Which one of you, intending to build a tower, would not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has sufficient funds for its completion?
But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or how tall he stands, for the Lord has rejected him. He does not see the way that men see, for men look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the Antichrist, about whose coming you have been told, and that it is already in the world.
He brought you low, allowing you to suffer from hunger. He then fed you with manna, something with which your fathers were not familiar, so that you might come to know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes forth from the mouth of the Lord.
Then Peter addressed them: “I now understand how true it is that God has no favorites, but that in every nation all those who fear God and do what is right are acceptable to him.”
Make every effort to present yourself before God as one who is worthy of his approval, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, but who imparts the word of truth without any alteration.
Blessed are those who trust in the Lord and whose hope is the Lord. They will be like a tree planted by the water that spreads out its roots to the stream. When the heat comes, it does not fear; its leaves stay green. It is not concerned in a year of drought, and it never fails to bear fruit.
However, if the wicked renounce all of the sins that they have committed and keep all my statutes and do what is right and just, they shall surely live; they shall not die.
The Lord does not delay in keeping his promise, as some think in terms of delay, but he is patient with you. It is not his wish that any should perish but rather that all should be brought to repentance.
What god can compare with you, the God who takes away guilt and forgives the transgressions of the remnant of your people? You will not allow your anger to fester forever, for your delight is in bestowing mercy.
But the one who did not know those wishes, and who acted in such a manner as to deserve a beating, will be beaten less severely. Much will be demanded of a person to whom much has been given, and even more will be asked of a person to whom more has been entrusted.
Even though the fig tree does not blossom and there is no fruit on the vines, even though the olive crop will fail and the orchards will yield no food, even though the flock is cut off from the fold and there is no herd in the stalls, I will continue to rejoice in the Lord, and exult in the God of my salvation.
For all of us fall short in many ways. Anyone who never makes a mistake in speech has reached perfection and is able to control every part of his body.
For it is by grace that you have been saved through faith. This has not come from you but from the gift of God. It does not come from works, so that no one can boast.
Do not associate with unbelievers. For what basis can there be for a partnership between righteousness and lawlessness? What do light and darkness have in common?