Good morning. So what did Paul tell the jailer that he must
do to be saved? Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your
household. That seems simple enough. Because the word believe can be used in
more than one way, sometimes there is a mistaken idea of what it means. You can
believe that something is so in your head without it affecting your actions.
This “believe” comes from a change in heart, and hence, a change in actions.
When you believe something in your head, that belief can change overnight; when
you believe with your heart, that does not change very easily. Notice that Paul
said not only would the jailer be saved but also his household. That is not
necessarily a guarantee that that will happen in all instances. It did happen with
Lydia in Philippi which we just read about. Paul and Silas spoke the word of
the Lord to him together with all who were in his house. After he had taken
care of their wounds, the jailer and his household were baptized. In the Bible,
baptism usually occurred immediately after receiving Christ as one’s Savior. He
gave them food, and rejoiced greatly, having believed in God with his whole
household. Father thank You that You move heaven and earth to bring us into
Your kingdom. You want to save not only us, but also our entire family!
Therefore I exhort you, be imitators of me
Good morning. Paul then gives a list of a lot of things that he has gone through as an apostle. I do not write these things to shame you, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For if you were to have countless tutors in Christ, yet you would not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. There could be many people that you listen to either in church or through the Internet or other means; but there was only one person (as a general rule it was a person) that lead you to Christ. Therefore I exhort you, be imitators of me. He was saying that just like a child imitates his or her father, they were to imitate him. He says that again seven chapters later. Since it is easy to forget some things about people we have not seen in a while, Paul says that he sent Timothy to them to remind them of his ways which are in Christ, just as he taught everywhere in every church. Some have become arrogant, as though I were not coming to you. I shall find ou...
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