Rachel Workman: 17 I urge you, brothers and sisters,
to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that
are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. 18 For such
people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk
and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people. 19 Everyone
has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you; but I want you to
be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil. This is good
advice for all of us even today.
20 The God of peace will soon crush
Satan under your feet. I believe Satan is crushed everyday simply because I
belong to Christ. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.
21 Timothy, my co-worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my fellow Jews.
22 I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.
23 Gaius, whose hospitality I and the whole church here enjoy, sends you his greetings.
Erastus, who is the city’s director of public works, and our brother Quartus send you their greetings. [24] [e]
25 Now to him who
is able to establish you in accordance with my gospel, the message I proclaim
about Jesus Christ, in keeping with the revelation of the mystery hidden for
long ages past, 26 but
now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of
the eternal God, so that all the Gentiles might come to the obedience that
comes from[f]
faith— 27 to
the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Allen Michaels: 17 I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause
divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you
have learned. Keep away from them. 18 For such people are not
serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery
they deceive the minds of naive people. 19 Everyone has heard
about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you; but I want you to be wise
about what is good, and innocent about what is evil.
20 The God of peace
will soon crush Satan under your feet.
The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.
When we read books or listen to sermons,
we should check the content of what is written or said and not be fooled by
smooth style. Christians who study God’s Word will not be fooled, even though
superficial listeners may easily be taken in.
21 Timothy, my
co-worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my
fellow Jews.
22 I, Tertius, who
wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.
23 Gaius, whose
hospitality I and the whole church here enjoy, sends you his greetings.
Erastus, who is the city’s director of public
works, and our brother Quartus send you their greetings. [24]
25 Now to him who is
able to establish you in accordance with my gospel, the message I proclaim
about Jesus Christ, in keeping with the revelation of the mystery hidden for
long ages past, 26 but now revealed and made known through the
prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all the Gentiles
might come to the obedience that comes from[f]
faith— 27 to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus
Christ! Amen. Paul exclaims that it is wonderful to
be alive when the mystery, God’s secret—his way of saving the Gentiles—is
becoming known throughout the world! All the Old Testament prophecies were coming
true, and God was using Paul as his instrument to tell this Good News.
We live in a cosmopolitan setting, as
Paul did with the broad and diverse mix of people, with the entire world open
to us. We also have the potential for both widespread influence and wrenching
conflict. We should listen carefully to and apply Paul’s teaching about unity,
service, and love.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Tomorrow’s reading for Ruth 1:1-5
1 In the days when the judges ruled,[a] there was a famine in the land. So a man
from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for
a while in the country of Moab. 2 The man’s
name was Elimelek, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were
Mahlon and Kilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem, Judah. And they went
to Moab and lived there.
3 Now Elimelek, Naomi’s husband,
died, and she was left with her two sons. 4 They married Moabite women, one named Orpah and the
other Ruth. After they had lived there about ten years, 5 both Mahlon and Kilion also
died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and her husband.
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