Author: cackywalker@yahoo.com

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living, holy sacrifice – the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship HIm. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this wold, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. (vv. 1-2, NLT)

For Moses writes that the law’s way of making a person right with God requires obedience to all of it’s commands. But faith’s ay of getting right with God says, “Don’t say in your heart, ‘Who will go up to heaven?'(to bring Christ down to earth). And don’t say, ‘Who will go down to the place of the dead?’ (to bring Christ back to lift again).” In fact, it says, “The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart.”

And that message is the very message about faith and what we preach: If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believer in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved. As the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in Him will never be disgraced.” Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who give generously to all who call on Him. For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (vv. 5-13, NLT)

And I am convinced that nothing can every separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels or demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow- not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above nor in the earth below – indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. (vv 38-39, NLT)

Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory He will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who is children really are. Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. (vv. 18-21, NLT)

And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father knows all hearts knows that the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s will. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them. For God knew His people in advance, and He chose them to become like His Son, so that His Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And having chose them, He called them to come to Him. And having called them, He gave them right standing with Himself. And having given them right standing, He gave them His glory. (vv. 26-30, NLT)

Since we have been reunited with Him in His death, we will also be raised to life as He was. We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with Him. WE are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and He will never die again. When He died, He died once to break the power of sin. But now that He lives. he lives for the glory of God. So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus. (vv. 5-11, NLT)

Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of underserved privilege where we not stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help use develop endurance. And endurance develops strength in character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead us to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts. with His love. (vv. 1-5, NLT)

So a time was set, and on that day a large number of people came to Paul’s lodging. He explained and testified about the Kingdom of God and tired to persuade them abut Jesus from the Scriptures. Using the law of Moses and the books of the prophets, he spoke to them from morning until evening. Some were persuaded by the things he said, but others did not believe. And after they had argued back and fort among themselves, the left with this final word from Paul: “The Holy Spirit was right when he said to your ancestors through Isaiah the prophet,

‘Go and say to this people: When you hear what I say, you will not understand. when you see what I do, you will not comprehend. For the hearts of these people are hardened , and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes – so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to Me and let Me heal them.’

So I want you to know that this salvation is from God has been offered to the Gentiles and they will accept it.”

For the next two years, Pal lived in Rome at his own expense. He welcomed all who visited him, boldly proclaiming the Kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ. And no one tried to stop him. (vv. 23-31, NLT)

It was three months after the shipwreck that we set sail on another ship that had wintered at the island – an Alexandrian ship with the twin gods as its figurehead. Our first stop was Syracuse, where we stayed three days. From there we sailed across to Rhegium. A day later a sound wind began blowing, so the following day we sailed up the coast to Puteoli. There we found some believer, who invited us to spend the a week with them. And so we came to Rome.

The brothers and sisters in Rome had heard we were coming, and they came to meet us at the the Forum on the Appian Way. Others joined us at the Three Tavern. When Paul saw them, he was encouraged and thanked God.

When we arrived in Rome, Paul was permitted to have his own private lodging though he was guarded by a soldier. (vv. 11-16, NLT)

When the time came, we set sail for Italy. Paul and several other prisoners were placed in custody of a Roman officer named Julius, a captain of the Imperial Regiment. Arstarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was also with us. We left on a ship whose home port was Adramyttium on the northwest coast of the province of Asia; it was scheduled to make several stops at ports along the coast of the province. (vv. 1-2, NLT)

The the commander called two of his officers and ordered, “Get 200 soldiers ready to leave for Caesarea at nine 0’clock tonight. Also take 200 spearman and 70 mounted troops. Provide horses for Paul to ride, and get him safely to Governor Felix.” Then he wrote this letter to the governor:

“From Claudius Lysias, to his Excellency, Governor Felix: Greetings!

This man was seized by some Jews, and they were about to kill him when I arrived withe troops. When I learned that he was a Roman citizen, I removed him to safety. Then I took him to their high council to try to learn the basis of the accusations against him. I soon discovered that the charge was something regarding their religious law – certainly not worthy of imprisonment or death. But when I was informed of a plot to kill him, I immediately sent him on to you. I have told his accusers to bring their charges before you.”

So that night a ordered, the soldiers took Paul as far as Antipatris. They returned to the fortress the next morning, while the mounted troops took him to Caesarea, they presented Paul and the letter to Governor Felix. He read it and then asked Paul what province he was from. “Cilicia,” Paul answered.

“I will hear your case myself when you accusers arrive,” the governor told him. Then the governor ordered him kept in the parison at Herod’s headquarters. (vv. 23-35, NLT)