Book of Common Prayer

¹⁶ I am not ashamed of the good news of Jesus Christ. The good news is the power God uses to save every one who believes. The good news was for the Jews first, but also for those who are not Jews.

¹⁷ The good news shows how God puts a person right. God puts a person right when that person believes in his Son and keeps on believing. The holy writings say, `A person who is put right because he believes, will live for ever.'

¹⁸ God is angry. He has shown it from heaven. He is angry because of all the bad and wrong things people do. These people hold back God's truth by the wrong things they do.

¹⁹ They know about God. God himself has shown them.

²⁰ People cannot see that God has power which lasts for ever. They cannot see that he is really God. But ever since he made the world, he has clearly shown this by the things he made. So they cannot say, `I did not know about God.'

²¹ Even though they knew he was God, they did not worship him as God. They did not thank him. Their thoughts were no good. Their foolish minds became dark.

²² They said they were wise people, but they were foolish people.

²³ They did not worship God who cannot die. But they worshipped things made to look like a man who does die. They worshipped things made to look like birds and animals and snakes.

²⁴ So God left them to do the things their hearts wanted to do. They did the things that are not right to do with their bodies. They did not respect their own bodies.

²⁵ They would not believe what was true about God. They believed a lie. They worshipped and worked for something that was made by God. They did not worship God - God who made all things. He is the one to worship for ever. Amen. May it be so!

⁴³ Jesus himself said, `No prophet is honoured by the people in his own country.'

⁴⁴ When he came to Galilee, the people of that country were glad to see him. They had seen all the things he did when he was at the feast in Jerusalem. They had been at the feast also.

⁴⁵ So Jesus came back to the town of Cana in Galilee. That was the place where he had changed water into wine. One of the king's officers was there. His son was sick in the town of Capernaum.

⁴⁶ He heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, and he went to Jesus and said, `I beg you, come and heal my son. He is dying.'

⁴⁷ Jesus said to him, `If you do not see some signs and big works, then you will not believe.'

⁴⁸ The officer said, `Sir, I beg you. Come right away before my son dies.'

⁴⁹ Jesus said, `Go home. Your son will not die.' The man believed what Jesus said and went home.

⁵⁰ On the way, his servants met him. They said, `Your son is living.'

⁵¹ He asked, `What time did he begin to get well?' They said, `Yesterday at one hour after midday the fever left him.'

⁵² The father knew that was the time when Jesus said to him `Your son will not die.' So he and all his family believed in Jesus.

⁵³ This was the second big work that Jesus did after he came back from Judea to Galilee.