Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.

For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.

You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”

And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.

You, however, must teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine.

However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.

Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.

He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done.

This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.”

For this is what the Lord has commanded us: “I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.”

You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house.

But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen— that the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.

For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.

Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.

Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.