^5 (A)A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”

^5 (A)They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and ^(B)the world listens to them. ⁶ We are from God. ^(C)Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know ^(D)the Spirit of truth and ^(E)the spirit of error.

Alive in Christ

^6 (A)Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, ^7 (B)rooted and ^(C)built up in him and ^(D)established in the faith, just ^(E)as you were taught, abounding ^(F)in thanksgiving.

⁸ See to it that no one takes you captive by ^(G)philosophy and ^(H)empty deceit, according to ^(I)human tradition, according to the ^(J)elemental spirits^[a] of the world, and not according to Christ. ⁹ For ^(K)in him the whole fullness of deity dwells ^(L)bodily, ¹⁰ and ^(M)you have been filled in him, who is ^(N)the head of all rule and authority.

^2 (A)“‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but ^(B)have tested those ^(C)who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false.

¹¹ And ^(A)he gave the ^(B)apostles, the prophets, the ^(C)evangelists, the ^(D)shepherds^[a] and teachers,^{[b] 12 (E)}to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for ^(F)building up ^(G)the body of Christ, ¹³ until we all attain to ^(H)the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, ^(I)to mature manhood,^[c] to the measure of the stature of ^(J)the fullness of Christ, ¹⁴ so that we may no longer be children, ^(K)tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in ^(L)deceitful schemes. ¹⁵ Rather, ^(M)speaking the truth in love, we are to ^(N)grow up in every way into him who is ^(O)the head, into Christ,