Without question, this is the great mystery of our faith: Christ was revealed in a human body and vindicated by the Spirit. He was seen by angels and announced to the nations. He was believed in throughout the world and taken to heaven in glory.

大哉，敬虔的奥秘，无人不以为然！就是神在肉身显现，被圣灵称义，被天使看见，被传于外邦，被世人信服，被接在荣耀里。

敬虔的奥秘是公认为伟大的：上帝在肉身显现，被圣灵称义，被天使看见，被传于外邦，被世人信服，被接在荣耀里。

敬虔的奥秘是公认为伟大的：神在肉身显现，被圣灵称义，被天使看见，被传于外邦，被世人信服，被接在荣耀里。

毫无疑问，我们伟大的信仰奥妙无比：祂以肉身显现，被圣灵证明为义，被天使看见，被传扬到列邦，被世人信奉，被接到天上的荣耀中。

敬虔的奥秘真伟大啊，这是众人所公认的，就是：“他在肉身显现，在圣灵里称义（“在圣灵里称义”或译：“被圣灵称义”），被天使看见；被传于列国，被世人信服，被接到荣耀里。”

正如大家所承认的，敬神的奥秘是极大的：神以肉身显现，被圣灵证实，被天使观看，被传于万邦，被世人信仰，被接在荣耀里。

大哉，敬虔的奧祕，無人不以為然！就是神在肉身顯現，被聖靈稱義，被天使看見，被傳於外邦，被世人信服，被接在榮耀裏。

敬虔的奧祕是公認為偉大的：上帝在肉身顯現，被聖靈稱義，被天使看見，被傳於外邦，被世人信服，被接在榮耀裏。

敬虔的奧祕是公認為偉大的：神在肉身顯現，被聖靈稱義，被天使看見，被傳於外邦，被世人信服，被接在榮耀裏。

毫無疑問，我們偉大的信仰奧妙無比：祂以肉身顯現，被聖靈證明為義，被天使看見，被傳揚到列邦，被世人信奉，被接到天上的榮耀中。

敬虔的奧祕真偉大啊，這是眾人所公認的，就是：“他在肉身顯現，在聖靈裡稱義（“在聖靈裡稱義”或譯：“被聖靈稱義”），被天使看見；被傳於列國，被世人信服，被接到榮耀裡。”

大家公認地、大哉、敬虔之事的奧祕！他顯現於肉身裏，他被斷為得勝於靈裏，他現給天使們看見，他被宣傳於外國中，被信奉於遍世界，被接上於榮耀中。

正如大家所承認的，敬神的奧祕是極大的：神以肉身顯現，被聖靈證實，被天使觀看，被傳於萬邦，被世人信仰，被接在榮耀裡。

大哉敬虔之奧、無不以為然也、彼顯於形軀、徵於心靈、見於天使、宣於列邦、信於天下、躋於光榮焉、

敬主之道、至大至妙、無不以為然、上帝假人身而顯著、稱義於聖神、見於天使、聞於異邦、信於天下、而躋光明之域、

大哉虔敬之奧妙、無人不以為然、天主假人身顯著、因神而稱義、為天使所見、被傳於異邦人、見信於天下、而升於榮光、

嗚呼、聖道之玄妙、不亦浩浩其天、淵淵其淵乎哉！所謂玄妙者無他、即現於肉身、證於聖神、見於天神、傳於兆民、信於普世、而躋於光榮者也。

Beyond all question, the mystery from which true godliness springs is great: He appeared in the flesh, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory.

There is no doubt that true godliness comes from this great mystery. Jesus came as a human being. The Holy Spirit proved that he was the Son of God. He was seen by angels. He was preached among the nations. People in the world believed in him. He was taken up to heaven in glory.

Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.

And most certainly, the mystery of godliness is great: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.

Beyond question, great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.

And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.

And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness; He who was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the spirit, Seen of angels, Preached among the nations, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.

And most certainly, the mystery of godliness is great: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.

And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

And we all agree, our religion contains amazing revelation: He was revealed in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among Gentiles, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.

Without controversy, the mystery of godliness is great: God was revealed in the flesh, justified in the spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, and received up in glory.

So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.

Now all glory to God, who is able to make you strong, just as my Good News says. This message about Jesus Christ has revealed his plan for you Gentiles, a plan kept secret from the beginning of time.

The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven.

When the Lord Jesus had finished talking with them, he was taken up into heaven and sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.

As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes.

But you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. The Good News has been preached all over the world, and I, Paul, have been appointed as God’s servant to proclaim it.

“ Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means‘ God is with us.’”

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

“ So guard yourselves and God’s people. Feed and shepherd God’s flock— his church, purchased with his own blood— over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as leaders.

for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see— such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him.He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together.Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything.

And Jesus Christ was revealed as God’s Son by his baptism in water and by shedding his blood on the cross— not by water only, but by water and blood. And the Spirit, who is truth, confirms it with his testimony.So we have these three witnesses—the Spirit, the water, and the blood— and all three agree.

They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen.

After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him.

Now Christ has gone to heaven. He is seated in the place of honor next to God, and all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority.

And you know that Jesus came to take away our sins, and there is no sin in him.

This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us.

We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.

They must be committed to the mystery of the faith now revealed and must live with a clear conscience.

God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but now in these last days he has been revealed for your sake.

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead. But he laid his right hand on me and said,“ Don’t be afraid! I am the First and the Last.I am the living one. I died, but look— I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and the grave.

Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him.

Then Peter replied,“ I see very clearly that God shows no favoritism.

And without question, the person who has the power to give a blessing is greater than the one who is blessed.

A mysterious name was written on her forehead:“ Babylon the Great, Mother of All Prostitutes and Obscenities in the World.”

Surrounded by unnumbered thousands of chariots, the Lord came from Mount Sinai into his sanctuary.When you ascended to the heights, you led a crowd of captives. You received gifts from the people, even from those who rebelled against you. Now the Lord God will live among us there.

The Sovereign Lord has spoken to me, and I have listened. I have not rebelled or turned away.I offered my back to those who beat me and my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard. I did not hide my face from mockery and spitting.Because the Sovereign Lord helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore, I have set my face like a stone, determined to do his will. And I know that I will not be put to shame.

When he comes on that day, he will receive glory from his holy people— praise from all who believe. And this includes you, for you believed what we told you about him.

In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God.He existed in the beginning with God.

Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him.

The news of his death spread to all the people of Jerusalem, and they gave the place the Aramaic name Akeldama, which means“ Field of Blood.”)

The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins.

When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a white robe sitting on the right side. The women were shocked,

While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up to heaven.

Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are their ancestors, and Christ himself was an Israelite as far as his human nature is concerned. And he is God, the one who rules over everything and is worthy of eternal praise! Amen.

He is a light to reveal God to the nations, and he is the glory of your people Israel!”

As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me.As you read what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan regarding Christ.God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets.And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus.By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News.Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ.I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning.God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.

Adam, the first man, was made from the dust of the earth, while Christ, the second man, came from heaven.

I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself.

He replied,“ You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not.

That is why the Scriptures say,“ When he ascended to the heights, he led a crowd of captives and gave gifts to his people.”Notice that it says“ he ascended.” This clearly means that Christ also descended to our lowly world.And the same one who descended is the one who ascended higher than all the heavens, so that he might fill the entire universe with himself.

And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.

“ God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this.Now he is exalted to the place of highest honor in heaven, at God’s right hand. And the Father, as he had promised, gave him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today.For David himself never ascended into heaven, yet he said,‘ The Lord said to my Lord,“ Sit in the place of honor at my right handuntil I humble your enemies, making them a footstool under your feet.”’“ So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!”

But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law.

Then the devil went away, and angels came and took care of Jesus.

For this lawlessness is already at work secretly, and it will remain secret until the one who is holding it back steps out of the way.

but the angel reassured them.“ Don’t be afraid!” he said.“ I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.The Savior— yes, the Messiah, the Lord— has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others— the armies of heaven— praising God and saying,“ Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”

All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel( which means‘ God is with us’).

where he was tempted by Satan for forty days. He was out among the wild animals, and angels took care of him.

Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God.

What we do see is Jesus, who for a little while was given a position“ a little lower than the angels”; and because he suffered death for us, he is now“ crowned with glory and honor.” Yes, by God’s grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone.God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring many children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation.So now Jesus and the ones he makes holy have the same Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them his brothers and sisters.For he said to God,“ I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters. I will praise you among your assembled people.”He also said,“ I will put my trust in him,” that is,“ I and the children God has given me.”

Then John testified,“ I saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him.I didn’t know he was the one, but when God sent me to baptize with water, he told me,‘ The one on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’

This same Good News that came to you is going out all over the world. It is bearing fruit everywhere by changing lives, just as it changed your lives from the day you first heard and understood the truth about God’s wonderful grace.

After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands.

“ For the time is coming,” says the Lord,“ when I will raise up a righteous descendant from King David’s line. He will be a King who rules with wisdom. He will do what is just and right throughout the land.And this will be his name:‘ The Lord Is Our Righteousness.’ In that day Judah will be saved, and Israel will live in safety.

Suddenly there was a great earthquake! For an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled aside the stone, and sat on it.

She saw two white robed angels, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying.

Yes, I came from the Father into the world, and now I will leave the world and return to the Father.”

Upon arriving in Antioch, they called the church together and reported everything God had done through them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles, too.

In my first book I told you, Theophilus, about everything Jesus began to do and teachuntil the day he was taken up to heaven after giving his chosen apostles further instructions through the Holy Spirit.During the forty days after he suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive. And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God.Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them,“ Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before.John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him,“ Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?”He replied,“ The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know.But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere— in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him.As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white robed men suddenly stood among them.“ Men of Galilee,” they said,“ why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!”

God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ— which is to fulfill his own good plan.

Now, Father, bring me into the glory we shared before the world began.

“ But I will send you the Advocate— the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me.

For the same God who worked through Peter as the apostle to the Jews also worked through me as the apostle to the Gentiles.

Then Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and declared,“ It was necessary that we first preach the word of God to you Jews. But since you have rejected it and judged yourselves unworthy of eternal life, we will offer it to the Gentiles.For the Lord gave us this command when he said,‘ I have made you a light to the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the farthest corners of the earth.’”When the Gentiles heard this, they were very glad and thanked the Lord for his message; and all who were chosen for eternal life became believers.

Then what will you think if you see the Son of Man ascend to heaven again?

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel, whose origins are in the distant past, will come from you on my behalf.

Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form,he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory.

No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God— his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began.

“ Why are you so amazed?” the angel asked.“ I will tell you the mystery of this woman and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns on which she sits.

And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment.The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me.

But I ask, have the people of Israel actually heard the message? Yes, they have:“ The message has gone throughout the earth, and the words to all the world.”

The Good News is about his Son. In his earthly life he was born into King David’s family line,and he was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord.

Here is the main point: We have a High Priest who sat down in the place of honor beside the throne of the majestic God in heaven.

Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.