| Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. | And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. |
| Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. | Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. |
| His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ | The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’ |
| Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world. | Sing to the Lord, for he has done wonderful things. Make known his praise around the world. |
| And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. | And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. |
| I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. | I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life. |
| I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. | I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! |
| “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.” | “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.” |
| You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. | You may think you can condemn such people, but you are just as bad, and you have no excuse! When you say they are wicked and should be punished, you are condemning yourself, for you who judge others do these very same things. |
| But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. | But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! |
| A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. | A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart. |
| He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? | Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? |
| For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. | For every house has a builder, but the one who built everything is God. |
| But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. | But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you. |
| Who is wise? Let them realize these things. Who is discerning? Let them understand. The ways of the Lord are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them. | Let those who are wise understand these things. Let those with discernment listen carefully. The paths of the Lord are true and right, and righteous people live by walking in them. But in those paths sinners stumble and fall. |
| I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. | I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world. |
| “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” | “Abba, Father,” he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” |
| Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. | Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. |
| The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. | The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them. |
| And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. | And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. |
| For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. | And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. |
| Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. | Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. |
| For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. | For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. |
| For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. | Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come. |
| 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. | The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven. |
Bible verse of the day
Fear of man will prove to be a snare,but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.