Good News [1976], GOOD NEWS BIBLE WITH DEUTEROCANONICALS / APOCRYPHA Today's English Version (AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY, New York) [word count] [B15000].
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Please Others, Not Yourselves
1 We who are strong in the
faith ought to help the weak
to carry their burdens. We should
not please ourselves.
2 Instead, we
should all please our brothers for
their own good, in order to build
them up in the faith.
3 For Christ did
not please himself. Instead, as the
scripture says, “The insults which
are hurled at you have fallen on me.” note
4 Everything written in the Scriptures
was written to teach us, in order
that we might have hope
through the patience and encouragement
which the Scriptures give us. note
5 And may God, the source of patience
and encouragement, enable
you to have the same point of view
among yourselves by following the
example of Christ Jesus,
6 so that all
of you together may praise with one
voice the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ.
The Gospel to the Gentiles
7 Accept one another, then, for
the glory of God, as Christ has accepted
you.
8 For I tell you that
Christ's life of service was on behalf
of the Jews, to show that God is
faithful, to make his promises to
their ancestors come true,
9 and to
enable even the Gentiles to praise
God for his mercy. As the scripture
says,
“And so I will praise you among the Gentiles;
I will sing praises to you.” note
10 Again it says,
“Rejoice, Gentiles, with God's people!” note
11 And again,
“Praise the Lord, all Gentiles;
praise him, all peoples!” note
12 And again, Isaiah says,
“A descendant of Jesse will appear;
he will come to rule the Gentiles,
and they will put their hope in him.” note
13 May God, the source of hope, fill
you with all joy and peace by means
-- --
of your faith in him, so that your
hope will continue to grow by the
power of the Holy Spirit.
Paul's Reason for Writing So Boldly
14 My brothers: I myself feel sure
that you are full of goodness, that
you have all knowledge, and that
you are able to teach one another.
15 But in this letter I have been quite
bold about certain subjects of which
I have reminded you. I have been
bold because of the privilege God
has given me
16 of being a servant of
Christ Jesus to work for the Gentiles.
I serve like a priest in preaching
the Good News from God, in order
that the Gentiles may be an
offering acceptable to God, dedicated
to him by the Holy Spirit.
17 In
union with Christ Jesus, then, I can
be proud of my service for God.
18 I
will be bold and speak only about
what Christ has done through me to
lead the Gentiles to obey God. He
has done this by means of words and
deeds,
19 by the power of miracles
and wonders, and by the power of
the Spirit of God. And so, in traveling
all the way from Jerusalem to Illyricum,
I have proclaimed fully the
Good News about Christ.
20 My ambition
has always been to proclaim
the Good News in places where
Christ has not been heard of, so as
not to build on a foundation laid by
someone else.
21 As the scripture
says,
“Those who were not told about him will see,
and those who have not heard will understand.” note
Paul's Plan to Visit Rome
22 And so I have been prevented
many times from coming to you. note
23 But now that I have finished my
work in these regions and since I
have been wanting for so many
years to come to see you,
24 I hope to
do so now. I would like to see you on
my way to Spain, and be helped by
you to go there, after I have enjoyed
visiting you for a while.
25 Right now,
however, I am going to Jerusalem in
the service of God's people there.
26 For the churches in Macedonia
and Achaia have freely decided to
give an offering to help the poor
among God's people in Jerusalem. note
27 That decision was their own; but,
as a matter of fact, they have an obligation
to help them. Since the Jews
shared their spiritual blessings with
the Gentiles, the Gentiles ought to
use their material blessings to help
the Jews. note
28 When I have finished
this task and have turned over to
them all the money that has been
raised for them, I shall leave for
Spain and visit you on my way
there.
29 When I come to you, I know
that I shall come with a full measure
of the blessing of Christ.
30 I urge you, brothers, by our Lord
Jesus Christ and by the love that the
Spirit gives: join me in praying fervently
to God for me.
31 Pray that I
may be kept safe from the unbelievers
in Judea and that my service in
Jerusalem may be acceptable to
God's people there.
32 And so I will
come to you full of joy, if it is God's
will, and enjoy a refreshing visit
with you.
33 May God, our source of
peace, be with all of you. Amen.
Good News [1976], GOOD NEWS BIBLE WITH DEUTEROCANONICALS / APOCRYPHA Today's English Version (AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY, New York) [word count] [B15000].
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