²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,^(A) for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.^(B)

²³ Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.^(A)

¹⁸ And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate^[a](A) the Lord’s glory,^(B) are being transformed into his image^(C) with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

¹⁵ Instead, speaking the truth in love,^(A) we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head,^(B) that is, Christ. ¹⁶ From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows^(C) and builds itself up^(D) in love,^(E) as each part does its work.

²⁰ That, however, is not the way of life you learned ²¹ when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. ²² You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off^(A) your old self,^(B) which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;^{(C) 23} to be made new in the attitude of your minds;^{(D) 24} and to put on^(E) the new self,^(F) created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.^(G)

⁷ But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss^(A) for the sake of Christ. ⁸ What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing^(B) Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ^{(C) 9} and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law,^(D) but that which is through faith in^[a] Christ—the righteousness^(E) that comes from God on the basis of faith.^{(F) 10} I want to know^(G) Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings,^(H) becoming like him in his death,^{(I) 11} and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection^(J) from the dead.

¹² Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,^(K) but I press on to take hold^(L) of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.^{(M) 13} Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind^(N) and straining toward what is ahead, ¹⁴ I press on^(O) toward the goal to win the prize^(P) for which God has called^(Q) me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Following Paul’s Example

¹⁵ All of us, then, who are mature^(R) should take such a view of things.^(S) And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you.^(T)

⁹ Do not lie to each other,^(A) since you have taken off your old self^(B) with its practices ¹⁰ and have put on the new self,^(C) which is being renewed^(D) in knowledge in the image of its Creator.^{(E) 11} Here there is no Gentile or Jew,^(F) circumcised or uncircumcised,^(G) barbarian, Scythian, slave or free,^(H) but Christ is all,^(I) and is in all.