and good deeds worked together; faith found its highest expression in good deeds, read more.
and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend." You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith. Was not even Rahab the prostitute made upright for her good deeds, in entertaining the scouts and sending them off by a different road?
and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend." You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith. Was not even Rahab the prostitute made upright for her good deeds, in entertaining the scouts and sending them off by a different road?
Religion » TRUE
Then Peter began and said, "Now I really understand that God shows no partiality, but welcomes the man of any nation who reveres him and does what is right.
A religious observance that is pure and stainless in the sight of God the Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their trouble, and keep one's self unstained by the world.
Verse Concepts
But you, dear friends, must build yourselves up on the foundation of your most holy faith and pray in the holy Spirit, and keep in the love of God, and wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, to bring you to eternal life.
For this very reason make every effort to supplement your faith with goodness, goodness with knowledge, knowledge with self-control, self-control with steadfastness, steadfastness with piety, piety with a spirit of brotherhood, and the spirit of brotherhood with love. read more.
For if you have these qualities in their fulness, they will make you neither idle nor unproductive when it comes to the understanding of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is blind or near-sighted, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his former sins.
For if you have these qualities in their fulness, they will make you neither idle nor unproductive when it comes to the understanding of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is blind or near-sighted, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his former sins.
"Master, what command is greatest in the Law?" And he said to him, " 'You must love the Lord your God with your whole heart, your whole soul, and your whole mind.' That is the great, first command. read more.
There is a second like it: 'You must love your neighbor as you do yourself.' These two commands sum up the whole of the Law and the Prophets."
There is a second like it: 'You must love your neighbor as you do yourself.' These two commands sum up the whole of the Law and the Prophets."
So there is no condemnation any more for those who are in union with Christ Jesus. For the life-giving law of the Spirit through Christ Jesus has freed you from the Law of sin and death. For though it was impossible for the Law to do it, hampered as it was by our physical limitations, God, by sending his own Son in our sinful physical form, as a sin-offering, put his condemnation upon sin through his physical nature, read more.
so that the requirement of the Law might be fully met in our case, since we live not on the physical but on the spiritual plane. People who are controlled by the physical think of what is physical, and people who are controlled by the spiritual think of what is spiritual. For to be physically minded means death, but to be spiritually minded means life and peace. For to be physically minded means hostility to God, for it refuses to obey God's law, indeed it cannot obey it. Those who are physical cannot please God. But you are not physical but spiritual, if God's Spirit has really taken possession of you; for unless a man has Christ's spirit, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in your hearts, though your bodies are dead in consequence of sin, your spirits have life in consequence of uprightness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead has taken possession of you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give your mortal bodies life through his Spirit that has taken possession of you. So, brothers, we are under obligations, but not to the physical nature, to live under its control, for if you live under the control of the physical you will die, but if, by means of the Spirit, you put the body's doings to death, you will live. For all who are guided by God's Spirit are God's sons. It is not a consciousness of servitude that has been imparted to you, to fill you with fear again, but the consciousness of adoption as sons, which makes us cry, "Abba!" that is, Father. The Spirit itself testifies with our spirits that we are God's children, and if children, heirs also; heirs of God, and fellow-heirs with Christ, if we really share his sufferings in order to share his glory too. For I consider what we suffer now not to be compared with the glory that is to burst upon us.
so that the requirement of the Law might be fully met in our case, since we live not on the physical but on the spiritual plane. People who are controlled by the physical think of what is physical, and people who are controlled by the spiritual think of what is spiritual. For to be physically minded means death, but to be spiritually minded means life and peace. For to be physically minded means hostility to God, for it refuses to obey God's law, indeed it cannot obey it. Those who are physical cannot please God. But you are not physical but spiritual, if God's Spirit has really taken possession of you; for unless a man has Christ's spirit, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in your hearts, though your bodies are dead in consequence of sin, your spirits have life in consequence of uprightness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead has taken possession of you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give your mortal bodies life through his Spirit that has taken possession of you. So, brothers, we are under obligations, but not to the physical nature, to live under its control, for if you live under the control of the physical you will die, but if, by means of the Spirit, you put the body's doings to death, you will live. For all who are guided by God's Spirit are God's sons. It is not a consciousness of servitude that has been imparted to you, to fill you with fear again, but the consciousness of adoption as sons, which makes us cry, "Abba!" that is, Father. The Spirit itself testifies with our spirits that we are God's children, and if children, heirs also; heirs of God, and fellow-heirs with Christ, if we really share his sufferings in order to share his glory too. For I consider what we suffer now not to be compared with the glory that is to burst upon us.
Brothers, my heart is full of good will toward them; my prayer to God is that they may be saved. I can testify to their sincere devotion to God, but it is not an intelligent devotion. For in their ignorance of God's way of uprightness and in the attempt to set up one of their own, they refused to conform to God's way of uprightness. read more.
For Christ marks the termination of law, so that now anyone who has faith may attain uprightness. Moses said that anyone who carried out the uprightness the Law prescribed would find life through it. But this is what the uprightness that springs from faith says: "Do not say to yourself, 'Who will go up to heaven?' " that is, to bring Christ down; or " 'Who will go down into the depths?' " that is, to bring Christ up from the dead. No! This is what it says: "God's message is close to you, on your lips and in your mind"??hat is, the message about faith that we preach. For if with your lips you acknowledge the message that Jesus is Lord, and with your mind you believe that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with their minds men believe and are made upright, and with their lips they make the acknowledgment and are saved. For the Scripture says, "No one who has faith in him will be disappointed." There is no distinction between Jew and Greek for they all have the same Lord, and he is generous to all who call upon him. For everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.
For Christ marks the termination of law, so that now anyone who has faith may attain uprightness. Moses said that anyone who carried out the uprightness the Law prescribed would find life through it. But this is what the uprightness that springs from faith says: "Do not say to yourself, 'Who will go up to heaven?' " that is, to bring Christ down; or " 'Who will go down into the depths?' " that is, to bring Christ up from the dead. No! This is what it says: "God's message is close to you, on your lips and in your mind"??hat is, the message about faith that we preach. For if with your lips you acknowledge the message that Jesus is Lord, and with your mind you believe that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with their minds men believe and are made upright, and with their lips they make the acknowledgment and are saved. For the Scripture says, "No one who has faith in him will be disappointed." There is no distinction between Jew and Greek for they all have the same Lord, and he is generous to all who call upon him. For everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.
But what the Spirit produces is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. There is no law against such things! Those who belong to Jesus the Christ have crucified the physical nature with its propensities and cravings. read more.
If we live by the Spirit, let us be guided by the Spirit.
If we live by the Spirit, let us be guided by the Spirit.
Take care that none of you ever pays back evil for evil, but always try to treat one another and everybody with kindness. Always be joyful. Never give up praying. read more.
Thank God whatever happens. For this is what God through Christ Jesus wants you to do. Do not stifle the Spirit. Do not disregard the utterances it inspires, but test them all, retaining what is good and avoiding every kind of evil. May God himself, the giver of peace, consecrate you through and through. Spirit, soul, and body, may you be kept sound, and be found irreproachable when our Lord Jesus Christ comes.
Thank God whatever happens. For this is what God through Christ Jesus wants you to do. Do not stifle the Spirit. Do not disregard the utterances it inspires, but test them all, retaining what is good and avoiding every kind of evil. May God himself, the giver of peace, consecrate you through and through. Spirit, soul, and body, may you be kept sound, and be found irreproachable when our Lord Jesus Christ comes.
If you really obey the supreme law where the Scripture says, "You must love your neighbor as you do yourself," you are doing right, but if you show partiality, you are committing a sin, and stand convicted before the Law as lawbreakers. For anyone who obeys the whole of the Law but makes one single slip is guilty of breaking it all. read more.
For he who said, "You must not commit adultery," said also, "You must not commit murder." Now if you abstain from adultery, but commit murder, you are still a violator of the Law. You must talk and act like men who expect to be judged by the law that treats men as free. For the merciless will be mercilessly judged; but mercy will triumph over judgment. My brothers, what is the good of a man's saying he has faith, if he has no good deeds to show? Can faith save him? If some brother or sister has no clothes and has not food enough for a day, and one of you says to them, "Goodbye, keep warm and have plenty to eat," without giving them the necessaries of life, what good does it do? So faith by itself, if it has no good deeds to show, is dead. But someone may say, "You have faith, and I good deeds." Show me your faith without any good deeds, and I will show you my faith by my good deeds. Do you believe in one God? Very well! So do the demons, and they shudder. But do you want proof, my senseless friend, that faith without good deeds amounts to nothing? Was not our forefather Abraham made upright for his good deeds, for offering his son Isaac on the altar? You see that in his case faith and good deeds worked together; faith found its highest expression in good deeds, and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend." You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith. Was not even Rahab the prostitute made upright for her good deeds, in entertaining the scouts and sending them off by a different road? Just as the body without the spirit is dead, faith is dead without good deeds.
For he who said, "You must not commit adultery," said also, "You must not commit murder." Now if you abstain from adultery, but commit murder, you are still a violator of the Law. You must talk and act like men who expect to be judged by the law that treats men as free. For the merciless will be mercilessly judged; but mercy will triumph over judgment. My brothers, what is the good of a man's saying he has faith, if he has no good deeds to show? Can faith save him? If some brother or sister has no clothes and has not food enough for a day, and one of you says to them, "Goodbye, keep warm and have plenty to eat," without giving them the necessaries of life, what good does it do? So faith by itself, if it has no good deeds to show, is dead. But someone may say, "You have faith, and I good deeds." Show me your faith without any good deeds, and I will show you my faith by my good deeds. Do you believe in one God? Very well! So do the demons, and they shudder. But do you want proof, my senseless friend, that faith without good deeds amounts to nothing? Was not our forefather Abraham made upright for his good deeds, for offering his son Isaac on the altar? You see that in his case faith and good deeds worked together; faith found its highest expression in good deeds, and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend." You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith. Was not even Rahab the prostitute made upright for her good deeds, in entertaining the scouts and sending them off by a different road? Just as the body without the spirit is dead, faith is dead without good deeds.