…spreading this Good News…
…about the endless treasures available to them
in Christ.
God’s purpose in all this was to use the church
to display his wisdom in its rich variety
to all the unseen rulers and authorities
in the heavenly places.
The LORD has made the heavens his throne;
from there he rules over everything.
Praise the LORD,
you angels,
you mighty ones who carry out his plans,
listening for each of his commands.
Ephesians 3:7-8, 10;Psalm 103:19-20
The LORD is compassionate and merciful,
slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
He will not constantly accuse us,
nor remain angry forever.
He does not punish us for all our sins;
he does not deal harshly with us,
as we deserve.
For his unfailing love toward those who fear him
is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.
He has removed our sins as far from us
as the east is from the west.
Together,
we are his house,
built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets.
And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself.
We are carefully joined together in him,
becoming a holy temple for the Lord.
Jesus gave his life for our sins,
just as God our Father planned,
in order to rescue us from this evil world
in which we live.
All glory to God forever and ever!
Amen.
Be joyful.
Grow to maturity.
Encourage each other.
Live in harmony and peace.
Then the God of love and peace will be with you.
We use God’s mighty weapons,
not worldly weapons,
to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning
and to destroy false arguments.
We destroy every proud obstacle
that keeps people from knowing God…
God is not a man,
so he does not lie.
He is not human,
so he does not change his mind.
Has he ever spoken and failed to act?
Has he ever promised and not carried it through?
You know the generous grace
of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Though he was rich,
yet for your sakes he became poor,
so that by his poverty
he could make you rich.
So we are Christ’s ambassadors;
God is making his appeal through us.
We speak for Christ when we plead,
“Come back to God!”
He died for everyone
so that those who receive his new life
will no longer live for themselves.
Instead,
they will live for Christ,
who died and was raised for them.
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ
has become a new person.
The old life is gone;
a new life has begun!
