Very truly I tell you, whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me; and whoever accepts me accepts the one who sent me. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. To do what is right and just
is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.” Your statutes are my heritage forever;
they are the joy of my heart. If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for God’s temple is sacred, and you together are that temple. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. A person may think their own ways are right,
but the Lord weighs the heart. As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” Surely God is my help;
the Lord is the one who sustains me. When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment. Who is a God like you,
who pardons sin and forgives the transgression
of the remnant of his inheritance?
You do not stay angry forever
but delight to show mercy. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. In my distress I called to the Lord;
I cried to my God for help.
From his temple he heard my voice;
my cry came before him, into his ears. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers. The prospect of the righteous is joy,
but the hopes of the wicked come to nothing. “Look, he is coming with the clouds,”
and “every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him”;
and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.”
So shall it be! Amen. After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. I spread out my hands to you;
I thirst for you like a parched land. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Fear of man will prove to be a snare,
but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe. And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval. Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will not be shaken. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.Next verse!With image