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.”

“Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised,which you have heard me speak about.”

“Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.”

After they prayed the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

“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.”

But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.

Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.

So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.

“But the word of God continued to spread and flourish.”

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

“Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed.”

While they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “set apart for me Barnabas and Saul forgot the work to which I have called them.

“No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.

“And since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings,

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.