Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified of them, for the Lord, your God, is going forth with you. He will never leave you or abandon you.
The one who eats everything must not look contemptuously on the one who does not, and the one who abstains must not pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed both.
He then called the people and his disciples to him and said to them, “Anyone who wishes to follow me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.”
Then he went on, “It is what comes out of a person that defiles. For from within, from the human heart, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, malice, deceit, indecency, envy, slander, arrogance, and folly. All these evils come from within, and they defile a person.”
Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we can approach God with confidence and receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commandments and do whatever is pleasing to him.
Bring the tithes in full into the treasury so that there may be food in my house. Put me thus to the test, says the Lord of hosts, and see if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down blessings upon you without measure.
Brethren, if anyone is detected committing a transgression, you who are spiritual must set him right in a spirit of gentleness. Meanwhile, you should take care so that you yourselves are not tempted.