quarta-feira, 7 de dezembro de 2016

The well-planted tree has firmness and wisdom

[ME]
A Story about a Farmer
(Matthew 13.1-9; Luke 8.4-8)
1   The next time Jesus taught beside Lake Galilee, a big crowd gathered. It was so large that he had to sit in a boat out on the lake, while the people stood on the shore. 2 He used stories to teach them many things, and this is part of what he taught:
3 Now listen! A farmer went out to scatter seed in a field. 4 While the farmer was scattering the seed, some of it fell along the road and was eaten by birds. 5 Other seeds fell on thin, rocky ground and quickly started growing because the soil wasn't very deep. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched and dried up, because they did not have deep roots. 7 Some other seeds fell where thornbushes grew up and choked out the plants. So they did not produce any grain. 8 But a few seeds did fall on good ground where the plants grew and produced 30 or 60 or even 100 times as much as was scattered.
9 Then Jesus said, “If you have ears, pay attention.”
Why Jesus Used Stories
(Matthew 13.10-17; Luke 8.9,10)
10 When Jesus was alone with the twelve apostles and some others, they asked him about these stories. 
11 He answered:
I have explained the secret about God's kingdom to you, but for others I can use only stories. 12 The reason is, “These people will look and look, but never see. They will listen and listen,
but never understand. If they did, they would turn to God and be forgiven.”
Jesus Explains the Story about the Farmer
(Matthew 13.18-23; Luke 8.11-15)
13 Jesus then told them:
If you don't understand this story, you won't understand any others. 14 What the farmer is spreading is really the message about the kingdom. 15 The seeds that fell along the road are the people who hear the message. But Satan soon comes and snatches it away from them. 16 The seeds that fell on rocky ground are the people who gladly hear the message and accept it at once. 17 But they don't have roots, and they don't last very long. As soon as life gets hard or the message gets them in trouble, they give up.
18 The seeds that fell among the thornbushes are also people who hear the message. 19 But they start worrying about the needs of this life. They are fooled by the desire to get rich and to have all kinds of other things. So the message gets choked out, and they never produce anything. 20 The seeds that fell on good ground are the people who hear and welcome the message. They produce 30 or 60 or even 100 times as much as was planted.
Light
(Luke 8.16-18)
21   Jesus also said:
You don't light a lamp and put it under a clay pot or under a bed. Don't you put a lamp on a lampstand? 22 There is nothing hidden that will not be made public. There is no secret that will not be well known. 23 If you have ears, pay attention!
24   Listen carefully to what you hear! The way you treat others will be the way you will be treated—and even worse. 25 Everyone who has something will be given more. But people who don't have anything will lose what little they have.
Another Story about Seeds
26 Again Jesus said:
God's kingdom is like what happens when a farmer scatters seed in a field. 27 The farmer sleeps at night and is up and around during the day. Yet the seeds keep sprouting and growing, and he doesn't understand how. 28 It is the ground that makes the seeds sprout and grow into plants that produce grain. 29 Then when harvest season comes and the grain is ripe, the farmer cuts it with a sickle.
A Mustard Seed
(Matthew 13.31,32; Luke 13.18,19)
30 Finally, Jesus said:
What is God's kingdom like? What story can I use to explain it? 31 It is like what happens when a mustard seed is planted in the ground. It is the smallest seed in all the world. 32 But once it is planted, it grows larger than any garden plant. It even puts out branches that are big enough for birds to nest in its shade.
The Reason for Teaching with Stories
(Matthew 13.34,35)
33 Jesus used many other stories when he spoke to the people, and he taught them as much as they could understand. 34 He did not tell them anything without using stories. But when he was alone with his disciples, he explained everything to them.
A Storm
(Matthew 8.23-27; Luke 8.22-25)
35 That evening, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let's cross to the east side.” 36 So they left the crowd, and his disciples started across the lake with him in the boat. Some other boats followed along. 37 Suddenly a storm struck the lake. Waves started splashing into the boat, and it was about to sink.
38 Jesus was in the back of the boat with his head on a pillow, and he was asleep. His disciples woke him and said, “Teacher, don't you care that we're about to drown?”
39 Jesus got up and ordered the wind and the waves to be quiet. The wind stopped, and everything was calm.
40 Jesus asked his disciples, “Why were you afraid? Don't you have any faith?”
41 Now they were more afraid than ever and said to each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

The volunteer is as important as the actuator ...

[ME]


It's Wrong To Favor the Guilty
1 It's selfish and stupid to think only of yourself and to sneer at people who have sense.
2 Fools have no desire to learn, instead they would rather give their own opinion.
3 Wrongdoing leads to shame and disgrace.
4 Words of wisdom are a stream that flows from a deep fountain.
5 It's wrong to favor the guilty and keep the innocent from getting justice.
6 Foolish talk will get you into a lot of trouble.
7 Saying foolish things is like setting a trap to destroy yourself.
8 There's nothing so delicious as the taste of gossip!
It melts in your mouth.
9 Being lazy is no different from being a troublemaker.
10 The Lord is a mighty tower where his people can run for safety— 11 the rich think their money is a wall of protection.
12 Pride leads to destruction; humility leads to honor.
13   It's stupid and embarrassing to give an answer before you listen.
14 Being cheerful helps when you are sick, but nothing helps when you give up.
15 Everyone with good sense wants to learn.
16 A gift will get you in to see anyone.
17 You may think you have won your case in court, until your opponent speaks.
18 Drawing straws is one way to settle a difficult case.
19 Making up with a friend you have offended is harder than breaking through a city wall.
20 Make your words good— you will be glad you did.
21 Words can bring death or life!
Talk too much, and you will eat everything you say.
22   A man's greatest treasure is his wife— she is a gift from the Lord.
23 The poor must beg for help, but the rich can give a harsh reply.
24 Some friends don't help, but a true friend is closer than your own family.

"The Divine shows us the way"

[ME]
* 5 The lamps of sinful people soon are snuffed out, 6 leaving their tents dark.
7 Their powerful legs become weak, and they stumble on schemes of their own doing.
* 8 Before they know it, 9 they are trapped in a net, 10 hidden along the path.
11 Terror strikes and pursues from every side.
12 Starving, they run, only to meet disaster, 13 then afterwards to be eaten alive by death itself.
14 Those sinners are dragged from the safety of their tents to die a gruesome death.
15 Then their tents and possessions are burned to ashes, 16 and they are left like trees, dried up from the roots.
17 They are gone and forgotten, 18 thrown far from the light into a world of darkness, 19 without any children to carry on their name.
20 Everyone, from east to west, is overwhelmed with horror.
21 Such is the fate of sinners and their families  who don't know God.

Vocês só creem quando veem grandes milagres!


Jesus e a mulher samaritana
1 Os fariseus ouviram dizer que Jesus estava ganhando mais discípulos e batizava mais pessoas do que João. 2 (De fato, não era Jesus quem batizava, e sim os seus discípulos.) 3 Quando Jesus ficou sabendo disso, saiu da Judeia e voltou para a Galileia. 4 No caminho, ele tinha de passar pela região da Samaria.
5 Ele chegou a uma cidade da Samaria, chamada Sicar, que ficava perto das terras que Jacó tinha dado ao seu filho José. 6 Ali ficava o poço de Jacó. Era mais ou menos meio-dia quando Jesus, cansado da viagem, sentou-se perto do poço.
7 Uma mulher samaritana veio tirar água, e Jesus lhe disse:
— Por favor, me dê um pouco de água.
8 (Os discípulos de Jesus tinham ido até a cidade comprar comida.)
9 A mulher respondeu:
— O senhor é judeu, e eu sou samaritana. Então como é que o senhor me pede água? (Ela disse isso porque os judeus não se dão com os samaritanos.)
10 Então Jesus disse:
— Se você soubesse o que Deus pode dar e quem é que está lhe pedindo água, você pediria, e ele lhe daria a água da vida.
11 Ela respondeu:
— O senhor não tem balde para tirar água, e o poço é fundo. Como é que vai conseguir essa água da vida? 12 Nosso antepassado Jacó nos deu este poço. Ele, os seus filhos e os seus animais beberam água daqui. Será que o senhor é mais importante do que Jacó?
13 Então Jesus disse:
— Quem beber desta água terá sede de novo, 14 mas a pessoa que beber da água que eu lhe der nunca mais terá sede. Porque a água que eu lhe der se tornará nela uma fonte de água que dará vida eterna.
15 Então a mulher pediu:
— Por favor, me dê dessa água! Assim eu nunca mais terei sede e não precisarei mais vir aqui buscar água.
16 — Vá chamar o seu marido e volte aqui! — ordenou Jesus.
17— Eu não tenho marido! — respondeu a mulher.
Então Jesus disse:
— Você está certa ao dizer que não tem marido, 18 pois já teve cinco, e este que você tem agora não é, de fato, seu marido. Sim, você falou a verdade.
19 A mulher respondeu:
— Agora eu sei que o senhor é um profeta! 20 Os nossos antepassados adoravam a Deus neste monte , mas vocês, judeus, dizem que Jerusalém é o lugar onde devemos adorá-lo.
21 Jesus disse:
— Mulher, creia no que eu digo: chegará o tempo em que ninguém vai adorar a Deus nem neste monte nem em Jerusalém. 22 Vocês, samaritanos, não sabem o que adoram, mas nós sabemos o que adoramos porque a salvação vem dos judeus. 23 Mas virá o tempo, e, de fato, já chegou, em que os verdadeiros adoradores vão adorar o Pai em espírito e em verdade. Pois são esses que o Pai quer que o adorem. 24 Deus é Espírito, e por isso os que o adoram devem adorá-lo em espírito e em verdade.
25 A mulher respondeu:
— Eu sei que o Messias, chamado Cristo, tem de vir. E, quando ele vier, vai explicar tudo para nós.
26 Então Jesus afirmou:
— Pois eu, que estou falando com você, sou o Messias.
27 Naquele momento chegaram os seus discípulos e ficaram admirados, pois ele estava conversando com uma mulher. Mas nenhum deles perguntou à mulher o que ela queria. E também não perguntaram a Jesus por que motivo ele estava falando com ela.
28 Em seguida, a mulher deixou ali o seu pote, voltou até a cidade e disse a todas as pessoas:
29 — Venham ver o homem que disse tudo o que eu tenho feito. Será que ele é o Messias?
30 Muitas pessoas saíram da cidade e foram para o lugar onde Jesus estava.
31 Enquanto isso, os discípulos pediam a Jesus:
— Mestre, coma alguma coisa!
32 Jesus respondeu:
— Eu tenho para comer uma comida que vocês não conhecem.
33 Então os discípulos começaram a perguntar uns aos outros:
— Será que alguém já trouxe comida para ele?
34 — A minha comida — disse Jesus — é fazer a vontade daquele que me enviou e terminar o trabalho que ele me deu para fazer. 35 Vocês costumam dizer: “Daqui a quatro meses teremos a colheita.” Mas olhem e vejam bem os campos: o que foi plantado já está maduro e pronto para a colheita. 36 Quem colhe recebe o seu salário, e o resultado do seu trabalho é a vida eterna para as pessoas. E assim tanto o que semeia como o que colhe se alegrarão juntos. 37 Porque é verdade o que dizem: “Um semeia, e outro colhe.” 38 Eu mandei vocês colherem onde não trabalharam; outros trabalharam ali, e vocês aproveitaram o trabalho deles.
39 Muitos samaritanos daquela cidade creram em Jesus porque a mulher tinha dito: “Ele me disse tudo o que eu tenho feito.” 40 Quando os samaritanos chegaram ao lugar onde Jesus estava, pediram a ele que ficasse com eles, e Jesus ficou ali dois dias.
41 E muitos outros creram por causa da mensagem dele. 42 Eles diziam à mulher:
— Agora não é mais por causa do que você disse que nós cremos, mas porque nós mesmos o ouvimos falar. E sabemos que ele é, de fato, o Salvador do mundo.
Jesus cura o filho de um funcionário público
43 Depois de ficar dois dias ali, Jesus foi para a região da Galileia. 44 Pois, como ele mesmo disse: “Um profeta não é respeitado na sua própria terra.” 45 Quando chegou à Galileia, os moradores dali o receberam bem. É que eles tinham ido à Festa da Páscoa, em Jerusalém, e tinham visto tudo o que Jesus havia feito lá.
46 Jesus voltou a Caná da Galileia, onde havia transformado água em vinho. Estava ali um alto funcionário público que morava em Cafarnaum. Ele tinha em casa um filho doente. 47 Quando ouviu dizer que Jesus tinha vindo da Judeia para a Galileia, foi pedir a ele que fosse a Cafarnaum e curasse o seu filho, que estava morrendo. 48 Jesus disse ao funcionário:
— Vocês só creem quando veem grandes milagres!
49 Ele respondeu:
— Senhor, venha depressa, antes que o meu filho morra!
50 — Volte para casa! O seu filho vai viver! — disse Jesus.
Ele creu nas palavras de Jesus e foi embora. 51 No caminho encontrou-se com os seus empregados, que disseram:
— O seu filho está vivo!
52 Então ele perguntou a que horas o filho havia começado a melhorar. Os empregados responderam:
— Ontem, à uma da tarde, a febre passou.
53 Aí o pai lembrou que havia sido naquela mesma hora que Jesus tinha dito: “O seu filho vai viver.” Então ele e toda a família creram em Jesus.
54 Esse foi o segundo milagre que Jesus fez depois de ter ido da Judeia para a Galileia.

You won't have faith unless you see miracles and wonders


1 Jesus knew that the Pharisees had heard that he was winning and baptizing more followers than John was. 2 But Jesus' disciples were really the ones doing the baptizing, and not Jesus himself.
Jesus and the Samaritan Woman
3 Jesus left Judea and started for Galilee again. 4This time he had to go through Samaria, 5 and on his way he came to the town of Sychar. It was near the field that Jacob had long ago given to his son Joseph. 6-8 The well that Jacob had dug was still there, and Jesus sat down beside it because he was tired from traveling. It was noon, and after Jesus' disciples had gone into town to buy some food, a Samaritan woman came to draw water from the well.
Jesus asked her, “Would you please give me a drink of water?”
9   “You are a Jew,” she replied, “and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink of water when Jews and Samaritans won't have anything to do with each other?”
10 Jesus answered, “You don't know what God wants to give you, and you don't know who is asking you for a drink. If you did, you would ask me for the water that gives life.”
11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you don't even have a bucket, and the well is deep. Where are you going to get this life-giving water? 12 Our ancestor Jacob dug this well for us, and his family and animals got water from it. Are you greater than Jacob?”
13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again. 14 But no one who drinks the water I give will ever be thirsty again. The water I give will become in that person a flowing fountain that gives eternal life.”
15 The woman replied, “Sir, please give me a drink of that water! Then I won't get thirsty and have to come to this well again.”
16 Jesus told her, “Go and bring your husband.”
17-18 The woman answered, “I don't have a husband.”
“That's right,” Jesus replied, “you're telling the truth. You don't have a husband. You have already been married five times, and the man you are now living with isn't your husband.”
19 The woman said, “Sir, I can see that you are a prophet. 20 My ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews say Jerusalem is the only place to worship.”
21 Jesus said to her:
Believe me, the time is coming when you won't worship the Father either on this mountain or in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans don't really know the one you worship. But we Jews do know the God we worship, and by using us, God will save the world. 23 But a time is coming, and it is already here! Even now the true worshipers are being led by the Spirit to worship the Father according to the truth. These are the ones the Father is seeking to worship him. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship God must be led by the Spirit to worship him according to the truth.
25 The woman said, “I know that the Messiah will come. He is the one we call Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”
26 “I am that one,” Jesus told her, “and I am speaking to you now.”
27 The disciples returned about this time and were surprised to find Jesus talking with a woman. But none of them asked him what he wanted or why he was talking with her.
28 The woman left her water jar and ran back into town, where she said to the people, 29 “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! Could he be the Messiah?” 30 Everyone in town went out to see Jesus.
31 While this was happening, Jesus' disciples were saying to him, “Teacher, please eat something.”
32 But Jesus told them, “I have food you don't know anything about.”
33 His disciples started asking each other, “Has someone brought him something to eat?”
34 Jesus said:
My food is to do what God wants! He is the one who sent me, and I must finish the work that he gave me to do. 35 You may say there are still four months until harvest time. But I tell you to look, and you will see that the fields are ripe and ready to harvest.
36 Even now the harvest workers are receiving their reward by gathering a harvest that brings eternal life. Then everyone who planted the seed and everyone who harvests the crop will celebrate together. 37 So the saying proves true, “Some plant the seed, and others harvest the crop.” 38 I am sending you to harvest crops in fields where others have done all the hard work.
39 A lot of Samaritans in that town put their faith in Jesus because the woman had said, “This man told me everything I have ever done.” 40 They came and asked him to stay in their town, and he stayed on for two days.
41 Many more Samaritans put their faith in Jesus because of what they heard him say. 42 They told the woman, “We no longer have faith in Jesus just because of what you told us. We have heard him ourselves, and we are certain that he is the Savior of the world!”
Jesus Heals an Official's Son
(Matthew 8.5-13; Luke 7.1-10)
43-44   Jesus had said, “Prophets are honored everywhere, except in their own country.” Then two days later he left 45 and went to Galilee. The people there welcomed him, because they had gone to the festival in Jerusalem and had seen everything he had done.
46   While Jesus was in Galilee, he returned to the village of Cana, where he had turned the water into wine. There was an official in Capernaum whose son was sick. 47 And when the man heard that Jesus had come from Judea, he went and begged him to keep his son from dying.
48 Jesus told the official, “You won't have faith unless you see miracles and wonders!”
49 The man replied, “Lord, please come before my son dies!”
50 Jesus then said, “Your son will live. Go on home to him.” The man believed Jesus and started back home.
51 Some of the official's servants met him along the road and told him, “Your son is better!” 52 He asked them when the boy got better, and they answered, “The fever left him yesterday at one o'clock.”
53 The boy's father realized that at one o'clock the day before, Jesus had told him, “Your son will live!” So the man and everyone in his family put their faith in Jesus.
54 This was the second miracle that Jesus worked after he left Judea and went to Galilee

Shut up the envy and break the word of God!

[ME]
Jeremiah's Message in the Temple
(Jeremiah 7.1-15)
1   Soon after Jehoiakim became king of Judah, the Lord said:
2 Jeremiah, I have a message for everyone who comes from the towns of Judah to worship in my temple. Go to the temple courtyard and speak every word that I tell you. 3 Maybe the people will listen this time. And if they stop doing wrong, I will change my mind and not punish them for their sins. 4 Tell them that I have said:
You have refused to listen to me and to obey my laws and teachings. 5 Again and again I have sent my servants the prophets to preach to you, but you ignored them as well. Now I am warning you that if you don't start obeying me at once, 6 I will destroy this temple, just as I destroyed the town of Shiloh. Then everyone on earth will use the name “Jerusalem” as a curse word.
Jeremiah on Trial
7 The priests, the prophets, and everyone else in the temple heard what I said, 8-9 and as soon as I finished, they all crowded around me and started shouting, “Why did you preach that the Lord will destroy this temple, just as he destroyed Shiloh? Why did you say that Jerusalem will be empty and lie in ruins? You ought to be put to death for saying such things in the Lord's name!” Then they had me arrested.
10 The royal officers heard what had happened, and they came from the palace to the new gate of the temple to be the judges at my trial. 11 While they listened, the priests and the prophets said to the crowd, “All of you have heard Jeremiah prophesy that Jerusalem will be destroyed. He deserves the death penalty.”
12-13 Then I told the judges and everyone else:
The Lord himself sent me to tell you about the terrible things he will do to you, to Jerusalem, and to the temple. But if you change your ways and start obeying the Lord, he will change his mind.
14 You must decide what to do with me. Just do whatever you think is right. 15 But if you put me to death, you and everyone else in Jerusalem will be guilty of murdering an innocent man, because everything I preached came from the Lord.
16 The judges and the other people told the priests and prophets, “Since Jeremiah only told us what the Lord our God had said, we don't think he deserves to die.”
17 Then some of the leaders from other towns stepped forward. They told the crowd that 18 years ago when Hezekiah was king of Judah, a prophet named Micah from the town of Moresheth had said:
“I, the Lord All-Powerful, say
Jerusalem will be plowed under and left in ruins. Thorns will cover the mountain where the temple now stands.”
19 Then the leaders continued:
No one put Micah to death for saying that. Instead, King Hezekiah prayed to the Lord with fear and trembling and asked him to have mercy. Then the Lord decided not to destroy Jerusalem, even though he had already said he would.
People of Judah, if Jeremiah is killed, we will bring a terrible disaster on ourselves.
20-24 After these leaders finished speaking, an important man named Ahikam son of Shaphan spoke up for me as well. And so, I wasn't handed over to the crowd to be killed.
Uriah the Prophet
While Jehoiakim was still king of Judah, a man named Uriah son of Shemaiah left his hometown of Kiriath-Jearim and came to Jerusalem. Uriah was one of the Lord's prophets, and he was saying the same things about Judah and Jerusalem that I had been saying. And when Jehoiakim and his officials and military officers heard what Uriah said, they tried to arrest him, but he escaped to Egypt. So Jehoiakim sent Elnathan son of Achbor and some other men after Uriah, and they brought him back. Then Jehoiakim had Uriah killed and his body dumped in a common burial pit.

We will give everyone our smile so that we do not feel inferior to anyone

[ME]

7 Jesus said:
I tell you for certain that I am the gate for the sheep. 8 Everyone who came before me was a thief or a robber, and the sheep did not listen to any of them. 9 I am the gate. All who come in through me will be saved. Through me they will come and go and find pasture.
10 A thief comes only to rob, kill, and destroy. I came so everyone would have life, and have it fully. 11 I am the good shepherd, and the good shepherd gives up his life for his sheep. 12 Hired workers are not like the shepherd. They don't own the sheep, and when they see a wolf coming, they run off and leave the sheep. Then the wolf attacks and scatters the flock. 13 Hired workers run away because they don't care about the sheep.
14   I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep, and they know me. 15 Just as the Father knows me, I know the Father, and I give up my life for my sheep. 16 I have other sheep that are not in this sheep pen. I must also bring them together, when they hear my voice. Then there will be one flock of sheep and one shepherd.
17 The Father loves me, because I give up my life, so I may receive it back again. 18 No one takes my life from me. I give it up willingly! I have the power to give it up and the power to receive it back again, just as my Father commanded me to do.

"Each weight has its consequence"

[ME]

1   Michael, the chief of the angels, is the protector of your people, and he will come at a time of terrible suffering, the worst in all of history. And your people who have their names written in The Book will be protected. 2 Many of those who lie dead in the ground will rise from death. Some of them will be given eternal life, and others will receive nothing but eternal shame and disgrace. 3 Everyone who has been wise will shine as bright as the sky above, and everyone who has led others to please God will shine forever like the stars.
4 Daniel, I now command you to keep the message of this book secret until the end of time, even though many people will go everywhere, searching for the knowledge to be found in it.
The End of Time
5 Daniel wrote:
I looked around and saw two other people—one on this side of the river and one on the other side. 6 The angel who had spoken to me was dressed in linen and was standing upstream from them. So one of the two beside the river asked him, “How long before these amazing things happen?”
7   The angel then raised both hands toward heaven and said, “In the name of the God who lives forever, I solemnly promise that it will be a time, two times, and half a time. Everything will be over, when the suffering of God's holy people comes to an end.”
8 I heard what the angel said, but I didn't understand. So I asked, “Sir, how will it all end?”
The angel in my vision then replied:
9 Daniel, go about your business, because the meaning of this message will remain secret until the end of time. 10 Many people will have their hearts and lives made pure and clean, but those who are evil will keep on being evil and never understand. Only the wise will understand. 11 There will be 1,290 days from the time that the daily sacrifices are stopped, until someone sets up the “Horrible Thing” that causes destruction. 12 God will bless everyone who patiently waits until 1,335 days have gone by.
13 So, Daniel, be faithful until the end! You will rest, and at the end of time, you will rise from death to receive your reward.

Leaving all tormented by your lack ...

"I feel my strength empty ....
It is as if the wind empties the field;
Leaving all tormented by your lack ... "

[ME]

Jesus Again Tells about His Death
(Mark 10.32-34; Luke 18.31-34)
17 As Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem, he took his twelve disciples aside and told them in private:
18 We are now on our way to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the teachers of the Law of Moses. They will sentence him to death, 19 and then they will hand him over to foreigners who will make fun of him. They will beat him and nail him to a cross. But on the third day he will rise from death.

"Exalt your love to your neighbor"

Sharing Possessions
32 The group of followers all felt the same way about everything. None of them claimed that their possessions were their own, and they shared everything they had with each other. 33 In a powerful way the apostles told everyone that the Lord Jesus was now alive. God greatly blessed his followers, 34 and no one went in need of anything. Everyone who owned land or houses would sell them and bring the money 35 to the apostles. Then they would give the money to anyone in need.
36-37 Joseph was one of the followers who had sold a piece of property and brought the money to the apostles. He was a Levite from Cyprus, and the apostles called him Barnabas, which means “one who encourages others.”