Paul's Prayer

¹⁵ I have heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God's people. ¹⁶ So I never stop being grateful for you, as I mention you in my prayers. ¹⁷ I ask the glorious Father and God of our Lord Jesus Christ to give you his Spirit. The Spirit will make you wise and let you understand what it means to know God. ¹⁸ My prayer is that light will flood your hearts and you will understand the hope given to you when God chose you. Then you will discover the glorious blessings that will be yours together with all God's people.

¹⁹ I want you to know about the great and mighty power that God has for us followers. It is the same wonderful power he used ^20 (A) when he raised Christ from death and let him sit at his right side^[a] in heaven. ²¹ There Christ rules over all forces, authorities, powers, and rulers. He rules over all beings in this world and will rule in the future world as well. ^22 (B)(C) God has put all things under the power of Christ, and for the good of the church he has made him the head of everything. ²³ The church is the body of Christ and is filled with Christ who completely fills everything.^[b]

3 ^(A) Think how much the Father loves us. He loves us so much that he lets us be called his children, as we truly are. But since the people of this world did not know who Christ^[a] is, they don't know who we are. ² My dear friends, we are already God's children, though what we will be hasn't yet been seen. But we do know when Christ returns, we will be like him, because we will see him as he truly is. ³ This hope makes us keep ourselves holy, just as Christ^[b] is holy.

Chosen To Live a Holy Life

¹³ Be alert and think straight. Put all your hope in how God will treat you with undeserved grace when Jesus Christ appears. ¹⁴ Behave like obedient children. Don't let your lives be controlled by your desires, as they used to be. ¹⁵ Always live as God's holy people should, because God is the one who chose you, and he is holy.