| And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. | Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. |
| Then, by the will of God, I will be able to come to you with a joyful heart, and we will be an encouragement to each other. | So that I may come to you with joy, by God’s will, and in your company be refreshed. |
| The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. | For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. |
| And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. | The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. |
| Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant. | Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ. |
| My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. Don’t lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart. | My son, pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart. |
| I will hurry, without delay, to obey your commands. | I will hasten and not delay to obey your commands. |
| And anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment. | Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them. |
| The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. | The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him. |
| ‘I am the Lord your God,’ I told them. ‘Follow my decrees, pay attention to my regulations, and keep my Sabbath days holy, for they are a sign to remind you that I am the Lord your God.’ | I am the Lord your God; follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. Keep my Sabbaths holy, that they may be a sign between us. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God. |
| You must faithfully keep all my commands by putting them into practice, for I am the Lord. | Keep my commands and follow them. I am the Lord. |
| Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends. | Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. |
| But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it. | But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. |
| Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. | Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! |
| Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me. | Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine. |
| Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. | ‘Return to me,’ declares the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will return to you,’ says the Lord Almighty. |
| My child, listen to me and do as I say, and you will have a long, good life. | Listen, my son, accept what I say, and the years of your life will be many. |
| So obey the commands of the Lord your God by walking in his ways and fearing him. | Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in obedience to him and revering him. |
| Then Peter replied, “I see very clearly that God shows no favoritism. In every nation he accepts those who fear him and do what is right.” | Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.” |
| So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. | Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. |
| In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him. | And, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him. |
| If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, I will send you the seasonal rains. The land will then yield its crops, and the trees of the field will produce their fruit. | If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees their fruit. |
| You must diligently obey the commands of the Lord your God—all the laws and decrees he has given you. | Be sure to keep the commands of the Lord your God and the stipulations and decrees he has given you. |
| So let us do our best to enter that rest. But if we disobey God, as the people of Israel did, we will fall. | Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. |
| Get wisdom; develop good judgment. Don’t forget my words or turn away from them. | Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or turn away from them. |
Bible verse of the day
Only a fool despises a parent’s discipline;whoever learns from correction is wise.