²¹ For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder,

Drawing Close to God

4 What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you? ² You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. ³ And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.

¹⁹ When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, ²¹ envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

⁴ doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives?

⁷ For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. ⁸ That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.

¹⁹ For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander.

⁴ Jesus knew^[a] what they were thinking, so he asked them, “Why do you have such evil thoughts in your hearts?

²² Repent of your wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive your evil thoughts,