There is no doubt that the one who blesses is greater than the one who is blessed.

they should hold to the revealed truth of the faith with a clear conscience.

Jesus answered, "The knowledge about the secrets of the Kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.

Let us give glory to God! He is able to make you stand firm in your faith, according to the Good News I preach about Jesus Christ and according to the revelation of the secret truth which was hidden for long ages in the past.

The wisdom I proclaim is God's secret wisdom, which is hidden from human beings, but which he had already chosen for our glory even before the world was made.

God did what he had purposed, and made known to us the secret plan he had already decided to complete by means of Christ.

God revealed his secret plan and made it known to me. (I have written briefly about this,

In past times human beings were not told this secret, but God has revealed it now by the Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets.

I was made a servant of the gospel by God's special gift, which he gave me through the working of his power.

and of making all people see how God's secret plan is to be put into effect. God, who is the Creator of all things, kept his secret hidden through all the past ages,

And pray also for me, that God will give me a message when I am ready to speak, so that I may speak boldly and make known the gospel's secret.

I do this in order that they may be filled with courage and may be drawn together in love, and so have the full wealth of assurance which true understanding brings. In this way they will know God's secret, which is Christ himself.

The Mysterious Wickedness is already at work, but what is going to happen will not happen until the one who holds it back is taken out of the way.

On her forehead was written a name that has a secret meaning: "Great Babylon, the mother of all prostitutes and perverts in the world."

"Why are you amazed?" the angel asked me. "I will tell you the secret meaning of the woman and of the beast that carries her, the beast with seven heads and ten horns.

Well then, the Lord himself will give you a sign: a young woman who is pregnant will have a son and will name him 'Immanuel.'

A child is born to us! A son is given to us! And he will be our ruler. He will be called, "Wonderful Counselor," "Mighty God," "Eternal Father," "Prince of Peace."

The LORD says, "The time is coming when I will choose as king a righteous descendant of David. That king will rule wisely and do what is right and just throughout the land.

When he is king, the people of Judah will be safe, and the people of Israel will live in peace. He will be called 'The LORD Our Salvation.'

The LORD says, "Bethlehem Ephrathah, you are one of the smallest towns in Judah, but out of you I will bring a ruler for Israel, whose family line goes back to ancient times."

"A virgin will become pregnant and have a son, and he will be called Immanuel" (which means, "God is with us").

In the beginning the Word already existed; the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

From the very beginning the Word was with God.

The Word became a human being and, full of grace and truth, lived among us. We saw his glory, the glory which he received as the Father's only Son.

So keep watch over yourselves and over all the flock which the Holy Spirit has placed in your care. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he made his own through the blood of his Son.

What the Law could not do, because human nature was weak, God did. He condemned sin in human nature by sending his own Son, who came with a nature like our sinful nature, to do away with sin.

they are descended from the famous Hebrew ancestors; and Christ, as a human being, belongs to their race. May God, who rules over all, be praised forever! Amen.

The first Adam, made of earth, came from the earth; the second Adam came from heaven.

But when the right time finally came, God sent his own Son. He came as the son of a human mother and lived under the Jewish Law,

He always had the nature of God, but he did not think that by force he should try to remain equal with God.

He was humble and walked the path of obedience all the way to death--- his death on the cross.

For through him God created everything in heaven and on earth, the seen and the unseen things, including spiritual powers, lords, rulers, and authorities. God created the whole universe through him and for him.

He is the head of his body, the church; he is the source of the body's life. He is the first-born Son, who was raised from death, in order that he alone might have the first place in all things.

He reflects the brightness of God's glory and is the exact likeness of God's own being, sustaining the universe with his powerful word. After achieving forgiveness for the sins of all human beings, he sat down in heaven at the right side of God, the Supreme Power.

But we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, so that through God's grace he should die for everyone. We see him now crowned with glory and honor because of the death he suffered.

He purifies people from their sins, and both he and those who are made pure all have the same Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them his family.

He also says, "I will put my trust in God." And he also says, "Here I am with the children that God has given me."

When this life became visible, we saw it; so we speak of it and tell you about the eternal life which was with the Father and was made known to us.

When I saw him, I fell down at his feet like a dead man. He placed his right hand on me and said, "Don't be afraid! I am the first and the last.

I am the living one! I was dead, but now I am alive forever and ever. I have authority over death and the world of the dead.

You know that Christ appeared in order to take away sins, and that there is no sin in him.

The LORD has given me understanding, and I have not rebelled or turned away from him.

But their insults cannot hurt me because the Sovereign LORD gives me help. I brace myself to endure them. I know that I will not be disgraced,

As soon as Jesus was baptized, he came up out of the water. Then heaven was opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God coming down like a dove and lighting on him.

And John gave this testimony: "I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from heaven and stay on him.

I still did not know that he was the one, but God, who sent me to baptize with water, had said to me, 'You will see the Spirit come down and stay on a man; he is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.'

"The Helper will come---the Spirit, who reveals the truth about God and who comes from the Father. I will send him to you from the Father, and he will speak about me.

And when he comes, he will prove to the people of the world that they are wrong about sin and about what is right and about God's judgment.

They are wrong about sin, because they do not believe in me;

God has raised this very Jesus from death, and we are all witnesses to this fact.

For it was not David who went up into heaven; rather he said, 'The Lord said to my Lord: Sit here at my right side

"All the people of Israel, then, are to know for sure that this Jesus, whom you crucified, is the one that God has made Lord and Messiah!"

It is about his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ: as to his humanity, he was born a descendant of David;

as to his divine holiness, he was shown with great power to be the Son of God by being raised from death.

For Christ died for sins once and for all, a good man on behalf of sinners, in order to lead you to God. He was put to death physically, but made alive spiritually,

Jesus Christ is the one who came with the water of his baptism and the blood of his death. He came not only with the water, but with both the water and the blood. And the Spirit himself testifies that this is true, because the Spirit is truth.

the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and all three give the same testimony.

With his many thousands of mighty chariots the Lord comes from Sinai into the holy place.

He goes up to the heights, taking many captives with him; he receives gifts from rebellious people. The LORD God will live there.

Then the Devil left Jesus; and angels came and helped him.

Suddenly there was a violent earthquake; an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled the stone away, and sat on it.

where he stayed forty days, being tempted by Satan. Wild animals were there also, but angels came and helped him.

So they entered the tomb, where they saw a young man sitting at the right, wearing a white robe---and they were alarmed.

but the angel said to them, "Don't be afraid! I am here with good news for you, which will bring great joy to all the people.

And this is what will prove it to you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

"Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom he is pleased!"

An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.

They stood there puzzled about this, when suddenly two men in bright shining clothes stood by them.

and saw two angels there dressed in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been, one at the head and the other at the feet.

They still had their eyes fixed on the sky as he went away, when two men dressed in white suddenly stood beside them

and said, "Galileans, why are you standing there looking up at the sky? This Jesus, who was taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way that you saw him go to heaven."

in order that at the present time, by means of the church, the angelic rulers and powers in the heavenly world might learn of his wisdom in all its different forms.

God revealed to these prophets that their work was not for their own benefit, but for yours, as they spoke about those things which you have now heard from the messengers who announced the Good News by the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. These are things which even the angels would like to understand.

A light to reveal your will to the Gentiles and bring glory to your people Israel."

Peter began to speak: "I now realize that it is true that God treats everyone on the same basis.

But Paul and Barnabas spoke out even more boldly: "It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken first to you. But since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we will leave you and go to the Gentiles.

When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and praised the Lord's message; and those who had been chosen for eternal life became believers.

This includes everyone, because there is no difference between Jews and Gentiles; God is the same Lord of all and richly blesses all who call to him.

But I ask: Is it true that they did not hear the message? Of course they did---for as the scripture says: "The sound of their voice went out to all the world; their words reached the ends of the earth."

For by God's power I was made an apostle to the Gentiles, just as Peter was made an apostle to the Jews.

In past times human beings were not told this secret, but God has revealed it now by the Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets.

I was made a servant of the gospel by God's special gift, which he gave me through the working of his power.

God's plan is to make known his secret to his people, this rich and glorious secret which he has for all peoples. And the secret is that Christ is in you, which means that you will share in the glory of God.

When they arrived in Antioch, they gathered the people of the church together and told them about all that God had done with them and how he had opened the way for the Gentiles to believe.

The gospel keeps bringing blessings and is spreading throughout the world, just as it has among you ever since the day you first heard about the grace of God and came to know it as it really is.

You must, of course, continue faithful on a firm and sure foundation, and must not allow yourselves to be shaken from the hope you gained when you heard the gospel. It is of this gospel that I, Paul, became a servant---this gospel which has been preached to everybody in the world.

After this I looked, and there was an enormous crowd---no one could count all the people! They were from every race, tribe, nation, and language, and they stood in front of the throne and of the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palm branches in their hands.

After the Lord Jesus had talked with them, he was taken up to heaven and sat at the right side of God.

As he was blessing them, he departed from them and was taken up into heaven.

Suppose, then, that you should see the Son of Man go back up to the place where he was before?

Jesus knew that the Father had given him complete power; he knew that he had come from God and was going to God.

I did come from the Father, and I came into the world; and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father."

Father! Give me glory in your presence now, the same glory I had with you before the world was made.

Dear Theophilus: In my first book I wrote about all the things that Jesus did and taught from the time he began his work

For forty days after his death he appeared to them many times in ways that proved beyond doubt that he was alive. They saw him, and he talked with them about the Kingdom of God.

John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."

Jesus said to them, "The times and occasions are set by my Father's own authority, and it is not for you to know when they will be.

After saying this, he was taken up to heaven as they watched him, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

As the scripture says, "When he went up to the very heights, he took many captives with him; he gave gifts to people."

So the one who came down is the same one who went up, above and beyond the heavens, to fill the whole universe with his presence.

He reflects the brightness of God's glory and is the exact likeness of God's own being, sustaining the universe with his powerful word. After achieving forgiveness for the sins of all human beings, he sat down in heaven at the right side of God, the Supreme Power.

The whole point of what we are saying is that we have such a High Priest, who sits at the right of the throne of the Divine Majesty in heaven.

Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end. He did not give up because of the cross! On the contrary, because of the joy that was waiting for him, he thought nothing of the disgrace of dying on the cross, and he is now seated at the right side of God's throne.

who has gone to heaven and is at the right side of God, ruling over all angels and heavenly authorities and powers.