15 Always live as God’s holy people should, because God is the one who chose you, and he is holy. 16 *That’s why the Scriptures say, "I am the holy God, and you must be holy too."

15 Always live as God’s holy people should, because God is the one who chose you, and he is holy. 16 *That’s why the Scriptures say, "I am the holy God, and you must be holy too."

4 Before the world was created, God had Christ choose us to live with him and to be his holy and innocent and loving people.

3 God wants you to be holy, so don’t be immoral in matters of sex. 4 Respect and honor your wife.*5 Don’t be a slave of your desires or live like people who don’t know God. 6 You must not cheat any of the Lord’s followers in matters of sex.* Remember, we warned you that he punishes everyone who does such things. 7 God didn’t choose you to be filthy, but to be pure.

9 God saved us and chose us

to be his holy people.

We did nothing

to deserve this,

but God planned it

because he is so kind.

Even before time began

God planned for Christ Jesus

to show kindness to us.

3 Yet you are the holy God,

ruling from your throne

and praised by Israel.

2 No other god* is like you.

And with you we are safer

than on a high mountain.*

15 *Our holy God lives forever

in the highest heavens,

and this is what he says:

Though I live high above

in the holy place,

I am here to help those

who are humble

and depend only on me.

23 I will do these things to show the world that I, the Lord, am holy.

23 and to show foreign nations that I am holy. Then they will know that I am the Lord God. I have spoken.

14 Try to live at peace with everyone! Live a clean life. If you don’t, you will never see the Lord.

14 Try to live at peace with everyone! Live a clean life. If you don’t, you will never see the Lord.

1 My friends, God has made us these promises. So we should stay away from everything that keeps our bodies and spirits from being clean. We should honor God and try to be completely like him.

1 My friends, God has made us these promises. So we should stay away from everything that keeps our bodies and spirits from being clean. We should honor God and try to be completely like him.

22 Now you have been set free from sin, and you are God’s slaves. This will make you holy and will lead you to eternal life.

19 I am using these everyday examples, because in some ways you are still weak. You used to let the different parts of your body be slaves of your evil thoughts. But now you must make every part of your body serve God, so that you will belong completely to him.

1 Dear friends, God is good. So I beg you to offer your bodies to him as a living sacrifice, pure and pleasing. That’s the most sensible way to serve God.

17 My friends, I beg you to watch out for anyone who causes trouble and divides the church by refusing to do what all of you were taught. Stay away from them!

3 You are God’s people, so don’t let it be said that any of you are immoral or indecent or greedy.

3 You are God’s people, so don’t let it be said that any of you are immoral or indecent or greedy.

22 *You were told that your foolish desires will destroy you and that you must give up your old way of life with all its bad habits. 23 Let the Spirit change your way of thinking 24 *and make you into a new person. You were created to be like God, and so you must please him and be truly holy.

21 You used to be far from God. Your thoughts made you his enemies, and you did evil things. 22 But his Son became a human and died. So God made peace with you, and now he lets you stand in his presence as people who are holy and faultless and innocent. 23 But you must stay deeply rooted and firm in your faith. You must not give up the hope you received when you heard the good news. It was preached to everyone on earth, and I myself have become a servant of this message.

17 Your word is the truth. So let this truth make them completely yours.

9 Young people can live

a clean life

by obeying your word.

23 Look deep into my heart, God,

and find out everything

I am thinking.

24 Don’t let me follow evil ways,

but lead me in the way

that time has proven true.

1 With all my heart

I praise the Lord,

and with all that I am

I praise his holy name!

16 *All of you surely know you are God’s temple and his Spirit lives in you.

2 *To God’s church in Corinth. Christ Jesus chose you to be his very own people, and you worship in his name, as we and all others do who call him Lord.

5 and think the same way that Christ Jesus thought:*

1 Christ encourages you, and his love comforts you. God’s Spirit unites you, and you are concerned for others. 2 Now make me completely happy! Live in harmony by showing love for each other. Be united in what you think, as if you were only one person. 3 Don’t be jealous or proud, but be humble and consider others more important than yourselves. 4 Care about them as much as you care about yourselves 5 and think the same way that Christ Jesus thought:*

6 Christ was truly God.

But he did not try to remain*

equal with God.

7 Instead he gave up everything*

and became a slave,

when he became

like one of us.

8 Christ was humble.

He obeyed God and even died

on a cross.

9 Then God gave Christ

the highest place

and honored his name

above all others.

10 * So at the name of Jesus

everyone will bow down,

those in heaven, on earth,

and under the earth.

11 And to the glory

of God the Father

everyone will openly agree,

"Jesus Christ is Lord!"

12 My dear friends, you always obeyed when I was with you. Now that I am away, you should obey even more. So work with fear and trembling to discover what it really means to be saved. 13 God is working in you to make you willing and able to obey him.

14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing. 15 * Then you will be the pure and innocent children of God. You live among people who are crooked and evil, but you must not do anything they can say is wrong. Try to shine as lights among the people of this world, 16 as you hold firmly to* the message that gives life. Then on the day when Christ returns, I can take pride in you. I can also know that my work and efforts were not useless.

17 Your faith in the Lord and your service are like a sacrifice offered to him. And my own blood may have to be poured out with the sacrifice.* If this happens, I will be glad and rejoice with you. 18 In the same way, you should be glad and rejoice with me.

19 I want to be encouraged by news about you. So I hope the Lord Jesus will soon let me send Timothy to you. 20 I don’t have anyone else who cares about you as much as he does. 21 The others think only about what interests them and not about what concerns Christ Jesus. 22 But you know what kind of person Timothy is. He has worked with me like a son in spreading the good news. 23 I hope to send him to you, as soon as I find out what is going to happen to me. 24 And I feel sure the Lord will also let me come soon.

25 I think I ought to send my dear friend Epaphroditus back to you. He is a follower and a worker and a soldier of the Lord, just as I am. You sent him to look after me, 26 but now he is eager to see you. He is worried, because you heard he was sick. 27 In fact, he was very sick and almost died. But God was kind to him, and also to me, and he kept me from being burdened down with sorrow.

28 Now I am more eager than ever to send Epaphroditus back again. You will be glad to see him, and I won’t have to worry any longer. 29 Be sure to give him a cheerful welcome, just as people who serve the Lord deserve. 30 He almost died working for Christ, and he risked his own life to do for me what you could not.

48 *But you must always act like your Father in heaven.

16 *No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bowl or under a bed. A lamp is always put on a lampstand, so people who come into a house will see the light.

14 If you really want to live,

you must stop doing wrong

and start doing right.

I, the Lord God All-Powerful,

will then be on your side,

just as you claim I am.

10 *Respect and obey the Lord!

This is the beginning

of wisdom.*

To have understanding,

you must know the Holy God.

25 Don’t fall into the trap

of making promises to God

before you think!

26 I am the Lord, the holy God. You have been chosen to be my people, and so you must be holy too.

26 I am the Lord, the holy God. You have been chosen to be my people, and so you must be holy too.

7 Dedicate yourselves to me and be holy because I am the Lord your God.

4 Our God, you are the one

who rides on the clouds,*

and we praise you.

Your name is the Lord,

and we celebrate

as we worship you.

5 Our God, from your sacred home

you take care of orphans

and protect widows.