Thanksgiving and Prayer

^3 (A)I thank my God ^(B)in all my remembrance of you, ⁴ always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, ^5 (C)because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. ⁶ And I am sure of this, that he who began ^(D)a good work in you ^(E)will bring it to completion at ^(F)the day of Jesus Christ. ⁷ It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you ^(G)in my heart, for you are all ^(H)partakers with me of grace,^[a] both ^(I)in my imprisonment and in ^(J)the defense and confirmation of the gospel. ⁸ For ^(K)God is my witness, ^(L)how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.

¹³ though formerly I was a blasphemer, ^(A)persecutor, and insolent opponent. But ^(B)I received mercy ^(C)because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, ¹⁴ and ^(D)the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the ^(E)faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. ¹⁵ The saying is ^(F)trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus ^(G)came into the world to save sinners, ^(H)of whom I am the foremost.

God's Sovereign Choice

9 ^(A)I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit— ² that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. ³ For ^(B)I could wish that I myself were ^(C)accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers,^[a] my kinsmen ^(D)according to the flesh.

God's Sovereign Choice

9 ^(A)I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit— ² that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. ³ For ^(B)I could wish that I myself were ^(C)accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers,^[a] my kinsmen ^(D)according to the flesh.

⁷ So ^(A)to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations,^{[a] (B)}a thorn was given me in the flesh, ^(C)a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. ^8 (D)Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. ⁹ But he said to me, ^(E)“My grace is sufficient for you, for ^(F)my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that ^(G)the power of Christ may rest upon me. ^10 (H)For the sake of Christ, then, ^(I)I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For ^(J)when I am weak, then I am strong.

Do Not Pass Judgment on One Another

14 As for ^(A)the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. ^2 (B)One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. ³ Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and ^(C)let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. ^4 (D)Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master^[a] that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

^5 (E)One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. ^(F)Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. ⁶ The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since ^(G)he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. ⁷ For ^(H)none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. ⁸ For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, ^(I)whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. ⁹ For to this end Christ ^(J)died and lived again, that he might be Lord both ^(K)of the dead and of the living.

¹⁰ Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For ^(L)we will all stand before ^(M)the judgment seat of God; ¹¹ for it is written,

¹² So then ^(O)each of us will give an account of himself to God.

Do Not Cause Another to Stumble

^13 (P)Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide ^(Q)never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother. ¹⁴ I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus ^(R)that nothing is unclean in itself, ^(S)but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean. ¹⁵ For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, ^(T)you are no longer walking in love. ^(U)By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died. ^16 (V)So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. ^17 (W)For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but ^(X)of righteousness and ^(Y)peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. ¹⁸ Whoever thus serves Christ is ^(Z)acceptable to God and approved by men. ¹⁹ So then let us ^(AA)pursue what makes for peace and for ^(AB)mutual upbuilding.

^20 (AC)Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. ^(AD)Everything is indeed clean, but ^(AE)it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats. ^21 (AF)It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.^{[c] 22} The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. ^(AG)Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. ²³ But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.^[d]

⁸ For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers,^[a] of ^(A)the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. ⁹ Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us ^(B)rely not on ourselves ^(C)but on God ^(D)who raises the dead. ^10 (E)He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. ^(F)On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. ^11 (G)You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf ^(H)for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.

¹⁶ But ^(A)avoid ^(B)irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, ¹⁷ and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are ^(C)Hymenaeus and Philetus, ¹⁸ who have swerved from the truth, ^(D)saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some.

⁸ Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! Without us you have become kings! And would that you did reign, so that we might share the rule with you! ⁹ For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, ^(A)like men sentenced to death, because we ^(B)have become a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men. ^10 (C)We are fools for Christ's sake, but ^(D)you are wise in Christ. ^(E)We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we in disrepute. ¹¹ To the present hour ^(F)we hunger and thirst, we are poorly dressed and ^(G)buffeted and ^(H)homeless,