I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you.

so that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,

Therefore I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?

Therefore I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope.

Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with hearts of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with one another and forgive any complaint you may have against someone else. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which is the bond of perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, for to this you were called as members of one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. . . .

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

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

Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one another.

Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine as lights in the world

This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants what must soon come to pass. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John,

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.

Beloved, this is now my second letter to you. Both of them are reminders to stir you to wholesome thinking by recalling what was foretold by the holy prophets and commanded by our Lord and Savior through your apostles. Most importantly, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. “Where is the promise of His coming?” they will ask. “Ever since our fathers fell asleep, everything continues as it has from the beginning of creation.” But they deliberately overlook the fact that long ago by God’s word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water, . . .

Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you.

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, for God has said: “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.”

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

The plans of the heart belong to man, but the reply of the tongue is from the LORD. All a man’s ways are pure in his own eyes, but his motives are weighed out by the LORD. Commit your works to the LORD and your plans will be achieved. The LORD has made everything for His purpose—even the wicked for the day of disaster. Everyone who is proud in heart is detestable to the LORD; be assured that he will not go unpunished. . . .

And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns.

Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen.

Behold what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know Him. Beloved, we are now children of God, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when Christ appears, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as Christ is pure. Everyone who practices sin practices lawlessness as well. Indeed, sin is lawlessness. But you know that Christ appeared to take away sins, and in Him there is no sin. . . .

Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.”

Therefore strengthen your limp hands and weak knees. Make straight paths for your feet, so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed. Pursue peace with everyone, as well as holiness, without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God, and that no root of bitterness springs up to cause trouble and defile many. See to it that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his birthright.

Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the Law of the LORD. Blessed are those who keep His testimonies and seek Him with all their heart. They do no iniquity; they walk in His ways. You have ordained Your precepts, that we should keep them diligently. Oh, that my ways were committed to keeping Your statutes! . . .

I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing.

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come!

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.

Then Jesus said to all of them, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me.

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the LORD, “You are my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the deadly plague. He will cover you with His feathers; under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, . . .

You are to imitate me, just as I imitate Christ.

Jesus took up this question and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down the same road, but when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So too, when a Levite came to that spot and saw him, he passed by on the other side. But when a Samaritan on a journey came upon him, he looked at him and had compassion. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. . . .

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

Look at the birds of the air: They do not sow or reap or gather into barns—and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

By this we know what love is: Jesus laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.

But Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Jesus declared, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’

For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life.

Jesus declared, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Today has enough trouble of its own.

They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony. And they did not love their lives so as to shy away from death.

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, with whom there is no change or shifting shadow.

I have set you an example so that you should do as I have done for you.

I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.

God is Spirit, and His worshipers must worship Him in spirit and in truth.”

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves.

Therefore, since you have been raised with Christ, strive for the things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry. . . .

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness.

For no word from God will ever fail.”

For I want you to know how much I am struggling for you and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not met me face to face, that they may be encouraged in heart, knit together in love, and filled with the full riches of complete understanding, so that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I say this so that no one will deceive you by smooth rhetoric. For although I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit, and I delight to see your orderly condition and firm faith in Christ. . . .

And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace and peace to you from God our Father. We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all the saints— the faith and love proceeding from the hope stored up for you in heaven, of which you have already heard in the word of truth, the gospel . . .

Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to reckless indiscretion. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.

Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the Law of the LORD. Blessed are those who keep His testimonies and seek Him with all their heart. They do no iniquity; they walk in His ways. You have ordained Your precepts, that we should keep them diligently. Oh, that my ways were committed to keeping Your statutes! . . .

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Just as the living Father sent Me and I live because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on Me will live because of Me.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’

Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

Whatever you do, work at it with your whole being, for the Lord and not for men,

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not from the Father but from the world. The world is passing away, along with its desires; but whoever does the will of God remains forever.

Whoever claims to abide in Him must walk as Jesus walked.

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way that we are, yet was without sin.

Anyone who loves his father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me; and anyone who does not take up his cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

You did not choose Me, but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will remain—so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give you.

Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart.

‘For in Him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are His offspring.’

For in Him all things were created, things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities. All things were created through Him and for Him.

No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide an escape, so that you can stand up under it.

and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Your word, O LORD, is everlasting; it is firmly fixed in the heavens.

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

For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her

Many plans are in a man’s heart, but the purpose of the LORD will prevail.

For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His footsteps:

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Give thanks in every circumstance, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its savor, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they set it on a stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

He who walks with the wise will become wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed.

But reject irreverent, silly myths. Instead, train yourself for godliness.

Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.

And the things that you have heard me say among many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be qualified to teach others as well.

To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven:

Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.

Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.

Let no one despise your youth, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.

A good name is more desirable than great riches; favor is better than silver and gold.