The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. But I will sing of your strength,
in the morning I will sing of your love;
for you are my fortress,
my refuge in times of trouble. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. So then, banish anxiety from your heart
and cast off the troubles of your body,
for youth and vigor are meaningless. Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God. Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. I will extol the Lord at all times;
his praise will always be on my lips. To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen. You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. The lips of the righteous know what finds favor,
but the mouth of the wicked only what is perverse. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. The Lord will rescue his servants;
no one who takes refuge in him will be condemned. When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. And every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father. I have not departed from the commands of his lips;
I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread. Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.” You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. Praise the Lord, my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name. But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord,
I wait for God my Savior;
my God will hear me. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. Who is he, this King of glory?
The Lord Almighty—
he is the King of glory. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.Next verse!With image