³ As we pray to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ.

¹³ Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.

⁶ For when we place our faith in Christ Jesus, there is no benefit in being circumcised or being uncircumcised. What is important is faith expressing itself in love.

¹¹ So we keep on praying for you, asking our God to enable you to live a life worthy of his call. May he give you the power to accomplish all the good things your faith prompts you to do.

²⁴ We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope^[a] for it. ²⁵ But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)

³ Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome.

⁹ So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.

³ And all who have this eager expectation will keep themselves pure, just as he is pure.

¹³ I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.