Book of Common Prayer

4 Well then, my dear family—I miss you so much, you’re my joy and crown!—this is how you must stand firm in the Lord, my beloved people.

Celebrate in the Lord!

² I have a special appeal which goes jointly to Euodia and Syntyche: please, please, come to a common mind in the Lord. ³ (And here’s a request for you too, my loyal comrade: please help these women. They have struggled hard in the gospel alongside me, as have Clement and my other fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.)

⁴ Celebrate joyfully in the Lord, all the time. I’ll say it again: celebrate! ⁵ Let everybody know how gentle and gracious you are. The Lord is near.

⁶ Don’t worry about anything. Rather, in every area of life let God know what you want, as you pray and make requests, and give thanks as well. ⁷ And God’s peace, which is greater than we can ever understand, will keep guard over your hearts and minds in Messiah Jesus.

⁸ For the rest, my dear family, these are the things you should think through: whatever is true, whatever is holy, whatever is upright, whatever is pure, whatever is attractive, whatever has a good reputation; anything virtuous, anything praiseworthy. ⁹ And these are the things you should do: what you learned, received, heard and saw in and through me. And the God of peace will be with you.

Jesus prays for his people

⁹ “I’m praying for them. I’m not praying for the world, but for the people you’ve given me. They belong to you. ¹⁰ All mine are yours; all yours are mine; and I’m glorified in them.

¹¹ “I’m not in the world any longer, but they’re still in the world; I’m coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, the name you’ve given to me, so that they may be one, just as we are one.

¹² “When I was with them, I kept them in your name, the name you’ve given me. I guarded them, and none of them has been destroyed (except the son of destruction; that’s what the Bible said would happen). ¹³ But now I’m coming to you. I’m speaking these things in the world, so that they can have my joy fulfilled in them.

¹⁴ “I have given them your word. The world hated them, because they are not from the world, just as I am not from the world. ¹⁵ I’m not asking that you should take them out of the world, but that you should keep them from the evil one. ¹⁶ They didn’t come from the world, just as I didn’t come from the world. ¹⁷ Set them apart for yourself in the truth; your word is truth. ¹⁸ Just as you sent me into the world, so I sent them into the world. ¹⁹ And on their account I set myself apart for you, so that they, too, may be set apart for you in the truth.”