Book of Common Prayer

As Beloved Children, Be Imitators of God And Walk In Love

5 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. ² And be walking in love, just as Christ also loved us and handed Himself over for us— an offering and a sacrifice to God for an aroma of fragrance.

But Don’t Let Any Kind of Impurity Or Greed Exist Among You

³ But let sexual-immorality and all impurity or greed not even be named^[a] among you, as is proper for saints— ⁴ and filthiness^[b] and foolish-talk or coarse-joking^[c], which are not fitting, but rather thanksgiving.

You Know This Is Right, So Don’t Be Partakers With Those Inheriting Wrath

⁵ For you know this^[d]— recognizing^[e] that every sexually-immoral or impure or greedy person (that is, an idolater) does not have an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. ⁶ Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of ^[f] disobedience. ⁷ Therefore do not be fellow-partakers with them.

For You Were Formerly Darkness, But Now You Are Light; Walk As Children of Light

⁸ For you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Be walking as children of ^[g] light (⁹ for the fruit of the light is in^[h] all goodness and righteousness and truth), ¹⁰ approving what is pleasing^[i] to the Lord.

Expose The Works of Darkness To God’s Light

¹¹ And do not be participating in the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather even be exposing^[j] them. ¹² For it is shameful even to speak the things being done in secret by them, ¹³ but all things being exposed by the light become-visible^[k]. ¹⁴ For everything becoming-visible is^[l] light. Therefore he^[m] says, “Awake, sleeping one, and rise-up from the dead, and Christ will shine-on you.”

So Walk Wisely, Redeeming The Time. Be Filled With The Spirit, And Subject To One Another

¹⁵ Therefore be watching carefully how you walk— not as unwise, but as wise, ¹⁶ redeeming^[n] the time, because the days are evil. ¹⁷ For this reason, do not be foolish ones, but understand what the will of the Lord is. ¹⁸ And do not get-drunk with wine, in^[o] which is wild-living, but be filled with^[p] the Spirit, ¹⁹ speaking to each other with^[q] psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making-melody with your heart to the Lord, ²⁰ giving-thanks always for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to our God and Father,

Jesus Calls Matthew The Tax Collector And Eats With His Friends. I Came For Sinners

⁹ And while Jesus was passing on from there, He saw a man sitting at the tax-office, being called Matthew. And He says to him, “Be following Me!” And having stood up, he followed Him. ¹⁰ And it came about while He was reclining-back [to eat] in the^[a] house that behold— many tax-collectors and sinners^[b], having come, were reclining-back-with Jesus and His disciples. ¹¹ And having seen it, the Pharisees were saying to His disciples, “For what reason is your Teacher eating with the tax-collectors and sinners?” ¹² And the One, having heard it, said, “The ones being strong have no need of a physician, but the ones being ill. ¹³ But having gone, learn what it means [in Hos 6:6]: ‘I desire mercy, and not a sacrifice’. For I did not come to call righteous ones, but sinners”.

Jesus Did Not Come To Patch Up The Old System, But To Inaugurate a New One

¹⁴ Then the disciples of John come to Him, saying “For what reason are we and the Pharisees fasting^[c] often, but Your disciples are not fasting?” ¹⁵ And Jesus said to them, “The sons of the wedding-hall^[d] cannot be mourning as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? But days will come when the bridegroom is taken-away from them, and then they will fast. ¹⁶ And no one puts a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. For the fullness of it takes^[e] from the garment and a worse tear takes place. ¹⁷ Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise indeed the wineskins are burst, and the wine spills out and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into fresh^[f] wineskins, and both are preserved”.